Book Review: Benjamin Schwartz – In Search Of Wealth And Power

This , about History, tagged , , , was written by for , on April 16, 2013 .2 Comments

In Search of Wealth and Power by Benjamin Schwartz, published in 1964. Rating: 4/5. In Search of Wealth and Power is a very dense but richly rewarding tome by Benjamin Schwartz, a noted China scholar. He focuses on the life of the translator Yan Fu to illustrate the culture clashes that arose when traditional Chinese civilization came into […]

The Radical Ideologies Of The 21st Century

This about Futurism, tagged , , was written by for on April 24, 2011 .15 Comments

Though I’ve written a lot on technological, energy, and geopolitical futures, this has largely been to the neglect of ideology. Part of the reason is that making accurate predictions on this topic is far harder, because of the inherent intangibility of belief systems. Nonetheless, it is necessary, because of their overwhelming influence on the historical […]

Poker And Capitalism

This about Philosophy, tagged , , , was written by for on April 16, 2011 .2 Comments

“[Poker] exemplifies the worst aspects of capitalism that have made [the United States] so great.” Just consider the array of similarities: 1. Though there are rules and etiquette loosely associated with it, otherwise everything goes: in other words, its fundamental nature is profoundly amoral. (This is contrary to the ideologues who claim that capitalism is either […]

Freedom, Welfare, and the Future

This about Economy, tagged , , was written by for on December 12, 2009 .1 Comment

The welfare state, or what we conceive of as such today, is a relatively recent phenomenon. Although pre-modern states did perform some pro-welfare functions such as regulating prices and wages, maintaining workhouses for the poor and even a limited form of targeted social support[1], this spending was framed not in terms of the state’s fulfillment […]

Russia’s Sisyphean Loop

This about Philosophy, tagged , , , , was written by for on November 17, 2009 .6 Comments

Anatoly Karlin @ www.DaRussophile.com PDF version | DOC version Russia’s Sisyphean Loop The Eternal Return to the Future? In this article I attempt to explain Russia’s historical cycles of failed Westernization and to project its future socio-political trajectory. First, I note the nature of and linkages between Russia’s geography, cultural traditions and imperial cycles. Second, […]