Progressivism. scient _ tech key to improving the
human condition (enlightenment era)
Bulletin of Atomic Scientists "Doomsday clock" 100
seconds to midnight
Ecocide (American biologist Arthur Glaston)
Dromosphere French cultural theorist Paul Virilio
Huxleyan problem. Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (1932).
The problem is not that we live in an information poor
environment, but a poor information environment.
Climate change
Martin Heidegger: Dasein "being-there"
Instead of philosophy needing to think past everyday
life to understand the world better, it should think
about the lives that we are already living.
Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell 1949
Animal Farm
Media
censorship
Hong Kong Protests and National Security Law. In response
to pro-democratic protests 2019-2020, CCP established
vague laws with harsh penalties that appear to target prodemocracy activists
Totalitarianism
Political philosopher Jeffrey C
Alexander: Civil sphere. A world
of values and institutions that
facilitate social debate and
democratic integration at the
same time. Such a sphere relies
on solidarity, on feelings for
others whom we do not know
but respect out of principle
We are immersed in reality and have a direct and
palpable effect on the world
Arab Spring
Panopticon
Social media/Information overload
Technology
Aristotle: the essence of humanity is reason
Metaphysics
Maslow: A theory of human motivation 1943. We a
structure of needs we need to meet before we reach
our essence
Plato: Our interaction with the world is always a
degree away from reality
Foucault: conformity. French society
reconfigured punishment through surveillance
in new institutions. obedient citizens.
Versus (East vs West)
GWF Hegel's dialectic
Media
'post-truth era'
Debate is incommensurable
Brexit
Jacques Derrida: Dismantling our
loyalty to any idea and learning to
see the aspects of the truth that
might lie buried in it's opposite
Being able to see that both sides
are onto something, both are a bit
wrong, both needed each other
and that the tension between
would always prove irrevocable
(psychometrics)
Isolationism
Postmodernism
Free press
Free-market capitalism/the profit motive
Nihilism: Nietzsche "God is dead"
Communism/Socialism
Filial piety: Taoist or Confucian ethics.
Attitude of obedience, devotion, and care
toward one's parents and elder family
members that is the basis of individual moral
conduct and social harmony.
the myth of Sisyphus: meaning is found through applying
oneself to a task
Nationalism
Utopia
Existentialism: Sartre "condemned to be free"
existence before essence. There is no guide
to our actions so we must invent a moral code
for ourselves
Versus (East vs West)
Democracy
Consequentialism
Deontology
Religion
Uyghur re-education and sterilisation in XinJiang,
ongoing
Religious extremism/terrorism (other
interpretations of the Qur'an after 1400 years
of scholarly work
Money can't buy you happiness Scott F Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby 1925
Morals
Antiquity
Religious or ideological grand narratives (the shifting
of the dominant grand narrative from religion to
communist ideology in communist nations)
Distrust of conventional politicians/Democratic
backsliding Political scientist Nancy Borneo.
PartyGate scandal
Liberalism
Passion isn't sustainable
Modernism
Enlightenment
Individualism
The Global Financial Crisis of 2008
Wiki leaks, snowden, panama papers
Modern liberalism >> neoliberalism
The occupy movement 2011. A protest against
economic inequality and the influence of money in
politics. 'the downtrodden' vs 'the 1%'
July 6th Capitol Attack 2020. Mob of protestors
hoped to overturn Trump's defeat to Biden
Antifa movement
Right-Wing populism
Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Hungary and the Law
and Justice Party in Poland
"drain the swamp" Trump
Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte 1847. Healthcliff spends
much of his life seeking revenge over Cathy who has chosen
another man
Gender deconstructivism Judith Butler
Value in the 'truth' derived from the 5 senses and science
Choose between two parties. Distrust stemming
from failed election promises
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen 1813
Anne Case US economist: top1% wealth =
950 x greater than bottom 50 percent (IN US)
Both Darcy and Elizabeth have pride for their own
status and prejudice against each other's which they
must overcome to find love
Integrity: Darcy is one of the most eligible bachelors
in the nation ($$) but he is initially refused by
Elizabeth. When she realises that they are
emotionally and spiritually compatible, she accepts
his hand in marriage
Finding the balance between this and: "What does the brain
matter compared with the heart?" Virginia Woolf Mrs. Dalloway
1925