Beyond Intractability in Context Blog
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Posts ordered from most recent to earliest.
- High school debates have long been praised for helping students learn how to constructively grapple with controversial issues. Now, unwelcome news that they are moving away from that role. -- At High School Debates, Watch What You Say -- Jul 15
- Genuinely good news, the incoming chair of the National Governors Association, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R) plans to focus his attention on the cultivation of "healthy conflict" and the ability to "disagree better." -- Why this governor is promoting ‘healthy conflict’ -- Jul 15
- An impassioned and persuasive defense of civility even when confronting uncivil political adversaries. -- Civility Isn’t Weakness—It’s How We Win -- Jul 15
- More evidence that the credibility of the United States' judicial system is collapsing and being replaced by partisan efforts to shape the courts so in ways that deliver the politically desired judgements. -- Biden faces renewed pressure to embrace Supreme Court overhaul -- Jul 14
- A look at the way in which the many problems afflicting contemporary journalism are impacting coverage of climate-related issues and, potentially, distorting our response to the crisis. -- Climate Journalism is Broken -- Jul 14
- A contrarian look at long-termism for those thinking about embracing the concept. -- The Case Against Longtermism -- Jul 13
- In the context of Ukraine, an assessment of the complex issues surrounding attempts to ban weapons of war that cause death and destruction long after the fighting ends. -- Here’s why supplying Ukraine with cluster munitions would be a terrible mistake -- Jul 13
- Key to not repeating the mistakes of the past is an ability to learn from those mistakes – something that the United States is not doing very well as it looks back on the war on terror. -- What the U.S. Military Still Hasn’t Learned From Iraq -- Jul 12
- A supportive look at theories of change built around the notion of effective altruism and long-termism. -- The Case For Effective Altruism -- Jul 12
- A lengthy and very detailed analysis of the incremental changes that led to Donald Trump's transformation of the Republican Party and its increasing embrace of authoritarianism. -- The Corruption of Lindsey Graham -- Jul 11
- A series of provocative and controversial observations about affirmative action well worth considering. -- 10 Notes on the End of Affirmative Action -- Jul 11
- A review/summary of an important new book about why the U.S. Congress is so dysfunctional and what might be done about it. -- Extremism In Defense of Moderation Is No Virtue -- Jul 11
- A review of an important new contribution to efforts to understand and surmount the challenges facing democracy and its capitalist economic system. -- The End of Democratic Capitalism? -- Jul 10
- An exploration of the relationship between the ability to retrieve lots facts relevant to a particular issue and real thinking. -- Google Isn’t Grad School -- Jul 10
- An idea for restructuring Congress in ways that replace the current, usually noncompetitive "winner take all" system with real choices that help assure that minority views are represented. -- A Radical Idea for Fixing Congress: Proportional Representation -- Jul 10
- A provocative look at the circumstances under which debate does and does not help audiences develop a more accurate and morally sound opinions about controversial issues. -- Opinion: How Joe Rogan's vaccine-debate pitch undermines real science -- Jul 09
- A thoughtful essay offering those on the progressive left new insights into the appeal of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement. -- The Rage and Joy of MAGA America -- Jul 09
- As we think about ways of building a more resilient democracy, it's worth paying attention to what makes autocracy resilient and why it's so important that we let it get established. -- What Makes Putin and the World’s Autocrats So Resilient? -- Jul 09
- An essay that helps explain large-scale civil unrest that has been sweeping France and how it is different from the United States' superficially similar George Floyd protests. -- The Fury in France—and Across the West -- Jul 08
- A thoughtful and important observation that the conflict is not between the pro-and anti-environmental movement but between two different visions for the environmental movement. -- Two visions of environmentalism -- Jul 08
- Yet another reason why we should not assume that catastrophic world wars are a thing of the past. The time has come to give war prevention the additional attention it deserves. -- World War III Will Be Fought With Viruses -- Jul 08
- An insightful essay explaining how so many social institutions are moving away from their core responsibilities and acting in ways that inflame tensions. -- The Age of Spectacle Is Upon Us -- Jul 01
- A thoughtful inventory of the things that make it so hard to remedy today's destructive information flows – problems which we have to find a way to overcome. -- Why it's so hard to fix the information ecosystem -- Jun 30
- A look at what makes the "hyper" in hyper-polarization so "hyper." -- Stimulant Politics: Arousal, Agitation, Amphetamines, and the Froth of Politics -- Jun 30
- A story about how leaders of the tech industry are trying to persuade society to take the steps needed to protect itself from the downsides of AI. -- A.I. Poses ‘Risk of Extinction,’ Industry Leaders Warn -- Jun 29
