Monthly Archives: April 2013

Stressed Out Materials (New York)

Posted on April 30, 2013 by zjb
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(Aesthetic Political Theory) Inside the Platonic Cave of the Liberal Social Spheres (Michael Walzer)

Posted on April 30, 2013 by zjb

It’s an old book which I got to because we recently hosted at SU its author, Michael Walzer. Really, I should have come to this much sooner, as Walzer is my kind of liberal-social democrat. His classic Spheres of Justice … Continue reading →

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“Neoliberalism” or “Hypercapitalism”

Posted on April 29, 2013 by zjb

It suddenly occurred to me. Why do we call it “neoliberalism” and not hypercapitalism? Is it just a convention? And, yes, it has a pedigree in political theory, except that it’s slightly confusing. As defined at the Colloque Walter Lippmann, … Continue reading →

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Columbia University Insane Asylum

Posted on April 28, 2013 by zjb

I found this reproduction of an old map of Morningside Heights. Apparently, the site now occupied by Columbia University was once an insane asylum. It was called Bloomingdale Insane Asylum. Thanks to SK for sharing this link. Apparently, they also abused … Continue reading →

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Other People’s Homes (Requiem)

Posted on April 27, 2013 by zjb

On the road home from Syracuse down rt. 81, through small cities, Binghamton and Scranton where other people live. It’s the place “in between” where I’d rather not live. Listened to Mozart’s Requiem, picking up speed, and eating peanuts. With … Continue reading →

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Sympathy (Liberalism) Solidarity

Posted on April 26, 2013 by zjb

Reading Moses Mendelssohn, it occurred to me that “sympathy” is the cardinal liberal virtue. Reading Michael Walzer only confirms this suspicion. Sympathy is what, I think, distinguishes Mendelssohn, who was  sympathetic, from Spinoza, who was not, especially in relation to … Continue reading →

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“Israel” “Arabs” “Jews” “Muslims”

Posted on April 25, 2013 by zjb

Well, this is going to be a strange post, but I’ll go out a limb with it. Because with all the bloviating about “Islamo-fascism” and “Islamophobia,” what strikes me is the absolutely quick and completely incomplete learning-curve events since 9/11 … Continue reading →

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It’s Impossible to Talk about Islam (Syria After Boston)

Posted on April 24, 2013 by zjb

No doubt I’m overstating it, but it sometimes seems that an honest discussion about Islam is impossible in the United States, and certainly not now, at least for the time being after the terrorist attack in Boston. In both the … Continue reading →

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Et tu Paris? (Gay Marriage & Homophobia) (Laïcité)

Posted on April 23, 2013 by zjb

Kudos to the French government for passing gay marriage, but what about France? These kinds of mass protests against marriage equality, and this kind of organized homophobia you expect in more benighted places such as these United States. Much of … Continue reading →

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Community of Flowers (Politics) (NYC Greenwalk)

Posted on April 22, 2013 by zjb

A  community of flowers in Riverside Park. They form what appears to be a uniform yellow carpet. Thoughtless, they subsist only together.

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