Search Results for: "John Gray"

Caturday felids trifecta: Famous cats; how to make your cat love you; NYRB reviews several cat books

I am running low on cat-related items for future Caturday felids. If you come across an interesting cat-related piece, please send it my way. Did you know that Wikipedia has a list of famous and notable cats? Yes it does, with lots of them! Click below to go down the rabbit hole, for many of … Continue reading Caturday felids trifecta: Famous cats; how to make your cat love you; NYRB reviews several cat books

The Lancet’s editor jumps the shark, disses global health because of its racist and white supremacist history

I don’t know much about Richard Horton, the editor of The Lancet (one of the world’s top medical journals); but what is clear is that he’s uber-woke. He was, for example, responsible for this controversial cover:   There have been other political covers, other woke editorials by Horton, and a fair few woke articles that, … Continue reading The Lancet’s editor jumps the shark, disses global health because of its racist and white supremacist history

Why is Pinker demonized?

The Chronicle of Higher Education has a new and longish article by Tom Bartlett about the character, achievements, and demonization of Steve Pinker. Click on the screenshot below to read it. Let me give my own take on Pinker first. It’s no secret that I consider him a friend and admire him hugely. Among all … Continue reading Why is Pinker demonized?

Andrew Sullivan responds to me and others about his faith

Andrew Sullivan’s latest “The Intelligencer” column in New York Magazine has three subjects: Theresa May, gay jokes (he’s for them), and why atheism, like his Catholicism, is a religion. On December 9, I wrote a critique of Sullivan’s original column about atheism (“America’s new religions“), as well as giving him praise for recognizing the similarity … Continue reading Andrew Sullivan responds to me and others about his faith

John Gray and Sean Illing go after New Atheism for the bazillionth time, but offer no new (or incisive) arguments

Well, several readers sent this article to me, expecting or asking me to respond to it. But do I really have to go through this again? Really? In a new piece in Vox featuring an interview of philosopher John Gray by journalist Sean Illing (click on screenshot below), the old criticisms of New Atheism, made by … Continue reading John Gray and Sean Illing go after New Atheism for the bazillionth time, but offer no new (or incisive) arguments

Pinker’s latest TED talk: Is the world getting better?

In case you don’t have the moxie to read Steve Pinker’s two latest books—The Better Angels of Our Nature and Enlightenment Now—you can see a summary of both in Steve’s new 18.5-minute TED talk. Posted three days ago, it concisely summarizes his theses that the world is getting better in almost every measurable way, that … Continue reading Pinker’s latest TED talk: Is the world getting better?

Andrew Sullivan: the bad (atheism-bashing and religion-osculation) and the good (seeing American ideologies as religions)

Several people sent me links to Andrew Sullivan’s latest column in New York magazine (click on screenshot below). The curious thing is that half the senders thought the article was great while the other half despised it.  After reading it (it’s long, but read it anyway), I can see why. His opening attacks on atheism … Continue reading Andrew Sullivan: the bad (atheism-bashing and religion-osculation) and the good (seeing American ideologies as religions)

VICE defends astrology, selling it by saying it’s hated by “straight men”

It’s odd that any respectable media would defend astrology these days, since there’s no evidence for a correlation of birth sign with personality (a comprehensive double-blind test published in Nature in 1985 showed that pretty definitively). In many ways astrology is like religion: they’re both based on faith, there’s no evidence for their overweening truth claims, … Continue reading VICE defends astrology, selling it by saying it’s hated by “straight men”