Tag Archives: Puritanism

Breaking magic, breaking wonderland

Magic can be a wonderful thing. In stories. Such as those set in the fictional country called Wonderland. In the 2013-2014 ABC TV series Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, there were three rules of magic [1].

You cannot:

  1. Raise (bring back) the dead
  2. Force someone to love you (make somebody fall in love)
  3. Change the past

But, of course, for fabulists and despots, rules get in the way. Even rules of magic [2]. Let alone the rule of law (or laws of logic & physics). Their desires seek to bend reality. To bring back deprecated tyranical notions, like zombies. To compel us to not believe what we see with our own eyes. And to forget history.

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The attention age – secular sirens & salvation

[Draft 3-24-2025]

Pay attention!

You’re at a cocktail party … or maybe in a social setting with your family … your attention is selective – like moving a spotlight around a stage, or tuning between foreground & background channels. Did you notice the person dressed in a gorilla costume walk by in the distance? [4]

Others want your attention. Sirens are calling you.

You want attention. Thrive on such attention.

(quote)
… the ability to grab the attention of the consumer is more important than the actual product or service offered. … we will forever be invested in [hunger for] other people paying attention to us. – Chris Hayes [1]

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Puritan praise & pride – a legacy of conflated piety

[Draft 11-7-2024]

We supposedly live in a secular society. And yet, sacred speech dominates our polarized politics. The righteous mind is alive and well. Private & public piety pervades our identities, our virtues and values. Dogma still divides. History has lessons which remain unheeded. Social media (and money) amplify an illusion of majority voice. We drift into a divide over the future of our democracy. The role of reason is in retreat.

Can heads, hearts, and hands find common ground to move forward?

Continue reading Puritan praise & pride – a legacy of conflated piety