Blog – Page 4 – Gus diZerega

The Magick of Pagan Music

Posted on February 25, 2015February 25, 2015 by Gus

I posted some thought about music’s role in our religion on Witches and Pagans. It was inspired by three wonderful composer/musicians I head at Pantheacon this year: Holly Tannen, Ruth Barrett, and Celia Farran. There are some nice links to … Read more

+

Charles Koch, intellectual freedom and the death of libertarian scholarship

Posted on January 14, 2015 by Gus

It looks like the Koch ideological machine is very serious about using Koch money to control the intellectual life of college campuses wherever possible. “Lakey,” a graduate student at Florida State University just wrote an expose for the Tallahassee Democrat… Read more

+

Progressives again blowing the lessons of the election

Posted on January 7, 2015January 8, 2015 by Gus

As Republicans take over the Senate as well as the House, progressive American leaders are trying to find a silver lining, and so far guaranteeing the clouds will remain dark. Think Progress, which has many intelligent posts, has one by … Read more

+

Musings on the Solstice in Dark Times

Posted on December 28, 2014 by Gus

These are dark times for anyone with any affection for the liberal values that underlie the best of this country all the way back to our Founders. From ‘patruots’ who understand this country’s principles as well as Fundamentalists and ISIL … Read more

+

Bernd Heinrich’s “Life Everlasting”: a review essay

Posted on October 19, 2014December 13, 2014 by Gus

This has been cross-posted at Witches and Pagans.

Scientists motivated by a deep love and fascination for the natural world share much of a Pagan sensibility about the world’s intrinsic value without our metaphysics, but with skills of observation … Read more

+

When is a book review not a book review? A more than frustrating review of “Faultlines”

Posted on August 22, 2014August 22, 2014 by Gus

There are reviews that grapple with what a book argues, and those that do not. I was disappointed that Patheos’ review of my book was the latter. Nikki Whiting admits after reading it she did not know for sure what … Read more

+

Libertarian critique II: Property rights

Posted on July 27, 2014 by Gus

If anything sets libertarianism as an ideology off from other more reasonable points of view, along with the ‘nonaggression principle’ it is their doctrine of property rights. As with nonaggression, they take a principle nearly all agree on, and then … Read more

+

Libertarian Critique I: The ‘nonaggression principle’

Posted on July 27, 2014July 27, 2014 by Gus

This is the first of what will be a series of posts criticizing libertarian ideology as not up to the claims its advocates claim for it. Perhaps some will even seek to enter into dialogue on this or other issues … Read more

+

Antibiotics and the Market: One more example of the bankruptcy of libertarian ideology

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Gus

Libertarians and ‘free market’ advocates in general claim that markets reflect people’s decisions and values better than any other social institution, and so ‘freedom’ is maximized when markets are ‘unfettered.’ The New Scientist for May 24 has an important example … Read more

+

Taking the Initiative towards electoral reform: a vital role for Maine?

Posted on April 21, 2014July 20, 2014 by Gus

The American political system has become dysfunctional with no hope at the moment for an end to the crisis. Further, those benefiting from the dysfunction have a vested interest in continuing the crisis, and can best do so by continuing … Read more

+