New Age Therapy vs. Traditional Psychotherapy: What Is the Difference?
Psychology has been a godsend for a Western society mired in neurosis. The whys and wherefores of how this came to be are less important than the fact that it is true: Millions of people have had their lives verifiably improved by traditional…
Coercion vs. Persuasion: Difference Between Coercion and Persuasion
The difference between coercion and persuasion goes to the heart of human liberty and the Anglo-Saxon legal tradition starting with the Magna Carta. Coercion, on the one hand, is the method of despotism of all stripes since time immemorial. The…
Statesman vs. Politician: Difference Between Statesmen and Politicians
John F. Kennedy signing the Cuba Quarantine Proclamation. (1962) “A politician thinks of the next election. A statesman, of the next generation.” - James Freeman Clarke It's rare that we even use the term "statesman" these days unless we're being…
Propaganda vs. PR: Difference Between Propaganda and Public Relations
From Ball State University Libraries It’s possible to learn a lot from unpacking “obvious” questions. For example: What precisely is the difference between propaganda and public relations? The origins of…
The Problem with “Speaking Your Truth”
Several times now I’ve run into the “trump card” of the new age spirituality movement in Ubud known as “speaking one’s truth” when dealing with a disagreement. It’s baffling because it’s celebrated as being one of the highest values by those…
From Diet to Dogma: The Ethical Problems With Veganism
Diet is one of those topics which goes beyond simply what you put into your body and speaks to deeper truths about how you see the world and your role in it. It's ethical, and probably the most well-known example of this is veganism. Okay so before…
What Is a Bigoteer and What Does Bigoteering Mean?
Bigotry is big business. But maybe not for who you think it is. “Bigoteer” is a neologism for someone who profits not from bigotry themselves. Indeed, there doesn’t seem to be much action in promoting bigotry these days. The “alt right” is largely…
What Nietzsche Would Say About Instagram
Thought experiment: What would Friedrich Nietzsche, the great German philosopher of the 19th century, say about Instagram? I have a few theories based on what he wrote and how he lived. But first, a bit of context because Nietzsche was very far…