Over the past decade I’ve watched with alarm the widening polarization of the body politic across Western societies (and to some extent globally). As commonly recognized, the public is split into irreconcilable political factions who disagree not only on the interpretation of events, but on what events even took place. They have seemingly separated into […]
The Polarization Trap | Charles Eisenstein Read More »
Photo by Paweł Czerwiński Let’s begin with beer. Every day I drive past a billboard for Coors Light with the slogan, “Coors rocks Harrisburg.” Now, does anybody actually believe that Coors does in fact “rock Harrisburg”? No. Does the Coors corporation itself believe it? No. Does anyone believe that Coors believes it? No. It is a
The Ubiquitous Matrix of Lies Read More »
I had a conversation with my brother yesterday about Thom Hartmann’s Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight. John is a farmer with sophisticated literary tastes and a refreshingly unconventional, earthy perspective on the issues of our time. Since he doesn’t use the Internet or read newspapers or magazines, the echo chamber of public discourse cannot distort
More than any other species, human beings are gifted with the power to manipulate their environment and the ability to accumulate and transmit knowledge across generations. The first of these gifts we call technology; the other we call culture. They are central to our humanity. Accumulating over thousands of years, culture and technology have brought
The Ascent of Humanity Read More »
Photo by Martin Adams If I say, “The reason the hawk circled over me nine times and headed East was to tell me to begin my return journey,” does that sound scientific to you? Or am I projecting meaning onto a world that is essentially random? Do the events of our lives have any meaning, or
The Stars are Shining for Her Read More »
Photo by Colton Sturgeon Once upon our time, our distant ancestors were animists who believed in the innate divinity of all things. Spirit was a property of matter, and all things possessed it: not just plants and animals but also rocks, clouds, lakes, wind, places, and every natural thing and process. I said all things possessed spirit,
Photo by Drew Hays This article has been translated into Portuguese. Originally published Friday, December 9th, 2005. Did you know that right now, we are in the midst of a disease epidemic that is already at least 100 times more prevalent than the feared polio epidemic of the 1950s? Most people don’t know it. Their ignorance testifies to
Photo by Shaun Salmon It all started when I was living in Taiwan, 21 years old, having just graduated from Yale with a degree in mathematics and philosophy. Of course I did what most people do with such a degree — I got a job in a bar. One day on my way to work I attempted to
From Opinion to Belief to Knowing Read More »
Photo by Martin Permantier A main theme of The Ascent of Humanity is an Age of Reunion that is to follow the Age of Separation whose end we are witnessing today. In this transition, the converging crises of the planet are the birth pangs. Like a newborn coming to the breast, our species will experience
Mittwoch, 28. Mai 2014 ursprünglich erschienen im Kosmos Journal [https://www.kosmosjournal.org/article/development-in-the-ecological-age/] Leben Sie in einem entwickelten oder in einem Entwicklungsland? Wenn Ihr Land über ein weitverzweigtes Straßen- und Schienennetz und viele Flughäfen verfügt, wenn das Stromnetz voll ausgebaut ist, und Städte oder städtische Gebiete überwiegen, wenn moderne Medizin praktiziert wird, und praktisch jeder lesen und schreiben
Entwicklung im Zeitalter der Ökologie Read More »
