Tag Archives: politics

Our Age of Un-Ideas

Posted on September 21, 2022 by Joel D. Hirst

Listening to the United Nations General Assembly today, which I do out of habit not interest, was uninspiring. The Iranians blasted ‘hegemony’ (whatever that means); the Argentines complained about how the U.S. treats Cuba (and demanded the Falkland Islands back). … Continue reading →

Posted in International Affairs | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Approaching Event

Posted on September 6, 2022 by Joel D. Hirst

The Dogon, who live in cliff dwellings nestled into the sides of a mountain range in central Mali have star charts that show Serius B, the white dwarf star that accompanies Serius A. If you climb the cliff-side (I have) … Continue reading →

Posted in philosophy | Tagged | Leave a comment

More on Money

Posted on September 2, 2022 by Joel D. Hirst

One (of the many) issues which caused me to quit social media (Facebook and Twitter specifically) was the monetization of ‘interactions’ – likes and shares and retweets. People with many ‘followers’, generating lots of ‘views’ or ‘engagements’ were able to … Continue reading →

Posted in America, Book Review | Tagged | Leave a comment

On Prophets and MISRULE

Posted on August 11, 2022 by Joel D. Hirst

I have been feeling these days more often like my namesake, that grand Hebrew prophet of old seated atop a mountain decrying the wickedness around and imploring people to seek God. They never do, seek God. Wickedness is way too … Continue reading →

Posted in philosophy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Hic Sunt Dracones

Posted on June 12, 2022 by Joel D. Hirst

I often entertain conversations with colleagues one or two generations older than I about past adventures. Hitchhiking from Johannesburg to Cairo, bussing through northern Uganda and Southern Sudan and to Juba catching a boat to Khartoum and upward downriver. St. … Continue reading →

Posted in International Affairs | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Goodreads Year In Review – 2021

Posted on December 19, 2021 by Joel D. Hirst

I like to look back upon the books I read during a given year. A sense of accomplishment, a feeling that I’ve learned something. To remember things that moved me; where I was or what I was doing. Sitting in … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Literature | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Midnight at the Pera Palace

Posted on December 17, 2021 by Joel D. Hirst

“Everybody is writing their Turkey books,” said Rose Macaulay in “Towers of Trebizond“. The Black Sea region of the world is the oldest. Jason and his Argonauts – the chaining of Prometheus. The confluence of empires: Russian and Ottoman and … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review, Uncategorized | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Great Reversal

Posted on August 13, 2021 by Joel D. Hirst

The great reversal is coming. Is, in fact, already here. “The future will be nothing like the past” is the contention of Charles Goodhart in his and Manoj Pradhan’s extraordinary book. Nothing like the past. The great deflation is over; … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Review | Tagged | 1 Comment

The Return of Pessimism

Posted on May 29, 2020 by Joel D. Hirst

During the heady days of hubris which now seem so long ago but in reality were only a few months back, I was often accused of pessimism. The world, as I saw it, was not headed to a good place. … Continue reading →

Posted in America, International Affairs, philosophy, Uncategorized | Tagged | 1 Comment

The Limitlessness of our Discontent

Posted on April 29, 2019 by Joel D. Hirst

We have at long last arrived at the limitlessness of our discontent. That peculiar period of empire when the expansion knows no bounds and the shape of our resolve acquires a formlessness for never having to retrench and a softness … Continue reading →

Posted in America, Literature, philosophy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments