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Contemporary Issues Human Mind Personal

In Film, Violence Against Humanity Is Violence Against Human Nature

Or, Why We Need to See More Grownups in Art and Entertainment There is no doubt that killing people—sometimes all of humanity—was a major theme of the 2026 Oscar-nominated films, from One Battle After Another to Sinners to Bugonia, and even the OBAA homage in which Conan was murdered at the end of the Oscars ceremony for no apparent reason. And we […]

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Foundational Personal Philosophy Spirituality

Humanity’s 98% Failure Rate for Fulfilling Our Human Nature

How would you rate humanity’s performance at fulfilling our potential, so far, on a pass/fail grading system? Has the pass/fail ratio for various parts of the world changed over the centuries? Are there some places on earth today where people are doing well-enough as a group to receive a “pass” grade? Are there other groups […]

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Human Mind Reptilian Mind

Power or Strength: What Lord Acton Got Wrong

Little do the people comprehend the great–that is, the creating. But they have a mind for all showmen and actors of great things. —Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Friedrich Nietzsche Two ants were in mortal combat over disputed territory. As I watched, it seemed that this battle meant the world to them. But from my perspective, the […]

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Human Mind Spirituality

What Is It Like to be a Human Being?

How to Use Humanizing Habits of Mind to Create a Spiritual Consciousness More men become good through practice than by nature. —Democritus Background A basic principle of the quadrune mind model of spiritual consciousness is that people are not born either spiritually enlightened or spiritually fallen. Also, being spiritually conscious does not mean having a holier-than-thou attitude […]

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Personal Philosophy Religion Spirituality

Green Burials: Recycling Matter and Spirit

Recently I was talking with some friends and as we are all of a certain age, the conversation came around to funeral service options. For various personal and religious reasons, several different preferences were expressed. Choices included cremation, a launch to sea on a small boat, donation to a medical school, and my offering, a […]

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Contemporary Issues Foundational

QM as a Melioristic Model

(We Make the World Better) There is an essential point that may sometimes get lost in our many examples of the harm caused by behaving from a pre-Human mind: throughout evolution and human history, we are moving toward becoming more loving and better people; i.e., more Human-minded. The quadrune mind model is a melioristic model, […]