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America’s Reserve Cultural Currency
For many years, American culture was a cultural beacon for people worldwide, serving as the aspirational civilization for many. This dominance was fueled by the fact that American culture was the only self-sustaining mass culture, giving it an impetus that allowed it to continue to grow and evolve, regardless of external factors. In contrast, other…
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Bill Joy’s Principle
In the grand theater of human folly, where ideologies are the gaudy costumes we wear to the masquerade of life, there’s a cruel little joke that most of us haven’t quite gotten. It’s the Culture War version of Bill Joy’s principle, and it goes something like this: no matter what your banner says, no matter…
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Something Wicked This Way Came
In the early 2000s, something quietly but profoundly changed in the heart of corporate America. For decades, the most successful companies had been led by engineer-CEOs, individuals who had built their empires through a deep understanding of the technology that underpinned their industries. These leaders were problem solvers, innovators, and often, visionaries who understood the…
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The Inverse Law of Cool
The Inverse Law of Cool is a concept that describes the relationship between popularity and coolness. It suggests that as something becomes more popular and mainstream, it becomes less cool. The concept was first introduced by the writer and cultural critic Douglas Coupland in his 1991 novel “Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture.” In…
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Gladiator
[FADE IN] INT. BATHHOUSE – DAY Steam billows around the brawny form of MAXIMUS (50s), his body scarred from countless battles. He rubs himself down with a strigil, a hint of weariness in his eyes. A door creaks open and CRISPUS (30s), a clean-cut man in a linen toga that screams “startup money,” enters. CRISPUS Maximus. Legend. Just, wow. You, uh, look amazing for a guy who… you…
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Conservative Conandrum
The political right has long been associated with conservative values, including a desire for stability, tradition, and a return to a perceived golden age. However, this desire for cultural and spiritual order clashes with their support of market-driven societies, which have emerged from industrialization and post-industrial eras. This contradiction has been noted by scholars such…
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Language and Anxiety
Language indeed plays a significant role in managing anxiety and addressing vague or troubling thoughts. When we encounter a concept or idea that is difficult to grasp or undefined, finding the right word can provide a sense of clarity and containment. By encapsulating the abstract or ambiguous in a specific term, we gain a better…
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The Answer Men
Title: The Answer Men Genre: Drama/Mystery Setting: Mid-1950s, prestigious consulting firm Logline: “The Answer Men” is a captivating drama series set in the mid-1950s, following the enigmatic and highly talented executive, Jack Big, as he navigates the cutthroat world of one of the world’s most prestigious consulting companies. Amidst a backdrop of “creative destruction” and…
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Europe’s Energy Transition
The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine has once again highlighted the complex position of Europe in respect to Ukraine and energy. While Europe may make a 30 or 45-degree course correction, it is unlikely to make a 90, let alone a 180-degree turn. Europe’s dependence on Russian natural gas has been a source of…
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Tower Of Babel
The Tower of Babel was humanity’s first great technological project—a monolithic structure reaching upward, striving not merely to defy the heavens but to commune with the divine. It was a collective undertaking, a shared aspiration to transcend the limitations of mortality and scatterings of difference, an effort to collapse the space between humanity and God.…
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