Psychology

The Manichaean struggle between god and evil

History is rife with examples of dualistic thinkingβ€”black and white, good and evil, light and dark. Few frameworks encapsulate this philosophical dichotomy more vividly than Manichaeism, a religious movement born in 3rd century Persia. At its heart lies the concept of the “Manichaean Struggle,” an eternal cosmic battle that defines existence itself.

Though the religion has long since disappeared, its ideas about duality and morality resonate in ways both subtle and overt, shaping not just theology but how we think about human nature and ethics today. If anything, the modern world is more black and white now than at many times in the past.

Historical Context

Manichaeism was founded in 3rd century CE Persia by a prophet named Mani. Claiming to synthesize the wisdom of previous religious traditionsβ€”Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, and Christianityβ€”Mani positioned his teachings as the ultimate revelation. The religion rapidly gained a foothold across diverse regions, from the Roman Empire to the Silk Road, even reaching as far as China.

Yet, despite its initial success, Manichaeism faced relentless persecution from state powers, including the Roman Empire and the Sasanian rulers of Persia, alongside internal schisms. By the 14th century, the faith had all but disappeared, leaving behind traces in historical records and theological debates.

Core Beliefs of Manichaeism

At its core, Manichaeism proposed a dualistic cosmology: the world is a battleground between two primordial forcesβ€”good, symbolized by light, and evil, represented by darkness. Mani’s teachings divided cosmic history into three stages:

  1. Past Separation: A time when light and darkness existed apart.
  2. Present Mixture: The current era, in which the two forces intermingle, with particles of light trapped within the material world.
  3. Future Resolution: A prophesied time when light will be liberated and returned to its source, restoring cosmic balance.

This worldview emphasized the imprisonment of light particles within physical matter, including within human beings. The struggle to free these fragments of light became the central spiritual endeavor of every adherent.

Manichaean struggle between good and evil
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What is a dictator? Not someone you wanna meet in a dark alley.

What is a dictator, and what drives the allure of absolute power? How do dictators reshape the political and social landscapes they dominate? This post explores the intricate systems of control underpinning authoritarian governance, tracing its evolution from historical precedents to modern manifestations, and examining the far-reaching consequences for societies caught in its grip.

Dictators: Unraveling the Complexity of Authoritarian Governance

Political power represents a profound and intricate spectrum of human organizational capability, with dictatorships emerging as one of its most complex and destructive manifestations. The journey of understanding dictatorships requires a nuanced exploration that transcends simple categorizations, delving deep into the historical, sociological, and psychological landscapes that enable and sustain authoritarian control.

The Essence of Dictatorial Power

At its core, a dictator represents far more than a mere political leader. These individuals — often demagogues — are architects of comprehensive systems of control, systematically dismantling institutional safeguards and reconstructing societal frameworks to serve their singular vision of governance. Unlike democratically elected leaders constrained by robust institutional checks and balances, a dictatorship operates through a sophisticated network of power consolidation that penetrates every aspect of social and political life.

The hallmark of dictatorial governance lies not just in the concentration of power, but in the systematic elimination of alternative power structures. These leaders do not simply rule; they fundamentally reshape the entire landscape of political possibility, creating environments where opposition becomes not just difficult, but potentially life-threatening.

a dictator in the style of North Korea
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survival of the richest -- they intend to escape somewhere pre-planned as the planet burns

Douglas Rushkoff’s “Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires” delves into the unsettling strategies of the ultra-wealthy broligarchs as they prepare for global catastrophes of their own making. Drawing from personal encounters with tech magnates, Rushkoff unveils a mindset fixated on personal survival over collective well-being running rampant in Silicon Valley.

The Mindset

At the heart of Rushkoff’s critique is “The Mindset,” a belief system among tech billionaires from Peter Thiel to Elon Musk and beyond characterized by:

  • Extreme Wealth and Privilege: Leveraging vast resources to insulate themselves from societal collapse.
  • Escape Over Prevention: Prioritizing personal exit strategies rather than addressing systemic issues.
  • Technological Transcendence: Aiming to surpass human limitations through advanced technologies.

This worldview drives investments in elaborate escape plans, sidelining efforts to resolve the crises they anticipate. It is almost as if they are in a low-key doomsday cult, albeit one that lacks a singular leader and isn’t holed up in a compound (…yet).

A tech billionaire's private island escape plan -- how the rich will survive the coming catastrophes they've created

The Event

The term “The Event” encapsulates potential disasters such as environmental collapse — particularly from climate change, social unrest, pandemics, and cyberattacks. They believe we should expect more bitter divisiveness, more covid-19s, and more hostile hacking in our future. The elite perceive these scenarios as unavoidable, focusing on personal survival rather than prevention.

Escape Strategies

Rushkoff examines the lengths to which the ultra-rich go to secure their futures, including:

  • Luxury Bunkers: Constructing fortified shelters to withstand various apocalyptic events.
  • Seasteading Communities: Developing autonomous, floating societies beyond governmental reach.
  • Space Colonies: Investing in extraterrestrial habitats as ultimate escape routes.
  • Life Extension Technologies: Pursuing methods to prolong life, aiming to outlast earthly crises.
  • Artificial Intelligence: Exploring consciousness uploading to achieve digital immortality.

These measures reflect a desire to detach from societal responsibilities and the broader human community.

The Insulation Equation

Rushkoff introduces the “insulation equation,” illustrating how billionaires calculate the wealth required to shield themselves from the fallout of their own actions. This cycle perpetuates reckless behavior and further wealth accumulation, exacerbating the very problems they seek to escape.

Critique of Capitalism and Technology

The book critiques the symbiotic relationship between capitalism and technology, highlighting:

  • Exponential Growth Pursuit: An obsession with endless expansion at any cost.
  • Shareholder Primacy: Prioritizing investor returns over societal or environmental considerations.
  • Erosion of Empathy: A growing disconnect between the wealthy and the rest of society.
  • Resource Exploitation: Reducing nature and human complexity to mere commodities.

Rushkoff argues that this dynamic fosters a dystopian future dominated by private technologies and monopolistic control — a very authoritarian direction.

Historical Context

Positioning today’s tech elites within a historical framework, Rushkoff contends they are not pioneers but continuations of past power structures that enriched themselves at others’ expense. Their perceived uniqueness is, in reality, a repetition of historical patterns, including colonialism.

Proposed Solutions

While primarily a critique, Rushkoff offers some ideas for pathways to counteract “The Mindset”:

  • Rejecting Doom’s Inevitability: Embracing proactive solutions over fatalistic resignation.
  • Supporting Local Economies: Fostering community resilience through localized commerce.
  • Advocating Anti-Monopoly Laws: Challenging corporate dominance to promote fair competition.
  • Redefining Identity: Moving beyond algorithmic categorizations to embrace human complexity.

Some critics argue these suggestions may not fully address the scale of the issues presented — but it’s much easier to be a critic than to come up with these solutions. We may not know all the answers yet as to how to curb these alarming trends, but I think Rushkoff’s point is well taken that we ought to involve ourselves in at least starting to work out the solutions with some urgency.

yet another glorious fantasy home of the richest and most famous who will leave the rest of us behind so they can survive

Ultimately, “Survival of the Richest” serves as a stark examination of the escapist fantasies of the tech elite, and an eye-opening look behind the curtains of the Great Oz’s who dot our landscape today. These wealthy tech elites have promised the moon (or Mars) without knowing whether they could really deliver — and all the while planning a Plan B in case their hare-brained schemes went belly-up. They are okay with sacrificing the vast majority of the people on the planet, as long as their underground bunkers (or better yet, private islands) are there for them.

By exposing their self-serving strategies, Rushkoff urges a shift from individualistic survivalism to collective action in tackling the many global challenges that face us today. We would be wise to heed the call and gather our tribes early and often.

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sadism a trait of the Dark Triad

The Psychology of Sadism: Understanding the Dark Side of Human Nature

In the pantheon of human psychological traits, few are as unsettling – yet fascinating – as sadism. While the term often conjures images of extreme criminal behavior or medieval torture chambers, the reality is both more nuanced and more pervasive than most people realize. Let’s dive deep into the psychological architecture of sadism and explore what modern science tells us about this disturbing aspect of human nature.

The Spectrum of Sadistic Behavior

At its core, sadism represents the capacity to derive pleasure from others’ suffering. But like many psychological phenomena, it exists on a spectrum rather than as a binary trait. On one end, we find what researchers call “everyday sadism” – those small cruel behaviors that pepper ordinary life, like enjoying watching fail videos or taking pleasure in office politics gone wrong. On the other end lies clinical sadism, the domain of true predators and those who commit acts of serious violence.

This spectrum theory helps explain why perfectly “normal” people might engage in behaviors like internet trolling or workplace bullying. These acts represent subclinical manifestations of sadistic tendencies that, while concerning, fall well short of criminal behavior.

The Dark Tetrad: A Family of Malevolent Traits

Sadism doesn’t exist in isolation. It’s part of what psychologists call the Dark Tetrad – a cluster of interconnected traits including narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy (it’s the newest band member of the artist formerly known as the Dark Triad). Think of these as the four horsemen of malevolent personality, each bringing its own flavor of interpersonal toxicity to the table.

What makes sadism unique within this dark constellation? Unlike its siblings, sadism involves a willingness to incur personal costs just to harm others. A narcissist might hurt you to get ahead, but a sadist will hurt you simply because it feels good – even if it means sacrificing their own resources or social standing in the process.

The Anatomy of a Sadistic Personality

Modern psychological research has identified three key components of sadistic personality:

  1. Physical violence isn’t just tolerated – it’s enjoyed. Whether participating in or merely witnessing violent acts, sadistic individuals experience positive emotions where others would feel revulsion.
  2. Verbal sadism manifests as a love of cruel humor, cutting remarks, and psychological warfare. These individuals don’t just win arguments; they savor their opponent’s emotional pain.
  3. Violent media consumption goes beyond normal entertainment preferences. Sadistic individuals actively seek out graphic content and experience genuine pleasure from witnessing violence, even in fictional contexts.
a sadistic man watching violence on TV

The Neuroscience of Cruelty

Recent neurobiological research has begun to unlock the physical basis of sadistic behavior. Studies show that sadistic individuals often display blunted startle responses similar to those seen in psychopaths. This suggests a fundamental difference in how their brains process threats and emotional stimuli.

Even more intriguingly, brain imaging studies have revealed potential alterations in regions associated with empathy and emotion processing. It’s as if the neural machinery normally responsible for sharing others’ pain has been rewired to experience it as pleasure instead.

Measuring the Unmeasurable

How do you quantify something as complex as sadistic tendencies? Researchers have developed several innovative approaches:

The Comprehensive Assessment of Sadistic Tendencies (CAST) provides a standardized way to measure sadistic traits across populations.

Behavioral experiments, including the infamous “bug-grinding study,” create controlled environments where sadistic tendencies can be observed in action.

Advanced neuroimaging techniques allow researchers to watch the sadistic brain in real-time, offering unprecedented insights into the neural correlates of cruel behavior.

Why This Matters

Understanding sadism isn’t just an academic exercise. It has profound implications for:

  • Predicting and preventing violent behavior
  • Developing more effective interventions for individuals with sadistic tendencies
  • Understanding the psychological mechanisms behind systemic cruelty and institutional violence
  • Creating safer online spaces by addressing trolling and cyberbullying
  • Improving workplace dynamics by recognizing and addressing subtle forms of sadistic behavior

Looking Forward

As our understanding of sadism continues to evolve, we’re faced with uncomfortable questions about human nature. Is the capacity for sadistic pleasure a bug or a feature of our psychological makeup? Can we develop effective interventions to curb sadistic tendencies? How do we balance the need to understand sadism with the risk of normalizing it?

These questions don’t have easy answers, but they’re crucial to address as we work toward creating a society that can recognize, understand, and ultimately minimize the expression of sadistic behavior.

The study of sadism reminds us that the darker aspects of human nature deserve neither glorification nor denial, but rather careful, clear-eyed examination. Only by understanding the psychology of cruelty can we hope to build a world with less of it.

For a deeper dive into related topics in psychology and human behavior (and more), explore more articles here on Doctor Paradox.

Related to sadism

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Alexander Dugin, said to be the Russian political philosopher most endeared to Vladimir Putin

Alexander Dugin, born on January 7, 1962, in Moscow, is a Russian political philosopher and strategist whose ideas have significantly influenced Russia’s geopolitical stance. His father’s ties to military intelligence likely shaped his early interest in geopolitics.

In the 1980s, Dugin was an anti-communist dissident. After the Soviet Union’s collapse, he co-founded the National Bolshevik Party with Eduard Limonov, merging elements of communism and fascism. He later pursued his own ideological path, developing Neo-Eurasianismβ€”a vision positioning Russia as a unique civilization distinct from both Europe and Asia.

Dugin’s anti-US worldview

His 1997 work, “Foundations of Geopolitics,” outlines strategies for Russia to counter U.S. dominance, including fostering instability within the U.S. and annexing Ukraine. This book has reportedly influenced Russian military and foreign policy circles. In 2009, Dugin introduced “The Fourth Political Theory,” proposing a new ideology that integrates elements from liberalism, communism, and fascism while rejecting their negative aspects.

Dugin’s political activities include founding the Eurasia Party in 2002 and the International Eurasian Movement. While he hasn’t held official government positions, he’s been described as an informal advisor to various Russian political figures. His relationship with Vladimir Putin is subject to speculation; some have dubbed him “Putin’s philosopher,” and even “Putin’s Rasputin,” though the extent of his influence remains unclear.

Alexander Dugin, Putin's philosopher, depicted as Rasputin by Midjourney

Fascination with fascism

Known for his extreme views, Dugin has called for a Eurasian empire to challenge the U.S.-led world order and supported pro-Russian separatists during the 2014 Ukraine conflict. He has expressed admiration for certain aspects of fascism and Nazism, though he claims to reject their racist elements. Accusations of promoting anti-Semitic and racist ideas have been leveled against him, which he denies.

Internationally, Dugin’s ideas have found traction among far-right and far-left groups. In 2014, he was placed under U.S. sanctions due to his role in the Ukraine conflict and has been banned from entering several countries, including Ukraine.

In August 2022, Dugin’s daughter, Darya Dugina, who was also involved in promoting his ideological work, was killed in a car bombing near Moscow. While Dugin himself was believed to be the intended target, the incident brought renewed international attention to him and his ideas.

Understanding Dugin’s philosophy provides insight into certain strains of Russian nationalist and anti-Western thought, even as his more extreme positions remain outside the mainstream.

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disinformation illustrated by midjourney

In today’s digital landscape, disinformation has become an ever-present challenge, influencing everything from public opinion to personal beliefs. Understanding and combating disinformation isn’t just a task for media professionals; it’s a crucial skill for anyone navigating the vast array of information and misinformation in our interconnected world.

This curated list of books offers invaluable insights into the mechanisms of disinformation and the tools we can use to think critically, fact-check effectively, and enhance our media literacy. With perspectives spanning neuroscience, history, and media studies, these books dive deep into the factors that make disinformation so potentβ€”and what we can do to counter it. Whether you’re a publishing or media professional looking to stay informed or a member of the general public eager to sharpen your information literacy skills, this selection has something for everyone interested in the truth amidst a world of half-truths and fabrications.

Disinformation book summaries

Active Measures: The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare

by Thomas Rid

The book provides a comprehensive historical account of disinformation campaigns, tracing their evolution from the early 20th century to the present day. Rid explores how intelligence agencies, governments, and other actors have used “active measures” to manipulate public opinion and influence political outcomes. The author examines key case studies, including Cold War operations and modern digital disinformation campaigns, offering insights into the tactics and strategies employed in information warfare.

This Is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality

by Peter Pomerantsev

Pomerantsev’s book explores the global landscape of information manipulation, drawing on personal experiences and interviews with key figures in the field. The author examines how various actors, from authoritarian regimes to populist movements, exploit modern communication technologies to shape narratives and influence public opinion. The book offers insights into the challenges facing democracy and truth in the digital age.

You Are Being Lied To: The Disinformation Guide to Media Distortion, Historical Whitewashes and Cultural Myths

by Russ Kick (Editor)

This collection of essays challenges conventional narratives and exposes various forms of misinformation across different domains. The book covers a wide range of topics, from media manipulation to historical inaccuracies and cultural misconceptions. It aims to encourage critical thinking and skepticism towards information presented by governments, media, corporations, and other institutions.

Network Propaganda: Manipulation, Disinformation, and Radicalization in American Politics

by Yochai Benkler, Robert Faris, and Hal Roberts

This comprehensive study analyzes media coverage of American presidential politics from 2015 to 2018. The authors argue that the right-wing media ecosystem operates fundamentally differently from the rest of the media environment, creating a propaganda feedback loop. The book examines how this dynamic has marginalized center-right media, radicalized the right-wing ecosystem, and made it susceptible to propaganda efforts.

LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media

by P.W. Singer and Emerson T. Brooking

This book examines how social media has become a new battlefield for information warfare. The authors explore how various actors, including governments, terrorists, and activists, use social media platforms to shape public opinion, spread propaganda, and influence real-world events. The book offers insights into the strategies and tactics employed in this new form of conflict and discusses the implications for society and warfare.

The Misinformation Age: How False Beliefs Spread

by Cailin O’Connor and James Owen Weatherall

“The Misinformation Age” explores the social and psychological factors that contribute to the spread of false beliefs. The authors use case studies and scientific research to explain how misinformation propagates through social networks and why it can be so persistent. They examine the role of cognitive biases, social dynamics, and information ecosystems in shaping our beliefs and discuss potential strategies for combating the spread of false information.

Fake News: Understanding Media and Misinformation in the Digital Age

by Melissa Zimdars and Kembrew McLeod (Editors)

This collection of essays from various experts examines the phenomenon of “fake news” from multiple perspectives. The book covers topics such as the history of misinformation, the role of social media in spreading false narratives, and the challenges of fact-checking in the digital age. It offers insights into the complex landscape of modern media and provides strategies for navigating an information environment rife with misinformation.

Information Wars: How We Lost the Global Battle Against Disinformation and What We Can Do About It

by Richard Stengel

Drawing from his experience as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, Stengel provides an insider’s account of the U.S. government’s efforts to combat disinformation. The book examines the challenges faced in countering propaganda from state actors like Russia and non-state actors like ISIS. Stengel offers insights into the nature of modern information warfare and proposes strategies for addressing the threat of disinformation.

Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation

by Andrew Marantz

Marantz’s book provides an in-depth look at the individuals and groups behind the rise of online extremism and disinformation in America. Through extensive interviews and firsthand accounts, the author explores how fringe ideas have moved into the mainstream, facilitated by social media platforms and tech industry dynamics. The book offers insights into the complex interplay between technology, media, and politics in shaping public discourse.

Weaponized Lies: How to Think Critically in the Post-Truth Era

by Daniel J. Levitin

This book serves as a practical guide for navigating the complex information landscape of the “post-truth” era. Levitin provides tools and strategies for critical thinking, teaching readers how to evaluate claims, spot logical fallacies, and interpret statistics. The book aims to empower individuals to become more discerning consumers of information and to resist manipulation through misinformation and deceptive rhetoric.

The Reality Game: How the Next Wave of Technology Will Break the Truth

by Samuel Woolley

This book looks ahead to emerging technologies and their potential impact on the spread of disinformation. Woolley examines how artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and other advanced technologies might be used to create and disseminate even more convincing false narratives. The author also explores potential countermeasures and the role of policy in addressing these future challenges.

disinformation into the future

Lie Machines: How to Save Democracy from Troll Armies, Deceitful Robots, Junk News Operations, and Political Operatives

by Philip N. Howard

Howard’s book explores the world of computational propaganda, examining how social media platforms, artificial intelligence, and big data are being used to manipulate public opinion. The author investigates the actors behind disinformation campaigns, from state-sponsored trolls to political consultants, and discusses the implications for democracy. The book also offers potential solutions for combating these “lie machines” and preserving democratic discourse.

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Kamala Harris for President

As the 2024 election season heats up, Kamala Harris’s policy platform has begun to shape a forward-thinking blueprint for what she calls an β€œOpportunity Economy” and a “New Way Forward.” With an approach that blends economic pragmatism and social investment, her policy outline aims to strengthen the middle class while addressing the core issues faced by millions of Americans today. Kamala Harris policies zero in on economic stability, healthcare affordability, and supporting American families through accessible resources, tax cuts, and an intentional focus on civil and reproductive rights.

Though some complain about not knowing what her policies are, she speaks of them in every speech, interview, or discussion and has them freely available on her website. Mainstream media in particular ought to be doing more of their own research vs. entertaining spurious claims that she has outlined no 2024 policy proposals. It’s also a quintessential example of the way women are forced to thread a needle in a way that men simply aren’t — I’m old enough to remember when Hillary Clinton was once famously derided for being too wonky and having too many policy proposals. You really can’t win.

Kamala Harris policy to-do list

Meanwhile, Harris has a robust economic plan for the middle class as well as fighting staunchly for civil rights, voting rights, reproductive freedom, and democracy in an increasingly multipolar world. Harris’s economic policy combines key strategies designed to lower costs for middle-class familiesβ€”fighting inflation, tackling price gouging, and expanding Medicare to help the β€œSandwich Generation” juggling care for both children and aging parents.

Her policies also encourage entrepreneurship through substantial tax deductions for small businesses and foster a fairer housing market by promoting affordable housing initiatives and cracking down on price fixing. Harris’s vision is one of a sustainable, inclusive future where both family support and economic growth converge to drive lasting change.

Beyond economic reform, her platform emphasizes national security, comprehensive immigration reform, civil rights protections, and an ambitious climate policy. Together, these components create a multifaceted approach intended to protect American values while boosting prosperity. Harris’s policy platform offers voters an actionable vision for a stronger, more equitable America built on accessible opportunities and resilient middle-class foundations.

Kamala Harris economic policy

Kamala Harris has been promoting her economic policy agenda since mid-August — which was a mere 2 weeks since becoming the new top of the ticket suddenly and unexpectedly when Joe Biden decided to withdraw from and race and pass the torch. Her β€œNew Way Forward” for the economy is rooted in a central goal of strengthening the middle class through practical, targeted policies. Aiming to create an β€œOpportunity Economy,” her platform emphasizes lowering costs for families, capping drug prices, tackling price gouging, and expanding Medicare to better support those juggling elder and child care responsibilities (aka “the Sandwich Generation”).

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Former VP Mike Pence refuses to endorse Donald Trump

When evaluating a candidate for a role, you would be wise to consider what those who have worked with them in the past think of them — that’s why we ask for references during a job interview process. Unfortunately for Donald Trump, a majority of his closest advisors don’t support him and cannot recommend him as being fit for the presidency — and in fact many are actively campaigning against him and supporting the Harris-Walz ticket in the 2024 election.

And these aren’t just people out at the edges of a sprawling administration — these folks are from the inner circle, the cabinet, the military’s top brass, and other high-level officials in or near the White House who routinely interacted with the then-President.

Trump bragged about hiring all the best people — but then proceeded to fire a huge swath of them for having the audacity of disagreeing with him, or other trivial reason. Of those that remained, an unusually large number resigned from his administration in protest over whatever they saw as their personal last straw — many on January 6. And of that whole set, a conspicuously large number are now actively speaking out against the former president and working to prevent him from ascending to a second term.

I’ve been a voter for 30 years. And never have I seen the outpouring of “duty to warn” from former officials of someone seeking re-election. Never has this many of the president’s closest advisors refused to support him for a second term. Let’s hear why, in their own words.

Mike Pence

Former Vice President

“It should come as no surprise that I will not be endorsing Donald Trump this year,” he said to Fox News — an extraordinary historical moment when a VP cannot in good conscience support their own former President. Of course, when that former President tried to murder to you — or at the very least looked the other way while it happened in front of him on TV — it might be more difficult to get over than the usual spat between political cronies.

Mark Esper

Former Secretary of Defense and Secretary of the Army

Another rare moment: when a former cabinet member goes on national television weeks before an election to warn the American public about the dangers of their former boss. I have definitely never seen this in my lifetime and my 30 years of voting.

“I think he’s unfit for the presidency. As somebody who worked directly for him — I don’t think he’s the right person for our country. And so I will not be supporting him.” — to CNN, April 16

“Trump is not fit for office because he puts himself first and I think anybody running for office should put the country first.”

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The Former Guy has been continuously proclaiming to know nothing about Project 2025, the plan whose authors include 70% current and former Trump officials. In that he doth protest too much — does Trump support Project 2025? You bet your bippy he does!

What is Project 2025? Think of it as a vast plan, close to the former president, to feverishly establish Christofascism in America starting with Day 1 of a second Trump presidency. It is a 920-page document, and 1000-employee project, to “supercharge” another Trump term with an infusion of Christian nationalism.

More than 100 Christian nationalist organizations and groups are involved in drafting the blueprint for Trump’s next term, should that horrorscape come to pass. One core problem they have, however, is the extreme unpopularity of their ideas. Most Americans are recoiling from the draconian measures Project 2025 wishes to bestow upon the nation, unasked for and unwanted — including banning abortion nationwide, restricting IVF, defunding education, pulling out of NATO, etc.

Who is behind Project 2025?

Project 2025 is so toxic in fact that Donald Trump tried to disavow it on Truth Social:

Trump disavows Project 2025 on his social network, Truth Social

But despite his pathetic attempt to disclaim knowledge about Project 2025, Trump’s current and former staff make up the majority of the group’s architects. Trump’s name appears 312 times in their document. It’s simply not credible that the GOP presumptive nominee is unaware of his loudest allies and advocates — and even if you take the known liar at his word, it constitutes malpractice for a political candidate to be so uninformed.

So allegedly, Donald Trump doesn’t know anyone behind Project 2025. Let’s have a look at the amazing Venn Diagram between Trump officials and Project 2025, shall we?

Kevin Roberts and Trump on a plane

Heritage Foundation president and leader of the organization behind Project 2025, Kevin Roberts, grins with Trump on a private plane in 2022, on the way to a Heritage conference in which Trump gave a keynote address about the project and its policy proposals.

In April 2024 Roberts told the Washington Post first hand that β€œI personally have talked to President Trump about Project 2025.” Apparently then, at least one of the two men is lying.

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In an era marked by unprecedented political, social, and technological upheavals, understanding the forces shaping our world has never been more urgent. From the dark currents of authoritarianism and Christian nationalism to the shadowy influence of dark money and disinformation, we’re facing a web of interconnected threats that challenge the very foundations of democracy. To navigate this complex landscape, we need to rely on those trusted experts who have dedicated their lives to researching and exposing these dangersβ€”experts whose work sheds light on the hidden mechanisms at play in global power struggles.

This post is a curated guide to some of the top thought leaders in areas critical to understanding today’s political battlegrounds. These experts, from historians to journalists to security analysts, are at the forefront of their fields, providing the insights we need to decode the chaos and develop informed strategies for resistance. Whether you’re a seasoned activist, a curious reader, or someone just trying to make sense of the headlines, these voices are essential listening if we’re to combat the disinformation and division threatening democratic norms.

In times like these, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the challenges we face. But by turning to trusted experts, we can arm ourselves with knowledgeβ€”one of the most powerful tools we have in the fight for a more just and equitable future.

Authoritarianism

The rise of authoritarianism isn’t a distant threat relegated to history booksβ€”it’s a real, present danger, creeping into the cracks of democracy worldwide. Understanding its mechanisms, from centralized power grabs to the erosion of civil liberties, is crucial to resisting its spread. Below are some of the most insightful thinkers and researchers who are sounding the alarm, dissecting how authoritarian regimes function, and offering solutions to protect democratic institutions.

  • Anne Applebaum — Anne Applebaum is a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and journalist who specializes in authoritarianism, communism, and the resurgence of nationalism in Europe and the U.S. Her notable works include Gulag and Twilight of Democracy, exploring the rise of illiberal politics. (@anneapplebaum)
  • Ruth Ben-Ghiat — Ruth Ben-Ghiat is a historian and expert on authoritarianism, propaganda, and fascism, with a focus on the past and present dynamics of strongman rulers. She is the author of Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present and frequently writes about modern autocratic regimes. (@ruthbenghiat)
  • Natasha Bertrand — Natasha Bertrand is a journalist and national security correspondent, known for her work covering intelligence, foreign policy, and the investigation into Russian interference in U.S. elections. She has written for Politico, The Atlantic, and currently serves as a White House reporter for CNN. (@NatashaBertrand)
  • Joseph Fronczak — Joseph Fronczak is a historian who studies the history of global insurgencies, empire, and the politics of solidarity. His work explores the impact of colonialism and anti-colonial movements on modern international relations and transnational activism.
  • Masha Gessen — Masha Gessen is a Russian-American journalist and author who has written extensively on totalitarianism, Vladimir Putin‘s regime, and LGBTQ+ rights. Gessen’s book The Future Is History won the National Book Award for its profound exploration of Russia’s political culture. (@mashagessen)
  • Jason Stanley — Jason Stanley is a professor of philosophy at Yale University and the author of How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them. His research focuses on the intersections of propaganda, ideology, and authoritarianism, especially in contemporary contexts. (@jasonintrator)
  • Elizabeth Mika — Elizabeth Mika is a clinical psychologist and expert on authoritarianism and collective psychology, with a particular focus on the psychological mechanisms behind mass support for authoritarian leaders. She has contributed to anthologies and discussions on the psychology of totalitarianism and fascism. (@yourauntemma)
  • Timothy Snyder — Timothy Snyder is a historian specializing in Eastern European history and totalitarian regimes, best known for his books Bloodlands and On Tyranny, which explore the dangers of authoritarianism and the fragility of democracy. He is a professor at Yale University and a frequent commentator on modern political crises. (@TimothyDSnyder)
Timothy Snyder, authoritarianism expert on YouTube

Christian nationalism

Christian Nationalism is more than just a fringe ideologyβ€”it’s a growing political force that merges religious fundamentalism with nationalist fervor, aiming to reshape American democracy into a theocratic state. This dangerous movement thrives on historical revisionism and a distorted version of Christian values. The experts listed here have been at the forefront of exposing and analyzing the real-world implications of Christian Nationalism, warning of its impact on policy, governance, and individual rights.

  • Tim Alberta — Tim Alberta is a journalist and political reporter, best known for his coverage of the Republican Party and conservative politics in the U.S. He is the author of American Carnage, which delves into the GOP’s transformation and the rise of Donald Trump. (@timalberta)
  • Anthea Butler — Anthea Butler is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor in American Social Thought and Chair of Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, specializing in African American and American religion, race, politics, and evangelicalism. She is a prolific author and commentator, known for her work on religion and politics, including her recent book “White Evangelical Racism: The Politics of Morality in America” and her contributions to the 1619 Project (@AntheaButler)
  • Robert P. Jones — Robert P. Jones is the president and founder of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and a leading scholar on religion and politics in America. He is a New York Times bestselling author, known for his books on white supremacy and American Christianity, including “The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy and the Path to a Shared American Future” and “White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity” (@robertpjones)
  • Kevin Kruse — Kevin M. Kruse is an American historian and professor of history at Princeton University, specializing in the political, social, and urban/suburban history of 20th-century America with a focus on modern conservatism. He has gained significant attention for his Twitter threads providing historical context for current political events and has authored several books, including “White Flight: Atlanta and the Making of Modern Conservatism (@kevinmkruse)
  • Sarah Posner — Sarah Posner is a Type Investigations reporting fellow who has spent years reporting on the increasing influence of the evangelical Christian right on mainstream politics. She is known for her in-depth analysis of Christian nationalism and its impact on various aspects of American society, including reproductive rights and LGBTQ issues (@sarahposner)
  • Katherine Stewart — Katherine Stewart is a journalist and author focusing on religious extremism and its influence on American politics. Her book The Power Worshippers examines the rise of Christian nationalism and its impact on the country’s political landscape. (@kathsstewart)
Christian nationalism illustration

Dark Money

Dark money flows through the veins of modern politics, influencing elections, legislation, and public opinion in ways most people never see. These hidden streams of funding empower corporations, billionaires, and interest groups to manipulate the political landscape without accountability. The researchers and journalists below have dedicated themselves to pulling back the curtain on these shadowy networks, offering a clearer picture of how wealth and power are wielded behind closed doors.

  • David Farenthold — David Farenthold is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who has covered political corruption and the misuse of funds, particularly in his investigative reporting on Donald Trump’s charitable foundation. He is known for his in-depth investigations and work with The Washington Post and The New York Times. (@Fahrenthold)
  • Judd Legum — Judd Legum is a journalist and the founder of Popular Information, a newsletter focused on accountability journalism, corporate influence, and politics. He previously served as the editor-in-chief of ThinkProgress and frequently covers disinformation and media dynamics in U.S. politics. (@JuddLegum)
  • Jane Mayer — Jane Mayer is a staff writer for The New Yorker and the author of Dark Money, which explores the influence of wealthy conservative donors on American politics. She is an acclaimed investigative journalist, specializing in political corruption, the Koch network, and the intersection of money and policy. (@JaneMayerNYer)
  • Anne Nelson — Anne Nelson is an American journalist, author, playwright, and professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, known for her diverse career spanning war correspondence, award-winning books, and plays. Her work includes “Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right,” which examines the influence of conservative political groups, and she was inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame in 2024 for her significant contributions to journalism. (@anelsona)

Disinformation

In an era of digital noise, disinformation is the poison that sows confusion, distrust, and division. From fake news and deepfakes to state-sponsored propaganda, the scale of disinformation campaigns is staggering, threatening not just elections but the very fabric of truth itself. The experts in this field are working to identify, expose, and counter the tactics used to manipulate public perception and undermine democracy.

  • Brooke Binkowski — Brooke Binkowski is a professional journalist whose career has taken her across the globe, covering stories in Mexico, Alaska, Europe, North Africa, and South America. She has worked for various news organizations including CNN, NPR, CBS, and the BBC, and currently serves as an interim news anchor at KPBS Public Media (@brooklynmarie)
  • Ben Collins — Ben Collins is an American businessman and journalist from Massachusetts who formerly worked as a reporter for NBC News, where he focused on disinformation and extremism. In 2024, he became the CEO of Global Tetrahedron, the media company that owns The Onion (@oneunderscore__)
  • Joan Donovan — Joan Donovan is an American social science researcher, sociologist, and academic renowned for her work on disinformation, online extremism, and media manipulation. She is the founder of The Critical Internet Studies Institute and currently serves as an assistant professor at Boston University’s College of Communication, following her tenure as a researcher at Harvard Kennedy School (@BostonJoan)
  • Karen Douglas — Karen Douglas is a Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Kent, specializing in the psychology of conspiracy theories. Her research examines why conspiracy theories appeal to people and their consequences for individuals, groups, and society. Douglas has been widely featured in media outlets like Time, The Guardian, and BBC, and is a co-editor of the textbook “Social Psychology” (@Karen_Douglas)
  • Kevin Roose — Kevin Roose is an American author, journalist, and technology columnist for The New York Times. He hosts the podcast “Rabbit Hole” and co-hosts “Hard Fork” for the Times. Roose has written three books, including “Futureproof: 9 Rules in the Age of Automation,” and gained attention for his early access to and reporting on Bing’s ChatGPT-based chatbot (@kevinroose)
  • Brandy Zadrozny — Brandy Zadrozny is an American investigative journalist and reporter for NBC News, focusing on political radicalization, extremism, and disinformation on the Internet. Before journalism, she worked as a librarian and researcher. Zadrozny has covered topics like QAnon, the Stop the Steal movement, and COVID-19 misinformation (@BrandyZadrozny)
  • Rebecca Lewis — Rebecca Lewis is a researcher and PhD candidate at Stanford University, studying online political subcultures and radicalization. Her work has focused on the alternative influence network on YouTube and the spread of far-right ideologies online. Lewis has published influential reports on these topics through the Data & Society Research Institute.
  • Alice Marwick — Alice E. Marwick is an Associate Professor in Communication and Principal Researcher at the Center for Information, Technology and Public Life at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her research focuses on the intersection of social media, politics, gender, and privacy. Marwick has authored books on social media culture and networked privacy, and has written for publications like the New York Times and The Guardian (@alicetiara)
  • Nina Jankowicz — Nina Jankowicz is a disinformation expert and author who has advised governments and organizations on countering information manipulation. She briefly served as executive director of the Department of Homeland Security’s Disinformation Governance Board before it was disbanded. Jankowicz has written two books, “How to Lose the Information War” and “How to Be a Woman Online,” and is a frequent commentator on disinformation-related issues. (@wiczipedia)
Disinformation

Intelligence and National Security

Behind the headlines of political scandals and geopolitical maneuvering lies the world of intelligence and national securityβ€”a complex and often hidden battleground where information is power. Understanding how states gather intelligence, conduct espionage, and protect national interests is key to grasping global power dynamics. The experts featured here have deep insight into the covert world of intelligence operations and its implications for global security.

  • Frank Figliuzzi — Frank Figliuzzi served as the FBI‘s Assistant Director for Counterintelligence and spent 25 years as a Special Agent, directing all espionage investigations across the U.S. government. He is now a national security contributor for NBC News and MSNBC, as well as the author of “The FBI Way: Inside the Bureau’s Code of Excellence,” leveraging his extensive experience to provide insights on intelligence and national security matters (@FrankFigliuzzi1)
  • Carol Leonnig — Carol Leonnig is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist for The Washington Post, known for her coverage of government accountability and national security. She has co-authored several books, including “Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service” and “I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump’s Catastrophic Final Year,” providing in-depth reporting on the Trump administration and related political events. (@CarolLeonnig)
  • Asha Rangappa — Asha Rangappa is a lawyer, former FBI agent, and senior lecturer at Yale University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs. She frequently appears as a legal and national security analyst on various news networks, offering insights on counterintelligence, constitutional law, and the intersection of national security and civil liberties. (@AshaRangappa_)
  • John Sipher — John Sipher is a former member of the CIA‘s Senior Intelligence Service who worked for the agency’s clandestine service for 28 years. He is now a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, co-founder of Spycraft Entertainment, and a frequent contributor to various media outlets on intelligence and national security matters (@john_sipher)
  • Sam Vinograd — Samantha Vinograd is a national security expert who has served in various roles within the U.S. government, including as Senior Advisor to the National Security Advisor during the Obama administration. She is currently the Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism and Threat Prevention at the Department of Homeland Security and provides regular commentary on national security issues. (@sam_vinograd)
  • Clint Watts — Clint Watts is a senior fellow at the Center for Cyber and Homeland Security at George Washington University and a Foreign Policy Research Institute fellow. He previously served as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army, an FBI special agent, and has provided expert testimony to Congress on topics including terrorism, Russian interference, and cybersecurity (@selectedwisdom)
  • Marcy Wheeler — Marcy Wheeler is an independent journalist and national security expert who runs the blog “emptywheel.” She is known for her in-depth analysis of legal documents related to national security, surveillance, and political scandals. Wheeler’s work has been instrumental in uncovering details about various high-profile investigations, including the Mueller probe and other national security matters. (@emptywheel)

Law, Legal, and SCOTUS

At the intersection of governance and justice lies the lawβ€”an evolving field that shapes the boundaries of individual rights, state power, and societal norms. Whether it’s landmark Supreme Court rulings or the legal frameworks used to regulate new technologies, understanding the law is essential to navigating the political and social landscape. The following legal scholars and practitioners have made significant contributions to dissecting the most pressing legal issues of our time.

  • George Conway — George Conway is an American lawyer and political activist known for his vocal criticism of former President Donald Trump, despite being the then-husband of Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway (he now helms PsychoPAC, a fundraising arm against a Trump second term). As a partner at the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, he gained prominence for successfully arguing the Supreme Court case Morrison v. National Australia Bank in 2010 and has since become a prominent figure in conservative legal circles, contributing to discussions on the rule of law and constitutional issues. (@gtconway3d)
  • Quinta Jurecic — Quinta Jurecic is a fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution and a senior editor at Lawfare, as well as a contributing writer at The Atlantic. She co-hosts the “Arbiters of Truth” series on the Lawfare Podcast, focusing on misinformation and online information ecosystems, and her work has appeared in prominent publications such as the New York Times and the Washington Post. (@qjurecic)
  • Teri Kanefield — Teri Kanefield is an attorney, author, and legal analyst known for her clear explanations of complex legal and political issues. She has written numerous books for children and young adults on historical and legal topics, and regularly contributes analysis on current events, particularly related to constitutional law and democracy, through her blog and social media presence. (@Teri_Kanefield)
  • Dahlia Lithwick — Dahlia Lithwick is a Canadian-American lawyer, writer, and journalist who serves as a senior editor at Slate and contributing editor at Newsweek. She is known for her insightful legal commentary, particularly on Supreme Court issues, and hosts the award-winning podcast “Amicus” while also being a regular contributing analyst on MSNBC (@Dahlialithwick)
  • Joyce Vance — Joyce Vance is a Distinguished Professor from the Practice of Law at the University of Alabama School of Law and a legal analyst for NBC and MSNBC. She served as the United States Attorney in the Northern District of Alabama from 2009 to 2017, appointed by President Obama, and has focused her work on criminal justice reform, civil rights, and improving police-community relationships (@JoyceWhiteVance)
  • Maya Wiley — Maya Wiley is a nationally respected civil rights attorney and activist who has dedicated her life to fighting for justice, equality, and fairness. She has served in various roles, including as counsel to the mayor of New York City, chair of the New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board, and as a faculty member at the New School University, while also working as a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC (@mayawiley)
scales of justice

Politics

In an age of hyper-polarization, understanding the intricacies of politicsβ€”both domestic and globalβ€”is more crucial than ever. Whether it’s electoral strategies, policy debates, or the workings of political institutions, the experts in this field offer invaluable insights into the forces shaping our world. Below is a list of the most astute political analysts, reporters, and scholars whose work illuminates the evolving political landscape.

  • Yamiche Alcindor — Yamiche Alcindor is a prominent American journalist and political commentator. She currently serves as the Washington correspondent for NBC News and is a political contributor to NBC News and MSNBC. Previously, she was the White House correspondent for PBS NewsHour and has also worked for The New York Times and USA Today. (@Yamiche)
  • Rachel Maddow — Rachel Maddow is a political commentator, author, and television host. She is best known for hosting “The Rachel Maddow Show” on MSNBC, where she provides in-depth analysis of political news. Maddow has written several books, including “Blowout” and “Bag Man,” and is known for her liberal perspective and investigative reporting style. (@maddow)
  • Phil Rucker — Philip Rucker is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who serves as the deputy national editor at The Washington Post. He previously worked as the White House Bureau Chief for the Post during the Trump administration. Rucker has co-authored two books about the Trump presidency with his colleague Carol Leonnig: “A Very Stable Genius” and “I Alone Can Fix It.” (@PhilipRucker)
  • Jared Yates Sexton — Jared Yates Sexton is an author, political commentator, and associate professor of creative writing at Georgia Southern University. He has written several books, including “The People Are Going to Rise Like the Waters Upon Your Shore” and “American Rule,” focusing on American politics, history, and culture. Sexton is known for his analysis of right-wing extremism and political movements. (@JYSexton)
  • A.B. Stoddard — A.B. Stoddard is a political analyst and associate editor and columnist for RealClearPolitics. She regularly appears on various news networks to provide commentary on American politics. Stoddard is known for her non-partisan approach to political analysis and her insights into congressional politics and national elections.
  • Nicolle Wallace — Nicolle Wallace is an American television host, author, and former political commentator. She currently hosts MSNBC’s “Deadline: White House” and serves as a political analyst for the network. Wallace previously worked in Republican politics, serving as White House Communications Director during the George W. Bush administration and as a senior advisor for John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign. (@NicolleDWallace)

Right-Wing History

The resurgence of far-right movements across the globe has deep historical roots, with ideological threads that stretch back to fascism, white supremacy, and nativism. Understanding these origins is key to unpacking the modern political landscape, as many of today’s right-wing movements draw heavily on historical narratives. The scholars below are dedicated to tracing these threads, helping us see the connections between past and present in the evolution of right-wing ideologies.

  • Seth Cotlar — Seth Cotlar is a Professor of History at Willamette University, specializing in the history of the United States between the American Revolution and the Civil War. His first book, “Tom Paine’s America: The Rise and Fall of Trans-Atlantic Radicalism in the Early Republic,” won the Best First Book Prize from the Society for Historians of the Early American Republic, and he is currently working on a cultural history of nostalgia in modernizing America from 1776 to 1865 (@sethcotlar)
  • John Dean — John Dean is an American former attorney who served as White House Counsel for President Richard Nixon from 1970 to 1973. He became a key figure in the Watergate scandal, eventually testifying against Nixon and other administration officials. Since then, Dean has worked as an investment banker, author, and political commentator, often criticizing Republican administrations. (@JohnWDean)
  • Joanne Freeman — Joanne Freeman is a professor of History and American Studies at Yale University, specializing in early American politics and political culture. She has authored several books on the revolutionary and early national periods, including “Affairs of Honor: National Politics in the New Republic” and “The Field of Blood: Violence in Congress and the Road to Civil War.” (@jbf1755)
  • Nicole Hemmer — Nicole Hemmer is an associate professor of History at Vanderbilt University and director of the Carolyn T. and Robert M. Rogers Center for the American Presidency. She specializes in media, conservatism, and the presidency, and has authored books such as “Partisans: The Conservative Revolutionaries Who Remade American Politics in the 1990s” and “Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics.” (@pastpunditry)
  • Heather Cox RichardsonΒ — Heather Cox Richardson is an American historian and professor of history at Boston College, known for her expertise in 19th-century American history, particularly the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the American West. She gained widespread recognition for her nightly newsletter “Letters from an American,” which contextualizes current events within American history, and has authored several books including “To Make Men Free: A History of the Republican Party” and “Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America” (@HC_Richardson)
  • Julian Zelizer — Julian Zelizer is a professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University and a CNN Political Analyst. He has authored and edited numerous books on American political history, including “Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party” and “The Presidency of Donald J. Trump: A First Historical Assessment.” (@julianzelizer)

Russia and Ukraine

The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine is far more than a regional disputeβ€”it’s a flashpoint in global geopolitics, with ramifications for democracy, security, and international law. Understanding the complex history and political motivations driving this conflict requires deep expertise. The experts listed here provide crucial analysis on everything from Russia’s imperial ambitions to Ukraine’s struggle for sovereignty and the international community’s response.

  • Allison Gill — Dr. Allison Gill is a multifaceted talent who transitioned from a federal government executive to a comedian, author, and podcast host. She is best known as the executive producer and host of the popular podcast “Mueller, She Wrote,” which provides in-depth analysis of the Trump-Russia investigation (@muellershewrote)
  • Fiona Hill — Dr. Fiona Hill is an acclaimed foreign affairs specialist, author, and former presidential advisor who served on the US National Security Council from 2017 to 2019. Born in County Durham, England, she is now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and is widely recognized as an authority on Russian and European geopolitics.
  • Gary Kasparov — Garry Kasparov is a former World Chess Champion who held the title from 1985 to 2000 and is widely considered one of the greatest chess players of all time. After retiring from professional chess in 2005, he became a prominent political activist and critic of Vladimir Putin, eventually leaving Russia in 2013 and settling in New York City (@Kasparov63)
  • Michael McFaul — Michael McFaul is the Ken Olivier and Angela Nomellini Professor of International Studies at Stanford University and a former U.S. Ambassador to Russia from 2012 to 2014. He has authored several books on democracy and Russian politics, and currently serves as an analyst for NBC News and a contributing columnist to The Washington Post (@McFaul)
  • Molly McKew — Molly McKew is an American journalist and strategic consultant specializing in foreign policy and information warfare. She has worked as an adviser to foreign governments, including Georgia and Moldova, and has written extensively on Russian information operations and geopolitics for publications such as WIRED and Politico. (@MollyMcKew)
Vladimir Putin and the Russian propaganda campaigns unsealed by the DOJ

White Nationalism

White nationalism is not just an extremist ideologyβ€”it’s a persistent and growing threat, gaining new life through online platforms, political rhetoric, and violent movements. From Charlottesville to Christchurch, the ideology has fueled domestic terrorism, hate crimes, and political insurgencies. The researchers below have been instrumental in tracking the rise of white nationalism, unpacking its myths, and revealing its insidious presence in mainstream discourse.

  • Carol Anderson — Carol Anderson is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies at Emory University and a historian known for her work on public policy and how it intersects with race, justice, and equality. She is the author of several acclaimed books, including “White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide” and “One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy.”
  • Kathleen Belew — Kathleen Belew is an associate professor of History at Northwestern University and an expert on the white power movement in the United States. She is the author of “Bring the War Home: The White Power Movement and Paramilitary America” and has testified before Congress on issues related to white nationalism and domestic terrorism. (@kathleen_belew)
  • Talia Lavin — Talia Lavin is an American journalist and author known for her investigative work on far-right extremism and white supremacist movements. She wrote the book “Culture Warlords: My Journey Into the Dark Web of White Supremacy” and has contributed to publications such as The New Yorker, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. (@mobydickenergy)
  • Cynthia Miller-Idriss — Cynthia Miller-Idriss is a professor of education and sociology at American University, where she leads the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL). She is an expert on far-right extremism and radicalization, having authored several books on the subject, including “Hate in the Homeland: The New Global Far Right.” (@milleridriss)
  • Vegas Tenold — Vegas Tenold is a Norwegian journalist and author who has extensively covered white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups in the United States. His book “Everything You Love Will Burn: Inside the Rebirth of White Nationalism in America” provides an in-depth look at various far-right organizations based on his years of firsthand reporting. (@Vegastenold)
Read more

Critical thinking is a disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. It involves questioning ideas and assumptions rather than accepting them at face value.

It requires curiosity, skepticism, and humility to acknowledge the limitations of one’s knowledge and understanding. Critical thinking enables individuals to make reasoned judgments that are logical and well-thought-out. It is a foundational skill for problem solving and decision making in a wide range of contexts, and it empowers individuals to act more wisely and responsibly in their personal, professional, and civic lives — as well as to better evaluate the claims of experts.

Think Better with Mental Models

Mental models are a key component of critical thinking. They are a kind of strategic building block we can use to make sense of the world around us.

Some are formal mathematical proofs, some are scientific theories, and along the other end of the continuum are models more akin to metaphors or ancient wisdoms that still hold true today — they’ve been time tested and still hold explanatory value in helping us understand new (and new to us) phenomena.

Models are often extensible, and can apply to other systems in addition to their systems of origin. In fact, the most powerful models seem to show up again and again, across different disciplines and in a wide variety of contexts. They’re a bit like a mental image of how something works, that helps us predict what will happen next or explain how something works to others.

Also, multiple models can often be applied to the same systems — in order to describe different parts of that system, or account for different contexts, use cases, or configurations of the same process. Mental models aren’t like multiple-choice tests, where only one answer is correct — typically, a set of different models may have value in giving us a sense of how something works or how an ecosystem behaves.

See here for the set of Top Models to start with.

Then, follow up with the unabridged and upcoming collection I will continuously update and curate over time:

  • 4GW — 4Fourth Generation Warfare (4GW) refers to a form of conflict characterized by decentralized, non-state actors using unconventional tactics, such as guerrilla warfare, terrorism, and psychological operations, to undermine stronger traditional military forces. It often blurs the lines between combatants and civilians and emphasizes ideological, cultural, and media-based strategies to achieve political goals.
  • Absolute value — In math, the distance of a number from zero on the number line, without considering the direction; it is always a non-negative number.
  • Action bias — The tendency to prefer action over inaction, often driven by the emotional discomfort of feeling unproductive or the desire to appear decisive.
  • Adjustment heuristic — A cognitive shortcut or bias where people estimate a value based on an initial starting point (anchor) and then make adjustments from that point to reach their final estimate, often leading to systematic errors in judgment.
  • Agency capitalism — Alfred Rappaport’s agency capitalism theory, as outlined in “Creating Shareholder Value,” addresses the conflict between corporate managers (agents) and shareholders (principals) by advocating for the alignment of managerial incentives with shareholder interests. Rappaport emphasizes that the primary goal of a corporation should be to maximize shareholder value through strategic planning, effective capital allocation, and performance metrics like economic value added (EVA) rather than traditional accounting measures. By promoting strong corporate governance, transparent communication, and incentive-based compensation, Rappaport’s theory aims to mitigate the agency problem and ensure long-term value creation for shareholders.
  • Agile vs. Waterfall — 2 distinct methodologies or philosophies of project and product management: agile is more iterative and collaborative, while waterfall is more sequential and linear in nature.
  • Alchemy — The medieval progenitor of the science of chemistry, based on the misguided ambition of transforming matter — often specifically the transmuting of base metals into gold.
  • Ambiguity aversion — A preference for known risks over unknown risks.
  • Analysis paralysis — The inability to make a decision because of over-thinking a problem, and becoming paralized by too much data and/or too many options to consider.
  • Anarcho-capitalism — A political philosophy that claims governments are not needed, only private property rights.
  • Anchoring effect — A cognitive bias where individuals rely too heavily on an initial piece of information (the “anchor”) when making decisions, even if it’s unrelated to the decision at hand.
  • Anecdotal vs. statistical — Anecdotal evidence refers to personal stories or isolated examples that people often use to illustrate or support a point, whereas statistical evidence involves data and analysis from systematic research or studies, providing a broader, more generalizable understanding of a topic.
  • Anocracy — A hybrid form of government blending democracy and dictatorship, in which some public participation is available, but not a full set of mechanisms for addressing civic grievances.
  • Antifragility — Systems that benefit from fragility; achieves growth from volatility (Nassim Taleb).
  • Arete — Excellence in moral virtue (ancient Greece).
  • Arrow of time — The concept that time seems to flow in a single direction from the past to the future, characterized by the growth of entropy and the irreversible progression of physical processes.
  • Arrow’s Theorem — Social-choice paradox showing the flaws of ranked voting systems.
  • Arrested development — A stoppage of physical or psychological development, leading to an individual’s failure to achieve the milestones typically associated with a certain life stage, often due to psychological or environmental factors.
  • Asch Experiments — Set of experiments showing that people can be social pressured into conforming a lot more easily and often than we might imagine.
  • Askers vs. Guessers — Cultural metaphor sorting people into two buckets: Askers will simply ask for anything they like, expecting that sometimes the answer will be “No.” Guessers will rarely ask for something if they feel the answer might be No, and dislike being put in the position of saying No to an Asker.
  • Asymptote — A curve that approaches the value of a line on a graph but never reaches it.
  • Attention restoration theory — concept that nature replenishes our ability to concentrate and pay attention.
  • Austrian School economics — An outdated school of economic thought that emphasizes the spontaneous organizing power of the price mechanism and holds that the complexity of subjective human choices makes mathematical modeling of the evolving market practically impossible.
  • Authoritarian personality — A psychological concept describing individuals who exhibit a strong adherence to conformity, authority, and rigid structure, often leading to prejudice and an intolerance for ambiguity.
  • Availability heuristic — A mental shortcut that relies on immediate examples that come to a person’s mind when evaluating a specific topic, concept, method, or decision, leading to a biased judgment based on recent information or personal experience.
  • Avogadro’s Number — 6.022 X 10^23, the number of atoms or molecules in a mole, the base unit of measurement for an equivalent amount of a substance in chemistry.
  • Banality of evil — The concept of the “banality of evil,” coined by philosopher Hannah Arendt, describes the phenomenon where ordinary individuals commit heinous acts without evil intent, often through a lack of critical thinking and a blind adherence to orders or norms. This idea emerged from Arendt’s observations during the trial of Adolf Eichmann, a Nazi bureaucrat who facilitated the Holocaust by following orders and bureaucratic processes without question.
  • Banana republic — A banana republic is a politically unstable country with an economy dependent on the export of a single resource, often controlled by foreign corporations. This term typically implies corruption, exploitation, and a lack of democratic governance.
  • Bandwagon effect — A psychological phenomenon where people adopt beliefs or behaviors simply because others are doing so, often driven by the desire to conform or fit in.
  • Basic GoodnessShambhala Buddhist concept of basic human worthiness in people of all faiths, colors, and varieties.
  • Bayes’ Theorem — Bayes’ Theorem is a fundamental concept in probability theory that allows you to update the probability of a hypothesis as more evidence or information becomes available.
  • Begging the question — A logical fallacy in which an argument’s premise assumes the truth of the conclusion instead of providing evidence for it. Essentially, the argument circles back on itself without proving anything, often rephrasing the conclusion as part of the proof.
  • Bellwether — Metaphor taken from the practice of using a castrated sheep (a “wether”) outfitted with a bell, that indicates in which direction the herd is going to be travelling. A bellweather is said to be predictive of the trends to come.
  • Bias — A systematic inclination or prejudice in favor of or against something, often leading to unfair or distorted judgments or decisions.
  • Big Rocks First — A time-management concept that emphasizes prioritizing the most important tasks (the “big rocks”) before focusing on smaller, less critical tasks. By addressing the key priorities first, you ensure that what matters most gets accomplished, even when other minor tasks (the “pebbles” and “sand”) compete for attention.
  • Bikeshedding — a tendency to devote a disproportionate amount of available time to the more trivial and inconsequential matters, while giving short shrift to the most important topics or activities (aka Parkinson’s law of triviality)
  • Bin stacking problem — A combinatorial optimization problem where the goal is to efficiently pack a set of objects of varying sizes into a limited number of bins or containers, minimizing the number of bins used or maximizing space utilization. It is often encountered in logistics, manufacturing, and computer science.
  • Black and white thinking — Black and white thinking, also known as dichotomous or polarized thinking, is a cognitive distortion where people perceive situations, events, or people in extremes, such as all good or all bad, without recognizing the complexities and nuances in between. This type of thinking can lead to rigid and overly simplistic views, often resulting in emotional distress and conflict in personal and professional relationships.
  • Black Swan Theory — A framework by mathematical statistician Nassim Nicholas Taleb for understanding rare, unpredictable events that have a massive impact, often missed by conventional risk assessments due to their infrequency and the illusion of predictability.
  • Blind spot — A cognitive bias where individuals fail to recognize their own flaws or limitations, often leading to missed risks or opportunities in decision-making.
  • Blockchain — A decentralized digital ledger technology that records transactions across many computers securely, preventing retroactive tampering or fraud. The backbone of the cryptocurrency industry.
  • Body mass index (BMI) — A measure of body fat based on a person’s weight in relation to their height, used as a general indicator of healthy body weight.
  • Boiling frog syndrome — A metaphor for the inability to detect gradual changes in an environment or situation, which eventually leads to detrimental outcomes if left unchecked.
  • Bounded economics — A concept rooted in bounded rationality, where economic decision-making is constrained by limitations in information, cognitive abilities, and time. Rather than making perfectly rational choices, individuals and organizations operate within these boundaries, often opting for satisfactory solutions rather than optimal ones (see also: satisficing).
  • Bounded rationality — A concept that suggests individuals make decisions with limited information and cognitive resources, leading to suboptimal choices despite rational intent.
  • Brainwashing — A process of coercive persuasion and undue influence where an individual’s beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors are manipulated through psychological or physical pressure.
  • Bricolage — the creation of art or other creative work from a diverse range of materials and/or influences.
  • Broken Windows Theory — A criminological theory that suggests visible signs of disorder and neglect, such as broken windows, can encourage further crime and anti-social behavior.
  • Burden of proof — The obligation to provide sufficient evidence to support a claim, typically resting on the party that brings the argument or accusation.
  • Busy work — Tasks that keep someone occupied but do not contribute meaningful value or progress toward important goals, often used to create the illusion of productivity.
  • Butterfly effect — A concept from chaos theory that suggests small changes in initial conditions can lead to vastly different outcomes, highlighting the interconnectedness of complex systems.
  • Bystander effect — A social psychological phenomenon where individuals are less likely to offer help in an emergency situation when others are present, often due to diffusion of responsibility.
  • Calvinism — Ideology of a Christian sect known for their fastidious work habits.
  • Campbell’s Law — The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision-making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures, and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it’s intended to monitor. (see also: Goodhart’s Law)
  • Casino capitalism — Casino capitalism refers to an economic system where high-risk financial activities, such as speculative investments and trading, dominate over productive investments in goods and services. This term critiques how financial markets operate like casinos, prioritizing short-term gains and speculative profits over long-term economic stability and growth.
  • Catalyst — In a broad sense, a catalyst is something or someone that initiates or accelerates significant change or action without being consumed or altered in the process. In chemistry, it refers to a substance that speeds up a reaction without being used up itself. Similarly, in social or organizational contexts, a catalyst can be an event, person, or idea that sparks transformative progress or change.
  • Categorical imperative — Immanuel Kant’s moral philosophy, stating that one should behave only in ways they would want to be universal (see also: Golden Rule; ideal universal principle)
  • Cathexis — allocating one’s mental or emotional energy to a person, idea, or object, perhaps to an unhealthy degree psychologically.
  • Causa-sui project — A term from existential psychology, particularly in the work of Ernest Becker, referring to an individual’s attempt to create meaning and purpose in life by becoming their own cause or creator. It reflects the desire for self-determination and immortality through personal achievements, values, or legacy, as a way to confront the fear of death and insignificance.
  • Causation — The relationship between cause and effect, where one event (the cause) directly leads to another event (the effect). In this relationship, changes in the cause are responsible for producing changes in the effect, distinguishing it from mere correlation, where two events may happen together without one necessarily causing the other.
  • Central Limit Theorem — mathematical proof showing that any large enough sample size of a population will exhibit a Normal Distribution Curve (aka Bell Curve) for any independently-measured traits.
  • Central tendency — A statistical concept that refers to the measure used to determine the center of a data set or the typical value. Common measures of central tendency include the mean (average), median (middle value), and mode (most frequent value), each providing a way to summarize data by identifying its central point.
  • Ceteris paribus — A Latin phrase meaning “all other things being equal.” It is used in economics and other fields to analyze the effect of one variable on another while assuming that all other relevant factors remain constant. This helps isolate the impact of a single change in a complex system, similar to the scientific method.
  • Chaos Theory — A branch of mathematics and science that studies complex systems that are highly sensitive to initial conditions, where small changes can lead to vastly different outcomes. Often summarized by the “butterfly effect,” it highlights the unpredictability and non-linear behavior in dynamic systems like weather, ecosystems, or markets.
  • Chekhov’s Gun — Literary principle stating that the details of a story should have purpose, and extraneous details omitted.
  • Chesterton’s Fence — A principle that argues one should not remove or change an existing structure or system (the “fence”) without first understanding why it was put in place. It encourages caution in making changes, emphasizing the importance of understanding the original purpose before dismissing it as unnecessary.
  • Clustering illusion — A cognitive bias where people perceive patterns or clusters in random data, believing that random events are actually related or follow a specific pattern, even when they do not. This bias often leads to overinterpreting coincidences or sequences in data as meaningful.
  • CocoonShambhala Buddhist conceptualization of a sort of psychic armor we wear that cuts us off from others in the name of self-protection. The discipline advises one to shed that armor.
  • Cognitive extension — Cognitive extension refers to the idea that human cognitive processes can extend beyond the brain to include external tools and environments, such as technology and written language, which enhance and support our mental capabilities. This concept suggests that our minds are not confined within our heads but are instead part of a broader system involving interaction with our surroundings.
  • Collective action — A coordinated effort by a group of individuals to achieve a common goal or address a shared issue, often requiring cooperation and collaboration. It plays a crucial role in social, political, and economic contexts, especially when individual actions alone are insufficient to effect meaningful change.
  • Collective effervescence — sociological concept of Γ‰mile Durkheim to describe when a community or society comes together and bonds over the same thought, theme, message, or action.
  • Collective hysteria — A psychological phenomenon where a group of people experiences shared irrational fear, panic, or exaggerated emotions, often spreading quickly through social contagion. This can result in mass panic or delusional beliefs, even in the absence of real danger or evidence, and is typically fueled by rumor, stress, or social dynamics. Also called “moral panic” (examples: the Salem Witch Trials; Satanic Panic of the 1980s).
  • Collective narcissism — A belief held by members of a group that their group is superior and deserves special treatment, often accompanied by hypersensitivity to criticism or perceived threats. This inflated sense of group identity can lead to hostility toward outsiders and defensive, aggressive behavior to protect the group’s image. (example: white supremacy)
  • Command responsibility — Command responsibility is a legal doctrine in military and international law that holds superiors accountable for crimes committed by their subordinates when they knew or should have known about the actions and failed to prevent or punish them. This principle aims to ensure accountability within the hierarchy of command and is crucial in prosecuting war crimes and crimes against humanity.
  • Compound interest — The process by which interest is calculated on both the initial principal and the accumulated interest from previous periods. This results in exponential growth over time, as interest continues to be added to the total amount, making it a powerful concept in finance and investment.
  • Condorcet Jury Theorem — mathematical proof showing that if each person on the jury gets it right more than 50% of the time, as numbers get larger the jury as a whole approaches 100% justice. Greatly inspired James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and the Framers of the Constitution.
  • Confidence game — Also known as a “con,” it is a deceptive scheme in which a person or group gains the trust of a victim to defraud them, typically by manipulating their emotions or exploiting their desire for gain. The success of the con relies on the victim’s misplaced confidence in the perpetrator.
  • Confirmation bias — Confirmation bias is the tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information in a way that confirms one’s pre-existing beliefs or opinions. This cognitive bias leads individuals to favor information that supports their views while disregarding or undervaluing evidence that contradicts them. (see also: motivated reasoning)
  • Conformity — Conformity is the act of aligning one’s beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors with those of a group or social norm, often due to the desire for acceptance or to avoid conflict. It can be driven by both explicit social pressure and internalized expectations of societal standards.
  • Conservation of energy — A principle in physics stating that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed from one form to another. The total energy in a closed system remains constant over time.
  • Conservation of mass — A fundamental concept in chemistry that states mass in a closed system remains constant, regardless of the processes acting inside the system, as matter cannot be created nor destroyed.
  • Conservation of momentum — A physics principle asserting that the total momentum of a closed system remains constant if no external forces act on it, meaning momentum is conserved during collisions or other interactions.
  • Conspiracy theory — A belief or explanation suggesting that events or situations are the result of a covert, often sinister, group acting in secret (usually a global cabal), typically lacking substantial evidence and ignoring alternative explanations.
  • Contagion heuristic — A cognitive shortcut where individuals believe that objects or people can transfer their essence or properties through physical or symbolic contact, often resulting in irrational fears or beliefs about contamination.
  • Conway’s Game of Life — Conway’s Game of Life is a cellular automaton invented by mathematician John Conway in 1970. It consists of a grid of cells that can either be alive or dead, and the cells evolve in steps based on a set of simple rules related to their neighbors. These rules simulate the birth, death, or survival of cells and can lead to complex, unpredictable patterns, making it a famous example of how simple rules can produce emergent behavior and complexity.
  • Correlation — A statistical measure that indicates the extent to which two variables move together. A positive correlation means they increase or decrease together, while a negative correlation means they move in opposite directions, but correlation does not imply causation.
  • Corruption — The abuse of power or position for personal gain, often involving bribery, fraud, or unethical behavior, undermining trust in institutions or systems.
  • Counterfactual thinking — The mental process of imagining alternative outcomes to events that have already occurred, often by asking “what if” questions to explore how different actions might have led to different results.
  • Countervailing power — A concept in economics and politics where one group or institution balances the power of another, often to prevent monopolies or ensure fair competition and representation.
  • Creative destruction — A term popularized by economist Joseph Schumpeter, referring to the process by which new innovations disrupt and replace outdated industries or technologies, fostering economic progress through continuous renewal.
  • Crimes against humanity — Crimes against humanity are severe, widespread, and systematic acts committed against civilians, such as murder, enslavement, torture, and persecution, typically during times of war or conflict. These crimes are considered violations of international law and are prosecuted by bodies like the International Criminal Court (ICC).
  • Critical mass — The minimum size or number of participants required for a particular action or event to take off and sustain itself, often used in social movements, markets, or nuclear physics.
  • Critical Race Theory — An advanced academic framework that examines how laws and institutions perpetuate racial inequalities and explores the intersection of race, power, and society, often challenging dominant perspectives on race and justice.
  • Crossing symmetry — in particle physics, the fact that any particle interaction observed can be anticipated to be replicable with that particle’s antiparticle.
  • Crowdfunding — A method of raising small amounts of money from a large number of people, typically via the internet, to fund a project, business, or cause.
  • Crowd psychology — The study of how individuals behave differently when they are part of a large group, often leading to irrational or emotional actions influenced by group dynamics rather than personal decision-making.
  • Crowdsourcing — The practice of obtaining input, ideas, or services from a large, diverse group of people, usually via the internet, to solve problems or complete tasks more efficiently.
  • Cryptocurrency — A digital or virtual form of currency that uses cryptography for secure transactions, operates on decentralized networks based on blockchain technology, and is typically not controlled by any central authority, such as a government or bank. Popular examples include Bitcoin and Ethereum.
  • Cult of personality — A situation where a public figure, often a political leader, uses media, propaganda, or other methods to create an idealized, heroic, and worshipful image, fostering uncritical admiration and loyalty from the public.
  • Current moment bias — A cognitive bias where people give disproportionate weight to immediate rewards or benefits, often at the expense of long-term gains or future consequences.
  • Cybernetics — Cybernetics is an interdisciplinary field that studies systems, control, and communication in animals, machines, and organizations, focusing on how feedback loops and information flow regulate behavior and maintain stability in complex systems.
  • Dark Triad — A group of three personality traitsβ€”narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathyβ€”characterized by manipulative, self-centered, and exploitative behavior. Individuals exhibiting the Dark Triad traits often seek personal gain with little regard for others, showing tendencies toward deceit, grandiosity, and a lack of empathy.
  • DARVO — DARVO stands for Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender, a tactic commonly used by abusers when confronted with their behavior. First, they deny the wrongdoing, then attack the person who brought up the issue, and finally reverse the roles to portray themselves as the victim while casting the accuser as the offender. It’s often used in contexts of manipulation and gaslighting.
  • Dead hand of the past — The idea that outdated rules, laws, or decisions continue to exert control over present situations, limiting progress or adaptation to new circumstances.
  • Decision tree — A visual or analytical model used to map out decisions and their potential outcomes, helping to systematically analyze different paths and consequences in decision-making.
  • Democratic socialism — A political ideology that combines democratic principles, such as free elections and civil liberties, with socialist economic policies that emphasize social ownership and equitable distribution of wealth and resources.
  • Denial / denialism — The refusal to accept reality or established facts, often in the face of overwhelming evidence, typically due to psychological defense mechanisms or ideological reasons. Denialism specifically refers to the systematic rejection of consensus on controversial issues (e.g., climate change, evolution).
  • Deontology — Deontology is a moral philosophy that emphasizes duty, rules, and obligations as the foundation of ethical behavior. It asserts that actions are morally right or wrong based on adherence to these principles, regardless of the outcomes.
  • Derivatives — Derivatives are financial instruments whose value is derived from underlying assets, such as stocks, bonds, or commodities. They are often used for hedging risk or speculative purposes in markets.
  • Despotism — Despotism refers to a form of government where a single authority wields absolute power, often ruling through oppression and without regard for the will of the people. This concentration of unchecked authority frequently leads to abuses of power and a lack of individual freedoms.
  • Determinism — Determinism is the philosophical idea that all events, including human actions, are determined by prior causes in a cause-and-effect chain. According to this view, free will is an illusion, as everything is a consequence of preceding events and conditions.
  • Devil you know — The phrase “devil you know” refers to the idea that a familiar problem or undesirable situation may be preferable to an unknown one. It suggests that people often choose to stick with a known difficulty rather than risk encountering something worse.
  • Dichotomy of controlStoic idea that we should divide the world into things under our control (intentions, efforts) vs. things not in our control (external rewards), and hew to the former vs. the latter for our self-esteem and happiness.
  • Diminishing Marginal Utility (DMU) — Diminishing Marginal Utility is an economic principle stating that as a person consumes additional units of a good or service, the satisfaction (utility) gained from each additional unit decreases. In other words, the first unit of consumption provides more utility than the second, and the second more than the third, and so on.
  • Discounting positives — Discounting positives is a cognitive bias where individuals downplay or dismiss positive events or attributes, often focusing on negative aspects instead. This can distort perceptions and lead to a pessimistic outlook, even when evidence of success or value is present.
  • Disjunction fallacy — The disjunction fallacy occurs when people wrongly assume that the probability of a disjunction (two or more events happening) is less than the probability of one of the individual events, despite logical rules suggesting otherwise. This mistake in reasoning can skew judgments and decision-making.
  • Distributions — In statistics, distributions refer to the way values or data points are spread out or arranged within a dataset. Common types of distributions include normal, skewed, and uniform, each describing different patterns of data behavior.
  • Diversity — Diversity refers to the inclusion and representation of different perspectives, backgrounds, identities, or viewpoints within a group or system. It is often considered beneficial for fostering innovation, creativity, and broader understanding.
  • Domain dependence — Domain dependence refers to the tendency for people’s reasoning or behavior to change depending on the context or “domain” of a problem, even if the underlying logic is the same. This can lead to inconsistencies in decision-making across different areas of life.
  • Doublethink — Doublethink, a concept from George Orwell’s 1984, is the act of holding two contradictory beliefs simultaneously and accepting both as true. It reflects the capacity for cognitive dissonance in environments of intense ideological control or propaganda.
  • Drake Equation — The Drake Equation is a probabilistic formula used to estimate the number of active, communicative extraterrestrial civilizations in the Milky Way galaxy. It considers factors such as the rate of star formation, the fraction of those stars with planetary systems, the number of planets that could support life, and the likelihood of life evolving into intelligent beings capable of communication.
  • Dr. Fox Effect — The Dr. Fox effect refers to a phenomenon where an engaging and expressive presenter can make a lecture appear informative and satisfying, even if the content is nonsensical or lacking in substance. This effect highlights the power of delivery and presentation skills in shaping perceptions of credibility and knowledge.
  • Dunbar Number — The Dunbar Number refers to the cognitive limit to the number of stable social relationships an individual can maintain, typically estimated at around 150 people.
  • Dunning-Kruger Effect — The Dunning-Kruger Effect is a cognitive bias where individuals with low ability or knowledge in a particular area overestimate their competence, while highly skilled individuals may underestimate their relative expertise.
  • Duverger’s Law — Duverger’s Law is a political theory that in first-past-the-post electoral systems, like the U.S., a two-party system is likely to emerge, as smaller parties struggle to gain representation.
  • Easterlin Paradox — named for economist Richard Easterlin, who observed that rising material prosperity in countries doesn’t necessarily lead to greater levels of reported well-being.
  • Echo chamber — An echo chamber is a situation in which people are exposed only to information, opinions, or beliefs that reinforce their own views, often amplifying confirmation bias and limiting exposure to differing perspectives.
  • Edge of chaos — at the border between order and disorder; a frontier of transition space. A concept from complexity theory describing a transitional space between order and disorder, where systems exhibit the most adaptability and potential for innovation.
  • Efficiency — Efficiency refers to the optimal use of resources to achieve the desired outcome with minimal waste, energy, or time.
  • Electromagnetic spectrum — The Electromagnetic Spectrum is the range of all types of electromagnetic radiation, from low-frequency radio waves to high-frequency gamma rays, including visible light, microwaves, and X-rays.
  • Electron cloud — An electron cloud refers to the probabilistic distribution of where an electron is likely to be found around an atom’s nucleus, based on quantum mechanics, rather than a fixed orbit.
  • Elephant and rider — The Elephant and Rider metaphor describes the relationship between the emotional (elephant) and rational (rider) parts of the human mind, suggesting that emotional impulses often dominate but can be guided by rational thought.
  • Ellsberg paradox — The Ellsberg Paradox highlights people’s preference for known risks over unknown risks, even when the known risk may have a lower expected value, challenging the predictions of traditional economic decision theory.
  • Elsewhere Disease — being convinced that the Real Story is not Here: Here is too boring by far. It’s small and provincial and known already (or so we believe). Excitement is for somewhere far away and exotic.
  • Emotional abuse — Emotional abuse is a form of psychological manipulation where one person uses words, actions, or behavior to control, demean, or intimidate another, leading to emotional harm and a loss of self-worth in the victim.
  • Emotional intelligence — Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand, manage, and influence one’s own emotions as well as the emotions of others, fostering better interpersonal relationships and decision-making.
  • Emotional labor — Sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild introduced the concept of emotional labor in her seminal book “The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling” (1983). Emotional labor refers to the process by which workers manage their emotions to fulfill the emotional requirements of their job. This concept has had a profound impact on understanding the roles and challenges faced by workers in service-oriented industries.
  • Emotional reasoning — Emotional reasoning is a cognitive distortion where individuals assume that their emotional reactions reflect objective reality, often leading them to believe that feelings of fear, guilt, or inadequacy are factual, rather than subjective experiences.
  • Emperor’s new clothes — The phrase “Emperor’s new clothes” comes from a Hans Christian Andersen story and refers to a situation where people are afraid to speak the truth about something, often for fear of seeming foolish, even when it is plainly obvious that something is wrong or false.
  • End Times — End Times refer to eschatological beliefs about the final events of the world or human history, often associated with apocalyptic or religious prophecies regarding the destruction of the world and the ultimate judgment.
  • Entropy — Entropy, in thermodynamics, is a measure of disorder or randomness in a system, where systems tend to move from order to disorder over time. In information theory, it represents the unpredictability or uncertainty of information content.
  • Epistemic warfare — Epistemic warfare involves the deliberate manipulation or disruption of knowledge, truth, and belief systems, often through disinformation or propaganda, to control public perception and weaken opponents’ ability to make informed decisions.
  • E pluribus unum — one out of many, a Latin phrase used on the United States dollar to represent the founding ideals of Thomas Jefferson masterfully explained in the Declaration of Independence, that all men are created equal.
  • Equality under law — Equality under law is the principle that all individuals, regardless of their status, race, gender, or other characteristics, are subject to the same legal codes and entitled to equal protection and treatment by the legal system. It ensures that no one is above the law and that justice is applied uniformly.
  • Equilibrium — Equilibrium refers to a state of balance in a system where opposing forces or influences are equal, resulting in no net change. In economics, it describes a condition where market supply and demand are balanced; in physics, it denotes a situation where all acting forces cancel each other out.
  • Equity — Equity involves fairness and justice in the way people are treated, striving to provide equal opportunities and address imbalances. In finance, equity represents ownership interest in a company or asset after liabilities are accounted for, such as shareholder equity.
  • Eschaton — The eschaton refers to the end of the world or the final event in the divine plan, often associated with ultimate judgment or the arrival of a new era in religious eschatology. In theology, it marks the culmination of history, where cosmic or spiritual events bring about the fulfillment of prophecy.
  • Estate tax — An estate tax is a levy imposed on the net value of a deceased person’s assets before distribution to their heirs. It is typically applied by governments on wealth transfers that exceed a certain exemption threshold at the time of death.
  • Eternal Rome — “Eternal Rome” refers to the enduring legacy and historical significance of Rome as a city and former empire, symbolizing its lasting impact on culture, law, architecture, and governance throughout Western civilization. The term highlights Rome’s influence that persists across centuries.
  • Ethics — Ethics is the branch of philosophy that deals with moral principles, guiding what is right and wrong behavior. The term originates from the Greek word “ethikos,” meaning character, and is closely related to the Latin “moralis,” meaning customs or habits.
  • Eucatastrophe — Eucatastrophe is a term coined by author J.R.R. Tolkien to describe a sudden and favorable turn of events in a story, leading from impending disaster to a happy ending. It represents a dramatic reversal where a catastrophe unexpectedly resolves positively.
  • Event horizon — An event horizon is the boundary surrounding a black hole beyond which nothing can escape, not even light, due to the immense gravitational pull. It marks the point of no return in spacetime, separating observable events from those that cannot affect an outside observer.
  • Exception handling — Exception handling refers to the process of responding to and managing unexpected or anomalous events that disrupt normal operations in computing or organizational processes. It involves identifying, addressing, and resolving edge cases or novel issues to maintain functionality.
  • Expected value — Expected value is a statistical concept that calculates the average outcome of a random variable over numerous trials, weighted by their probabilities. It provides a measure of the central tendency, helping to predict long-term results in probabilistic situations.
  • Extrapolation — Extrapolation is the method of estimating unknown values by extending or projecting from known data points beyond the established range. It assumes that existing patterns or trends will continue, allowing predictions in new or future contexts.
  • Extremism — Extremism refers to holding radical views or beliefs that are far outside the accepted norms of society, often advocating drastic political, religious, or social changes. Such views can lead to actions that challenge or undermine established systems and may pose risks to societal stability.
  • Fact-Value Problem — Arose from philosopher David Hume (1711-1776) and the is-ought problem in moral philosophy. It refers to the challenge of distinguishing between descriptive statements (what is) and prescriptive or normative statements (what ought to be) in philosophical discourse. It highlights the difficulty in deriving ethical or moral conclusions directly from factual premises. (see also: naturalistic fallacy, moralistic fallacy)
  • False cause — False cause is a logical fallacy where someone mistakenly assumes that because one event follows another, the first event caused the second, without properly establishing a causal link between them. This is also known as post hoc ergo propter hoc.
  • False consensus effect — The false consensus effect is a cognitive bias where individuals overestimate the extent to which their beliefs, values, or behaviors are shared by others, assuming that most people think or act the same way they do.
  • False flag — A false flag is a deceptive act where a person, group, or state carries out an attack or operation and falsely attributes it to another party, often to justify retaliation or manipulation of public opinion.
  • Fate — Fate refers to the belief that events are predetermined and inevitable, often attributed to supernatural or cosmic forces beyond human control. It suggests that a person’s life or outcomes are fixed, and cannot be altered by individual actions or choices.
  • Fear of Death — The fear of death, also known as thanatophobia, refers to the anxiety or dread that individuals experience when contemplating their mortality or the end of their existence, often influencing behavior and philosophical outlooks.
  • Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance — Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance posits that when individuals experience conflicting beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors, they feel psychological discomfort, which motivates them to reduce the inconsistency, often by changing one of the elements involved.
  • Fiat currency — Fiat currency is money that has no intrinsic value and is not backed by a physical commodity like gold or silver; its value is derived from the government declaring it as legal tender, which relies on trust in the issuing authority.
  • Fiduciary duty — Fiduciary duty is the legal or ethical responsibility of one party, often a trustee or financial advisor, to act in the best interests of another party, prioritizing their client’s welfare above their own personal gains.
  • Fifth column — A fifth column refers to a group of secret sympathizers or collaborators within a country or organization who work to undermine it from within, typically in favor of an external enemy or opposing force.
  • Filibuster — A filibuster is a political strategy used in legislative bodies, particularly in the U.S. Senate, where a senator prolongs debate or prevents a vote on a bill by speaking for an extended time (now replaced by the “silent filibuster”), often to delay or block its passage.
  • First fit algorithm — The first fit algorithm is a simple method for solving the bin packing problem by placing each item into the first available bin that has enough remaining space, without rearranging or looking for the most optimal placement.
  • First past the post — First past the post is an electoral system where the candidate with the most votes wins, regardless of whether they have a majority of the votes. It is often used in single-member district systems and tends to favor two-party competition.
  • Focusing illusion — The focusing illusion is a cognitive bias where people place disproportionate importance on one aspect of a situation, causing them to misjudge its overall impact on their happiness or well-being. It often leads to overestimating how much a specific factor will affect future outcomes.
  • Force multiplier — Force multipliers are tools to help amplify the amount of work you’re able to do. A force multiplier is a strategy or resource that increases the effectiveness and productivity of an individual or group, allowing them to accomplish more with the same amount of effort or resources.
  • Fortune-telling — Fortune-telling is a cognitive distortion where a person predicts negative outcomes for events or situations without any concrete evidence, assuming the worst will happen as if it were a certainty.
  • Fractals — Fractals are complex geometric shapes that can be split into parts, each of which is a reduced-scale copy of the whole, exhibiting self-similarity across different scales. They are found in nature, such as in snowflakes, coastlines, and plants.
fractals
  • Free markets — Free markets are economic systems where prices, production, and distribution of goods and services are determined by supply and demand with minimal government intervention, allowing businesses and consumers to operate freely.
  • Framing effects — Framing effects refer to the way information is presented or “framed,” which can influence decision-making and judgment. The same information can lead to different reactions depending on how it is worded or structured.
  • Fredkin’s paradox — Fredkin’s paradox suggests that in decision-making, the closer two choices are in their value or impact, the more time people tend to spend trying to decide between them, even though the decision ultimately has little consequence.
  • Free will — Free will is the philosophical concept that individuals have the ability to make choices and decisions independently of external forces or predetermined fate, allowing them to act according to their own volition.
  • Friendship paradox — The friendship paradox is the observation that, on average, most people have fewer friends than their friends do. This occurs because individuals with more friends are more likely to be part of other people’s social networks.
  • FUBAR’d — FUBAR (short for “F*cked Up Beyond All Recognition/Repair”) is a slang term often used to describe a situation, object, or system that has been so thoroughly ruined or corrupted that it is nearly impossible to fix. It is typically used in informal or military contexts to emphasize extreme dysfunction or chaos.
  • FUD — FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) refers to a strategy used to manipulate public perception by spreading fear, uncertainty, and doubt about a competitor, product, or situation to influence decisions or create distrust.
  • Fundamental Attribution Error — The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to overemphasize personal characteristics and underemphasize situational factors when interpreting others’ behavior, assuming that actions reflect innate traits rather than external circumstances.
  • Gambler’s fallacy — The gambler’s fallacy is the mistaken belief that if an event occurs more frequently than expected during a given period, it is less likely to happen in the future, or vice versa, despite each event being independent (e.g., flipping a coin).
  • Game theory — Game theory is a mathematical framework for analyzing strategic interactions between individuals or groups, where the outcomes depend on the decisions of all participants. It is used in economics, political science, and other fields to study competition and cooperation.
  • Gaslighting — Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation in which a person or group makes someone question their own perception, memory, or sanity, often to control or deceive them.
  • GDP — GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, is the total monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific period, typically used as a measure of economic performance and growth.
  • General relativity — General relativity is Albert Einstein’s theory of gravity, describing how massive objects warp the fabric of spacetime, causing other objects to move along curved paths. It revolutionized our understanding of gravity, predicting phenomena like black holes, gravitational waves, and the bending of light near massive objects.
  • Geronticide — Geronticide is the intentional act of killing elderly people, often motivated by societal or economic pressures to reduce the perceived burden of an aging population. This term can also refer to the neglect or harmful policies that lead to premature deaths among the elderly.
  • Golden Mean — In philosophy, the Golden Mean is the desirable middle ground between two extremes, as famously advocated by Aristotle. It emphasizes balance and moderation in all aspects of life to achieve virtue.
  • Golden Rule — The Golden Rule is the ethical principle of treating others as you would like to be treated. It is a universal concept found in many cultures and religions, advocating empathy and reciprocity.
  • Goldilocks Zone — The Goldilocks Zone refers to the habitable zone around a star where conditions are “just right” for life, not too hot or too cold. It’s the range in which liquid water can exist on a planet’s surface, critical for sustaining life as we know it.
  • Gold standard — The gold standard is a monetary system in which a country’s currency or paper money has a value directly linked to gold. Countries adhering to this standard maintain a fixed exchange rate between their currency and a specific amount of gold.
  • Goodheart’s Law — Goodhart’s Law states that when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. This reflects how metrics used to manage a system are often manipulated, leading to unintended outcomes. i.e. anything that can be measured and rewarded will be gamed. (see also: Campbell’s Law)
  • Gravitational waves — Gravitational waves are ripples in spacetime caused by massive objects accelerating, such as colliding black holes. First predicted by Einstein’s theory of general relativity, they were directly detected in 2015, offering a new way to observe the universe.
  • Gravity — Gravity is the force of attraction that pulls objects with mass toward each other. It governs the motion of celestial bodies and is responsible for keeping planets, moons, and satellites in orbit.
  • Great Man Theory — The Great Man Theory posits that history is shaped by the impact of influential individuals, typically men of extraordinary intelligence, charisma, or leadership. This idea has been largely critiqued in favor of more complex views of historical causality.
  • Great Replacement Theory — The Great Replacement Theory is a racist and far-right conspiracy theory that suggests a deliberate attempt to replace the white population with immigrants or minorities. It has been used to fuel xenophobia and nationalist sentiments.
  • Greenwashing — Greenwashing is the deceptive practice where a company or organization exaggerates or falsely advertises its environmental efforts or sustainability to appear more eco-friendly than it truly is. It aims to mislead consumers into believing that products or practices are environmentally responsible, while the actual impact may be minimal or harmful.
  • Groundhog Day — Groundhog Day refers to the feeling of experiencing the same situation repeatedly, often with frustration. It’s named after the 1993 Bill Murray film, where the protagonist relives the same day over and over again.
  • Groupthink — Groupthink occurs when a group prioritizes consensus and harmony over critical thinking, leading to poor decision-making. It can suppress dissenting opinions and encourage flawed or risky choices by stifling debate.
  • Habeas corpus — Habeas corpus is a legal principle that protects individuals from unlawful detention, requiring authorities to present sufficient cause for holding a person in custody. It ensures the right to a fair trial and protects against arbitrary imprisonment.
  • Habitus — Habitus, a concept developed by sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, refers to the ingrained habits, skills, and dispositions that individuals acquire through life experience. It reflects the influence of social structures on individual behaviors and perceptions.
  • Halo effect — The halo effect is a cognitive bias where an overall positive impression of a person or thing influences one’s judgment of their other traits or abilities. For example, someone seen as attractive may also be perceived as more intelligent or capable.
  • Hanlon’s Razor — Hanlon’s Razor is an adage that advises not to attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence or ignorance. It encourages assuming simpler explanations, like error or misunderstanding, over intentional harm.
  • Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle — The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics, states that it is impossible to simultaneously know both the exact position and exact momentum of a particle. The more precisely one property is known, the less precisely the other can be determined.
  • Herd behavior — Herd behavior refers to the tendency of individuals to mimic the actions or decisions of a larger group, often without independent thought. This phenomenon is common in markets, crowds, and social movements, sometimes leading to irrational or harmful outcomes.
  • Heuristics — Heuristics are mental shortcuts or rules of thumb that simplify decision-making. While they help people make quick judgments, they can also lead to biases and errors in reasoning.
  • Hierarchy vs. Fairness — This concept refers to the tension between hierarchical structures, which organize society or institutions based on rank and power, and fairness, which demands equal treatment and justice. These forces often clash in discussions about leadership, meritocracy, and social equity.
  • Higgs boson — The Higgs boson is a subatomic particle associated with the Higgs field, which gives other particles their mass. Its discovery in 2012 at CERN confirmed a critical part of the Standard Model of particle physics.
  • Hitting rock bottom — “Hitting rock bottom” describes reaching the lowest point in someone’s life, often a crisis that precedes recovery. It represents a turning point where an individual realizes the need for change.
  • Hofstadter’s Law — Hofstadter’s Law states that tasks always take longer than expected, even when accounting for Hofstadter’s Law itself. It highlights the difficulty of accurately estimating time in complex projects or tasks.
  • Horseshoe Theory — Horseshoe Theory suggests that the political far-left and far-right, while appearing diametrically opposed, often exhibit similar behaviors and ideologies. It implies that extremism at both ends of the spectrum can resemble each other more than centrism.
  • Hostile Media Theory — Hostile Media Theory, proposed by Ross & Lepper, suggests that individuals with strong opinions on a topic perceive media coverage as biased against their position, regardless of the actual neutrality of the content. This bias is amplified in polarized environments.
  • How many angels can dance on the head of a pin? — This phrase refers to a medieval theological debate about how many angels could fit on a pin’s head, used today to mock overly speculative or trivial discussions. It implies focusing on irrelevant details instead of practical concerns.
  • Hydra — In mythology, the Hydra is a serpent-like monster with many heads, and when one head is cut off, two more grow in its place. It symbolizes problems that become worse when addressed incorrectly or superficially, as well as persistent challenges.
  • Iatrogenics — Iatrogenics refers to harm caused by medical intervention or treatment, where the cure may be worse than the disease. It highlights the risks of overintervention and the unintended consequences of well-meaning actions in complex systems. (Nassim Taleb is a good source on this)
  • Id, ego, superego — Sigmund Freud’s structural model of the psyche consists of the id (the primal, instinctual part of the mind driven by desires), the ego (the rational, decision-making part that mediates between the id and reality), and the superego (the moral conscience shaped by societal norms). Together, they explain human behavior and inner conflict.
  • Identifiable Victim Effect — The identifiable victim effect is a psychological phenomenon where people are more likely to empathize with and help an individual whose story is known and personal, compared to a large, faceless group of people. It shows how emotional connection drives charitable behavior.
  • Illusory correlation — Illusory correlation is the tendency to perceive a relationship between two variables when no such relationship exists. This cognitive bias can lead to stereotypes, superstitions, and flawed reasoning.
  • Imposter Syndrome — Imposter syndrome is the persistent feeling of self-doubt and inadequacy, despite evidence of success or competence. Those experiencing it often believe their achievements are due to luck rather than ability, fearing they’ll be exposed as frauds.
  • Inequality — Inequality refers to the uneven distribution of resources, opportunities, or wealth within a society. It can manifest economically, socially, and politically, often resulting in disparities in power and well-being.
  • Inflation — Inflation is the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power over time. It reflects the declining value of currency, often driven by increased demand, supply shortages, or excessive money printing.
  • Ingroup bias — Ingroup bias is the tendency to favor one’s own group over outsiders, leading to preferential treatment, loyalty, and positive evaluations of group members. It can contribute to social divisions and prejudice against outgroups.
  • Integrative complexity — Integrative complexity is a psychological construct that measures the extent to which an individual or group recognizes multiple perspectives and can integrate these viewpoints into a coherent and nuanced understanding. It reflects the capacity for flexible thinking and problem-solving, often involving the ability to reconcile conflicting information and consider the broader context.
  • Interest rate — An interest rate is the percentage charged by lenders to borrowers for the use of money, or the percentage earned on savings or investments. It is a key tool in monetary policy, influencing borrowing, spending, and economic growth.
  • Internet of Things (IoT) — The Internet of Things refers to the network of physical objects embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies that enable them to connect and exchange data over the internet. IoT devices range from smart home gadgets to industrial machines, creating interconnected systems that enhance automation and data collection.
  • Interposition — Interposition is a controversial political theory suggesting that a state or local government can intervene or “interpose” between the federal government and its citizens to block or resist unconstitutional federal actions. It has historically been invoked in states’ rights debates.
  • Interventionism — Interventionism refers to a government’s active involvement in the affairs of other countries or in domestic markets. In international relations, it often involves military or economic actions; in economics, it refers to regulation or direct government involvement in markets.
  • Iron law of oligarchy — The Iron Law of Oligarchy, formulated by sociologist Robert Michels, posits that all forms of organization, regardless of how democratic they are at the start, will inevitably evolve into oligarchies. It argues that bureaucratic structures concentrate power into the hands of a few elites.
  • Jevons paradox — Jevons Paradox is the idea that increased efficiency in the use of a resource can lead to a greater overall consumption of that resource. For example, more efficient energy use can paradoxically increase total energy demand rather than decrease it.
  • Just-world hypothesis — The just-world hypothesis is the belief that people get what they deserve and deserve what they get, assuming the world is inherently fair. This bias can lead to victim-blaming, as people rationalize misfortune by attributing it to the victim’s actions or character.
  • Kakistocracy — Kakistocracy refers to a government run by the least qualified or most corrupt individuals. The term is a critique of leadership marked by incompetence and self-interest.
  • Karpman Drama Triangle — The Karpman Drama Triangle is a social model of human interaction in which individuals take on one of three roles: victim, persecutor, or rescuer. These roles create a cycle of conflict and manipulation that hinders healthy resolution of issues.
  • Ketman — Ketman refers to the act of outwardly conforming to an oppressive regime while secretly maintaining personal beliefs. The term originated in Eastern Europe under communist rule, describing how people concealed their dissent to avoid persecution.
  • Keynesian economics — Keynesian economics, popularized by John Maynard Keynes, advocates for active government intervention to manage economic cycles, especially during downturns. Examples include FDR‘s New Deal, LBJ’s Great Society, and Bidenenomics, which promoted public spending to stimulate demand and reduce unemployment.
  • Kleptocracy — A kleptocracy is a government where officials use their power to steal national resources or wealth for personal gain. Such regimes are characterized by rampant corruption and the embezzlement of state funds by those in power.
  • Kompromat — Kompromat is a Russian term for compromising material, often used in political blackmail. It refers to the practice of collecting damaging information on individuals to manipulate or control them for political or financial gain.
  • KPIs — Key Performance Indicators: metrics and measurements that provide feedback on how well a business is doing at meeting its objectives.
  • Kronos Effect — The Kronos Effect refers to the strategy used by dominant companies or institutions to suppress emerging competitors by absorbing them or eliminating threats early on. It’s named after the mythological Greek god Kronos, who devoured his children to prevent them from overthrowing him.
  • Laffer Curve — The Laffer Curve is a theory in economics that suggests there is an optimal tax rate that maximizes government revenue. It posits that excessively high tax rates can discourage economic activity, reducing the total tax collected, while lower rates can incentivize growth and increase revenues (see also: supply-side economics, trickle down economics).
  • Large Language Model (LLM) — A large language model (LLM) is a type of artificial intelligence that has been trained on vast amounts of text data to understand, generate, and manipulate natural language. These models, such as GPT, are used for a wide range of tasks like text generation, translation, summarization, and answering questions, leveraging deep learning techniques to predict and construct coherent human-like responses.
  • Last-place aversion — Last-place aversion describes the phenomenon where people near the bottom of an income distribution oppose wealth redistribution policies. They fear such policies might improve the conditions of those slightly below them, making them relatively worse off in the social hierarchy.
  • Law of large numbers — The law of large numbers is a statistical principle that states as the sample size increases, the average of the results becomes more representative of the expected value. In other words, larger data sets lead to more accurate predictions or outcomes.
  • Law of triviality — The law of triviality, also known as Parkinson’s Law of Triviality, asserts that organizations often spend disproportionate time on trivial issues while neglecting more significant and complex matters. It highlights how people tend to focus on simple, familiar topics in decision-making processes.
  • Least-barricaded gate — The least-barricaded gate refers to the idea that an adversary will attack the most vulnerable or least protected point in a system. It underscores the importance of fortifying weak points in security or defenses.
  • Lecturing birds how to fly — This phrase, coined by Nassim Taleb, criticizes the tendency of experts to provide advice or instruction to practitioners who are already naturally skilled in a given area. It reflects the arrogance of over-explaining to those with innate abilities or experience, and the overestimation of academic knowledge or rational means of acquiring skill in society as a whole.
  • Lemmings — Lemmings are often used metaphorically to describe individuals who follow the crowd blindly, without independent thought, sometimes leading to disastrous outcomes. The term originates from a misconception that lemmings engage in mass suicidal behavior.
  • Letter of the law (vs. spirit of the law) — The “letter of the law” refers to the literal and strict interpretation of legal text, while the “spirit of the law” refers to the intended purpose or broader principles behind the law. Conflict arises when rigid adherence to the letter undermines the law’s original intent.
  • Leverage — In finance, leverage refers to the use of borrowed money or other financial instruments to increase potential returns on investment. In broader terms, it can also mean using resources, influence, or advantages to achieve a desired outcome.
  • Lifeboat ethics — Lifeboat ethics is a metaphor for resource distribution and moral decision-making in situations of scarcity, suggesting that only a limited number of people can be saved or supported. It raises ethical questions about who gets to survive or benefit when resources are finite.
  • Loaded question — A loaded question is a question that contains a presupposition that traps the respondent into affirming something they may not agree with. It is a form of fallacy or rhetorical trick often used to manipulate the conversation or put someone on the defensive.
  • Local min — A local minimum refers to the lowest point within a specific range of a curve, where things may seem as though they have hit rock bottom before turning upward again, representing a temporary low rather than a permanent one.
  • Logical fallacies — Logical fallacies are errors in reasoning or argumentation that undermine the logical validity of a claim, often used to mislead or create faulty conclusions, even when the argument appears persuasive at first glance.
  • Lone Wolf mythology — The lone wolf mythology is the romanticized idea that individuals, often portrayed as self-sufficient and independent, achieve greatness or significance without any help or collaboration, ignoring the role of community, networks, and external factors in success.
  • Long Tail — The concept of the long tail, coined by Wired editor-in-chief Chris Anderson in 2004, refers to the concept that in digital markets, niche products or services, while individually selling in smaller quantities, collectively make up a large share of total market sales, especially when distribution and storage costs are low.
  • Longtermism — Longtermism is a philosophical perspective that emphasizes the importance of making decisions today with a focus on improving the long-term future, often spanning decades, centuries, or even longer, prioritizing the well-being of future generations.
  • Loss aversion — Loss aversion is a cognitive bias where people tend to prefer avoiding losses over acquiring equivalent gains, meaning the pain of losing is psychologically more impactful than the pleasure of winning or gaining something.
  • Lost Cause — The Lost Cause is a post-Civil War narrative in the U.S. that glorified the Confederacy, portraying it as a noble, righteous fight for states’ rights and downplaying or justifying its connection to slavery, deeply influencing Southern identity and history.
  • Lost Einsteins — Lost Einsteins refers to the concept that many potential innovators and inventors, especially from underrepresented or disadvantaged backgrounds, never reach their full potential due to systemic barriers like inequality, lack of access to education, or opportunity.
  • Ludic fallacy — The ludic fallacy occurs when people mistakenly apply simplified, game-like rules to real-life situations, underestimating the complexity and unpredictability of real-world scenarios, leading to inaccurate assumptions or predictions.
  • Mafia State — Coined by Hungarian sociologist Balint Magyar, a mafia state is a government system where officials, including those in high-ranking positions, engage in criminal activities and form alliances with organized crime networks to consolidate power and wealth. In such states, corruption and illicit practices are normalized, undermining the rule of law and democratic institutions.
  • Magical Thinking — Magical thinking is the belief that one’s thoughts, words, or actions can directly influence the outcome of events in ways that defy natural laws or logic. It often stems from a desire to exert control over uncontrollable circumstances, leading to irrational or superstitious behavior.
  • Magic helper — In Erich Fromm‘s concept of the “magic helper,” individuals project their desire for salvation or guidance onto an external figure or force, believing that someone or something will rescue them from their struggles. This mental model reflects a dependency on external solutions rather than personal responsibility.
  • Magnification — Magnification is a cognitive distortion where individuals exaggerate the significance of negative events or personal failures, making them appear larger and more catastrophic than they really are. This type of thinking often fuels anxiety, stress, and a skewed perception of reality.
  • Malignant narcissism — Malignant narcissism is a severe personality disorder characterized by a combination of narcissistic traits, paranoia, antisocial behavior, and sadism. Individuals with this disorder exhibit an extreme need for admiration, a lack of empathy, and a tendency to exploit or harm others for personal gain.
  • Manichaean struggle — The Manichaean struggle refers to a worldview that divides reality into a battle between absolute good and absolute evil, often oversimplifying complex issues. This binary thinking fosters an “us versus them” mentality and can justify extreme actions against perceived enemies.
  • Man on horseback — A synonym for a demagogue, from French general Georges Ernest Boulanger. A military leader who presents himself as the savior of the country during a period of crisis and either assumes or threatens to assume dictatorial powers.
  • Map is not the territory — “The map is not the territory” is a concept indicating that representations of reality, such as maps, models, or descriptions, are not equivalent to reality itself. It underscores the idea that our interpretations and symbols cannot fully encapsulate the complexities and nuances of the actual world.
  • Margin of error — The margin of error represents the range within which the true value of a population parameter is expected to lie, based on a sample survey or poll. It provides a measure of uncertainty and is used to understand how precise the results are.
  • Marginal benefit — Marginal benefit refers to the additional gain or utility a person receives from consuming or producing one more unit of a good or service. It helps in decision-making by weighing the extra value gained against the cost of the next unit.
  • Marginal utility — Marginal utility in economics is the additional satisfaction or benefit derived from consuming one more unit of a good or service. It typically diminishes with each additional unit consumed, a principle known as diminishing marginal utility.
  • Market-based Management — Market-based management is a business philosophy developed by Charles Koch that applies free-market principles to organizational management, promoting decentralized decision-making and continuous innovation. It emphasizes value creation through competition and adaptability within the company.
  • Market share — Market share refers to the portion of a market controlled by a particular company or product, expressed as a percentage of total sales in that market. It is an indicator of competitiveness and the company’s relative position in its industry.
  • Markov chain — A Markov chain is a mathematical system that transitions between different states according to fixed probabilities, where the next state depends only on the current state and not on the sequence of past states. It is widely used in areas like statistics, economics, and machine learning for modeling probabilistic processes.
  • Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs — Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a psychological theory that categorizes human needs into five levels, from basic physiological needs to self-actualization. Individuals must satisfy lower-level needs before they can address higher-level needs, such as self-esteem and personal fulfillment.
  • Mean — A statistical measure of central tendency. The mean is the average of a set of numbers, calculated by summing all the values and dividing by the number of values. It provides a measure of central tendency that reflects the typical value in a data set.
  • Median — The median is the middle value in a data set when the values are arranged in order. It is a measure of central tendency that is less sensitive to outliers than the mean, making it useful in skewed distributions.
  • Median Voter Theorem — The median voter theorem suggests that in a majority-rule voting system, the preferences of the median voter will dominate, as candidates or parties tend to move toward the center to capture the most votes. This model explains why political outcomes often reflect moderate or centrist views.
  • Mens rea — Mens rea, Latin for “guilty mind,” refers to the intention or knowledge of wrongdoing that constitutes part of a crime. It is a key concept in criminal law, emphasizing that a person must have had a culpable state of mind at the time of the crime to be held legally responsible.
  • Mercantilism — Mercantilism is an economic theory that dominated Europe from the 16th to 18th centuries, promoting governmental regulation of a nation’s economy to increase state power, particularly through a favorable balance of trade. It emphasized the accumulation of wealth, primarily gold and silver, and the idea that global wealth was finite.
  • Meritocracy — Meritocracy is a system in which power and opportunities are distributed based on individual merit, typically measured by skills, talent, and effort rather than wealth or social status. While it promises fairness, critics argue that it can perpetuate inequality by ignoring systemic barriers that disadvantage certain groups.
  • Metabolic cost of cognition — Renowned psychologist and neuroscientist Lisa Feldman Barrett’s finding that the brain is a highly energy-intensive organ, consuming up to 20% of the body’s energy at rest, which makes complex thinking and problem-solving metabolically expensive. Her work highlights that managing energy costs is crucial for brain function, which is why the brain often resorts to predictive shortcuts.
  • Middle ground — The middle ground refers to a position or solution that seeks to reconcile two opposing viewpoints, often perceived as a balanced or moderate approach. However, it can sometimes lead to compromise solutions that don’t fully satisfy either side, potentially creating ambiguity or a false sense of resolution.
  • Middle Path — Originating from Buddhism, the Middle Path advocates for a life of moderation, avoiding extremes of indulgence and self-denial. It emphasizes balance and wisdom in decision-making, promoting a way of living that fosters long-term well-being and harmony.
  • Milgram Experiments — The Milgram Experiments, conducted by psychologist Stanley Milgram, tested people’s willingness to obey authority figures, even when instructed to perform actions that conflicted with their personal conscience. The results showed a disturbing tendency for individuals to comply with authority, even at the expense of harming others.
  • Millenarianism — Millenarianism is the belief in a coming major transformation of society, often linked to apocalyptic or religious prophecy, where an era of peace or divine rule will follow. Historically, it has driven social and religious movements that seek to hasten the end times or usher in a golden age.
  • Millennialism — Closely related to millenarianism, millennialism is specifically the belief in a future thousand-year reign of Christ or another religious figure as described in Christian eschatology. It has influenced various religious and political movements, especially those that predict or work toward dramatic societal change.
  • Mind metaphors — Mind metaphors are conceptual tools we use to understand the mind by comparing it to more familiar systems, such as a computer, a theater, or a machine. These metaphors shape how we think about mental processes like memory, perception, and consciousness, although they can sometimes oversimplify or mislead.
  • Mind reading — In psychology, mind reading refers to the cognitive ability to infer the thoughts, feelings, or intentions of others, also known as Theory of Mind. While it’s an essential skill for social interaction, it can lead to misunderstandings or cognitive distortions when people assume they know what others are thinking without sufficient evidence.
  • Minimizing — Minimizing is a cognitive distortion where an individual downplays or dismisses the significance of an event, emotion, or experience, often as a defense mechanism. This can prevent people from fully acknowledging their feelings or the gravity of a situation, leading to unresolved issues.
  • Mirror imaging — In political psychology and international relations, mirror imaging refers to the tendency to project one’s own values, beliefs, or intentions onto others, assuming they think and act similarly. This can lead to misjudgments, especially in conflict or negotiation scenarios, where understanding differences is critical.
  • Mobbing Syndrome — Mobbing Syndrome refers to the phenomenon of workplace bullying where an individual is systematically harassed, humiliated, or isolated by colleagues or superiors, leading to severe psychological harm. Heinz Leymann identified it in 1990 as a “deadly industrial disease” that thrives in hierarchical, competitive work environments and can devastate victims both personally and professionally.
  • Mole — A mole is a fundamental unit in chemistry that quantifies the amount of substance, defined as exactly 6.022 x 10Β²Β³ atoms, molecules, or other elementary entities, known as Avogadro’s number. This concept helps chemists easily relate macroscopic quantities to the number of particles at the atomic scale, making it essential for measuring reactions and molecular compositions.
  • Money manager capitalism — Hyman Minsky’s theory of Money Manager Capitalism describes the evolution of the financial system where institutional investors like mutual funds, pension funds, and hedge funds dominate, driving a shift towards market-based finance with increased leverage and complex financial instruments. This stage, emerging post-1980s, is characterized by a focus on short-term returns, heightened financial innovation, and the transfer of risks off traditional bank balance sheets, resulting in greater financial fragility and susceptibility to crises, as exemplified by the 2008 financial meltdown.
  • Monopoly — A monopoly exists when a single company or entity dominates a particular market, controlling the supply of a product or service and limiting competition. This often leads to higher prices and reduced innovation, as the monopolist has significant power over consumers and market dynamics.
  • Monopsony — A monopsony occurs when a single buyer dominates the market, giving them disproportionate control over suppliers or labor. This market structure often enables the buyer to push down prices or wages, as there are few alternative buyers available for sellers or workers to negotiate with.
  • Moore’s Law — Moore’s Law, coined by Gordon Moore in 1965, states that the number of transistors on a microchip doubles approximately every two years, resulting in a corresponding increase in computing power and efficiency. This observation has driven exponential growth in technology, influencing advancements in electronics, computing, and various digital industries.
  • Moral hazard — Moral hazard occurs when one party takes on excessive risk because they do not bear the full consequences of that risk, often due to external protections like insurance or government bailouts. This can lead to irresponsible behavior, as the individual or organization feels shielded from the potential fallout.
  • Moral panic — A moral panic arises when a segment of society becomes irrationally concerned about a perceived threat to its values or safety, often amplified by media coverage. These panics typically result in exaggerated public reactions and policies aimed at controlling or suppressing the supposed danger.
  • Motivated reasoning — Motivated reasoning is the cognitive process in which individuals selectively gather, interpret, and evaluate information in a biased way to support their pre-existing beliefs or desires. This phenomenon often leads to poor decision-making, as people prioritize what they want to believe over objective evidence.
  • Naive cynicism — Naive cynicism is the tendency to assume that other people’s views are shaped by their self-interest or biases, while considering one’s own views to be objective and rational. This can lead to misunderstandings and a lack of empathy in social and political interactions.
  • Naive realism — Naive realism is the belief that one perceives the world accurately and that people who disagree are either uninformed, irrational, or biased. It can create a barrier to understanding differing perspectives and lead to conflicts in communication and relationships.
  • Narcissism — Narcissism is characterized by excessive self-focus, an inflated sense of importance, and a deep need for admiration, often at the expense of empathy for others. Narcissists tend to prioritize their own needs and desires, sometimes engaging in manipulative or self-serving behavior to maintain their self-image.
  • Narcissism of small differences — Sigmund Freud’s concept of the narcissism of small differences describes the phenomenon where individuals or groups who are closely related, either culturally or ideologically, engage in conflict or hostility over minor distinctions. This theory suggests that minor differences are exaggerated to affirm identity and superiority over others.
  • Nash Equilibrium — Nash Equilibrium, a key concept in game theory, occurs when all players in a strategic game are choosing the best possible strategy given the strategies of others, and no player has an incentive to deviate from their choice. It reflects a stable state where everyone’s decisions are mutually consistent, but not necessarily optimal for the group as a whole.
  • Nasty, brutish, and short — This phrase comes from philosopher Thomas Hobbes’ description of life in a state of nature, where he argued that without government or social structure, human life would be chaotic, violent, and brief. It underscores his belief in the necessity of a strong central authority to maintain order and prevent societal collapse.
  • Natural law — Natural law refers to the idea that certain rights and moral principles are inherent to human nature and can be discovered through reason, independent of human-made laws. Rooted in philosophy and theology, it suggests that these universal principles govern human conduct and serve as a basis for legal systems.
  • Near enemy — In Buddhism, the concept of the near enemy describes a pitfall or metaphorical adversary that is not as obvious as the more obvious, “far” enemy. The Near Enemy appears more innocuous and presents itself as a positive as opposed to a negative.
  • Negative externalities — Negative externalities occur when a person or business’s actions impose unintended costs on others, such as pollution or noise, without those responsible bearing the full burden of those costs. They represent a market failure where the social cost exceeds the private cost, often necessitating government intervention to correct the imbalance.
  • Negativity bias — Negativity bias is the psychological tendency for people to focus more on negative experiences or information than positive ones, giving greater weight to threats or unpleasant events. This bias influences decision-making, emotional responses, and memory, often leading to a skewed perception of reality.
  • Neurosis — Neurosis refers to a range of mental health issues characterized by anxiety, depression, or obsessive behavior, where the individual remains in touch with reality but struggles with internal conflict or emotional distress. Unlike psychosis, neurotic individuals do not lose their grasp on the external world but may experience disproportionate fear or worry.
  • Newspeak — Newspeak, a term coined by George Orwell in his novel 1984, is a fictional language designed to diminish the range of thought by reducing vocabulary and manipulating meaning. It serves as a tool for political control, restricting the ability to express dissent and promoting ideological conformity.
  • Night Watchman State — The Night Watchman State, also known as the minimal state, advocates for a government with limited responsibilities, focusing on protecting citizens from violence, theft, and fraud, and minimizing intervention in the economy and society. Critics argue that such minimalism fails to support vulnerable populations and adequately regulate markets, protect the environment, or ensure social justice, emphasizing the need for a more complex government to address modern societal challenges.
  • Nominal realism — Nominal realism is the cognitive tendency, especially in children, to believe that names or labels of objects are inherently linked to their physical properties. It reflects an early stage of cognitive development where individuals may struggle to understand that words are arbitrary symbols.
  • Nonlinearity — Nonlinearity describes a relationship between variables where the effect of one variable on another is not proportional or predictable. In complex systems, small changes can lead to disproportionately large effects, making outcomes difficult to forecast with traditional linear models.
  • Non-zero sum game — A non-zero sum game is a situation in which all participants can gain or lose together, meaning that one party’s gain doesn’t necessarily come at another’s loss. In contrast to zero-sum games, cooperation and mutually beneficial outcomes are possible, creating opportunities for win-win scenarios.
  • Normal distribution — The normal distribution, often called the “bell curve,” is a probability distribution that is symmetrical around the mean, where most observations cluster around the center and taper off symmetrically at the extremes. It’s a common model in statistics, representing many natural and social phenomena, such as human heights or test scores.
  • No True Scotsman fallacy — The No True Scotsman fallacy occurs when someone arbitrarily redefines a category to exclude counterexamples that disprove their claim. It’s a form of circular reasoning where, rather than addressing the exception, the speaker shifts the definition to avoid being wrong.
  • Observational selection bias — Observational selection bias happens when certain data or observations are systematically overlooked or given disproportionate weight, leading to skewed conclusions. This bias often occurs when individuals focus on evidence that supports their preconceived notions while ignoring contradictory information.
  • Occam’s Razor — Occam’s Razor is a problem-solving principle that suggests the simplest explanation, requiring the fewest assumptions, is often the correct one. It doesn’t guarantee truth but is a useful heuristic in scientific and logical reasoning to prioritize more straightforward theories.
  • Ochlocracy — Ochlocracy, or mob rule, refers to a form of governance where control is exercised by a disorderly crowd or mass of people, bypassing legitimate authority and institutions. It often leads to chaotic decision-making and undermines the rule of law in favor of impulsive and emotional responses.
  • OKRs — Objectives and Key Results, or OKRs, are a business framework that defines specific objectives an organization or team aims to achieve, along with measurable key results to track progress. Widely used in goal-setting, they help align individual, team, and organizational efforts toward a shared vision of success.
  • Oligarchy — Oligarchy is a political system where power is concentrated in the hands of a small, elite group, often based on wealth, family ties, or military control. This form of governance tends to prioritize the interests of the few over the broader population, leading to inequality and restricted political influence.
  • Omission bias — Omission bias is the tendency to judge harmful actions as worse than equally harmful inactions, leading people to feel more comfortable with harm caused by doing nothing than by direct intervention. This psychological bias can distort decision-making, particularly in situations involving ethical or moral choices.
  • Ontology recapitulates phylogeny — This outdated biological theory, proposed by Ernst Haeckel, suggested that the development of an individual organism (ontology) mirrors the evolutionary development of its species (phylogeny). While it has been largely discredited, the concept highlights the historical attempt to link embryological development with evolutionary history.
  • Operant conditioning — A psychological learning model in which behavior is modified through reinforcement or punishment, encouraging desired actions and discouraging unwanted ones. By repeatedly pairing a stimulus with a positive or negative consequence, operant conditioning shapes behavior and responses over time.
  • Opportunity cost — The loss of potential gain when one choice is selected over another, representing the benefits of the foregone alternative. In decision-making, understanding opportunity cost helps weigh the true impact of a choice.
  • Optimism bias — A cognitive bias causing people to overestimate the likelihood of positive outcomes while underestimating potential risks. This can lead to overconfidence and risk-taking without adequate preparation.
  • Options — A financial derivative giving the holder the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell an asset at a predetermined price before or on a specific date. Options offer flexibility for investors to hedge against risk, speculate on asset prices, or generate income through premium collection.
  • Orders of magnitude — A comparative scale that highlights exponential differences, often used to understand the vast differences in size, scale, or impact. Thinking in orders of magnitude helps contextualize large quantities and prioritize critical areas.
  • Orienting response — A natural, instinctive reaction in which we pay special attention to novel or significant stimuli that enter our field of vision, often critical for survival. This mental model explains why certain visuals, sounds, or movements demand our immediate focus.
  • Originalism — A judicial philosophy that purports to interpret legal texts, especially the Constitution, according to the intent and understanding of its original authors. Originalism contrasts with more flexible interpretations as well as changes to the corpus of law in the United States over time.
  • Outgroup bias — The tendency to view those outside one’s social group more negatively than those within it, leading to stereotyping or prejudice. Recognizing outgroup bias helps challenge assumptions and promote inclusivity.
  • Outlier — A data point or observation that deviates significantly from other values, often revealing exceptions or unique cases. Outliers can skew analyses and may either reveal errors or highlight meaningful insights.
  • Overgeneralizing — Drawing broad conclusions from a limited set of observations, often leading to stereotypes or inaccurate assumptions. Overgeneralizing can cloud judgment by overlooking the complexity and variation within groups or situations.
  • Oversight — The process of supervising activities or policies to ensure they meet certain standards and avoid errors. Effective oversight provides accountability and ensures quality control in both projects and policies.
  • Overton Window — The Overton Window refers to the range of policies or ideas that are considered politically acceptable or mainstream at a given time. It shifts over time as public opinion and political discourse evolve, influencing what policymakers and the public deem feasible or acceptable.
  • Paradox — A statement or situation that appears self-contradictory or logically inconsistent, yet may reveal an underlying truth upon deeper examination. Paradoxes challenge assumptions and encourage critical thinking, highlighting complexities and the limits of conventional logic.
  • Paralipsis — Paralipsis is a rhetorical device where a speaker or writer emphasizes something by pretending to pass over it, thus drawing attention to it indirectly. It often involves stating that a topic will not be mentioned while actually highlighting its importance.
  • Paranoia — A mental state or condition characterized by intense and irrational mistrust, suspicion, or fear of others. In extreme cases, paranoia may lead to a belief in conspiracies against oneself or a conviction that others have hostile intentions.
  • Paranoid Style — The paranoid style in American politics refers to a way of thinking and discourse characterized by exaggerated fear, suspicion, and conspiracy theories, often perceiving vast, insidious, and unseen forces working against society. This style, as described by historian Richard Hofstadter, frequently appears during times of social stress and is marked by a sense of urgency and moral righteousness.
  • Pareto Principle — Also known as the 80/20 rule, the Pareto Principle suggests that 80% of effects often come from 20% of causes. This principle highlights how a few critical inputs can drive the majority of outcomes, helping prioritize efforts in problem-solving and productivity.
  • Parkinson’s Law of Triviality — Sometimes called β€œbikeshedding,” this law states that people often spend disproportionate time discussing minor details of a complex issue, rather than focusing on more impactful areas. It illustrates a cognitive bias where trivial issues feel safer and easier to engage with than larger, more complex problems.
  • Parrondo’s Paradox — A counterintuitive phenomenon where two losing strategies can be combined to produce a winning outcome. In probability and game theory, Parrondo’s Paradox shows how alternating or mixing strategies can sometimes yield success, even when each strategy alone leads to failure.
  • Path dependent — Describes processes or decisions that are heavily influenced by previous steps or events, making some outcomes more likely than others based on historical context. Path dependence shows how initial conditions or choices can constrain future possibilities, locking in certain trajectories over time.
  • Pathocracy — A term describing a government or ruling system where leaders exhibit psychopathic or sociopathic traits, prioritizing self-interest, control, and manipulation over public welfare. Pathocracy emphasizes the dangers of unempathetic, power-driven leadership on societal well-being and democratic structures.
  • Patriarchy — The divine right of kings; authority via claimed received wisdom — and the accident of biological sex
  • Pearls before swine
  • Peer pressure
  • Perfect is the enemy of good
  • Personality disorders
  • Personal incredulity
  • Peter Principle
  • Philosopher’s Stone
  • Plan continuation bias — aka the “get-there-itis” phenomenon in airplane pilot terminology
  • Planning fallacy
  • Plate tectonics
  • Platonic forms
  • Plato’s Cave
  • Pluralistic ignorance
  • Plutocracy
  • Polyanna Principle
  • Polygenesis — pseudoscientific human origin story used to justify slavery
  • Polyvagal theory — Polyvagal Theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, explains how the autonomic nervous system influences our emotional regulation, social connection, and stress responses, highlighting the role of the vagus nerve in responding to safety, danger, and life-threatening situations.
  • Populism — a type of political movement
  • Positive expectation bias
  • Post-purchase rationalization
  • Potemkin Village Effect
  • Power
  • Predestination
  • “Preening self” — Tim Wu’s concept of the universal urge to “capture the attention of others with the spectacle of one’s self”
  • Presentation of Self — Sociologist Erving Goffman’s most famous work, which introduced the concept of “dramaturgy” to sociology. He used the metaphor of theater to describe how individuals present themselves in everyday life, suggesting that people are like actors on a stage, performing roles for an audience.
  • Primogeniture — laws in the early US defining that by default, assets will pass to the first-born male
  • Prisoner’s Dilemma
  • Private mental property — Pol Pot’s concept for the most intimate inner thoughts and feelings of his people, that he was dedicated to removing completely from them.
  • Probability
  • Procrustean bed
  • Projection
  • Prolefeed
  • Proletariat
  • Propaganda
  • Proportionality
  • Prospect theory
  • Proteanism
  • Provincialism
  • Proximate cause
  • Proxy war
  • Psychopath
  • Psychosis
  • PTSD — Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
  • Public choice theory
  • Pyrrhic victory — a hollow victory which destroys the victor as much as it does the vanquished; a victory that comes at extremely high cost
  • Quantum theory
  • Quid pro quo — Latin phrase: something in exchange for something else
  • Range
  • Rational ignorance
  • Reality testing
  • Received wisdom — divine revelation, claimed authority from the gods, and other mechanisms of establishing power from an unprovable (and undisprovable) premise falling outside of logic and rational deliberation
  • Reciprocity
  • Recursion
  • Red-baiting
  • Redundancy
  • Relativity
  • Remarketization — Remarketization refers to the process of reinstating or expanding market mechanisms and principles within an economy or sector that had previously been regulated or managed by the state or other non-market entities. This often involves privatization, deregulation, and the promotion of competition to enhance efficiency and innovation. The policy became prominent during the Reagan/Thatcher years.
  • Representativeness
  • Repression
  • Resemblance bias
  • Resilience
  • Risk
  • Risk aversion
  • ROI — Return on Investment, i.e. how much you earn from an investment or business expenditure vs. what you put in or spent
  • Rule of Law
  • Sadism — the tendency to derive pleasure — often of a sexual nature — from inflicting pain or suffering on other people
  • Sado-masochistic strivings — Erich Fromm concept
  • Sadopopulism
  • Sampling
  • Samsara — a Sanskrit word meaning “world,” that also references the Buddhist concept of rebirth and the endless cyclicality of all life and matter in the universe
  • Satisficing — Satisficing is a decision-making strategy that aims for a satisfactory or adequate result rather than the optimal solution, often due to time constraints or limited information. This approach involves evaluating alternatives until an acceptable threshold is met, rather than exhaustively searching for the best possible outcome.
  • Sayre’s Law — Sayre’s Law states that “In any dispute, the intensity of feeling is inversely proportional to the value of the issues at stake.” This means that the smaller or more trivial the matter, the more passionate and bitter the arguments tend to be.
  • Scapegoat
  • Second-order thinking
  • Secularism
  • Selective exposure — Selective exposure is the tendency of individuals to prefer information that supports their preexisting views while avoiding contradictory information. This behavior reinforces existing beliefs and biases, often leading to polarized opinions and a lack of balanced understanding.
  • Selectorate theory
  • Self-fulfilling prophecy
  • Self-serving bias
  • Senicide
  • Shifting baseline syndrome
  • Sic semper tyrannis — thus always to tyrants (John Wilkes Booth; Timothy McVeigh)
  • Signal path
  • Simpson’s Paradox
  • Singularity
  • Skin in the game
  • Slippery slope
  • Smear campaign
  • Snackwell effect
  • Social contract
  • social-desirability bias — A type of response bias in which survey respondents tend to answer questions in ways that will viewed more favorably by others
  • Social dominance
  • Socialism
  • Sociopath
  • Socratic method
  • Spatial Segregation Model — Thomas Schelling (1969)
  • Special pleading
  • Special relativity
  • Spectra
  • Spiral of silence
  • Spirit of the law (vs. letter of the law)
  • SPoF (Single Point of Failure)
  • Standard deviation
  • Standard Model of particle physics
  • State of the World — full description of all relevant information
  • Status quo
  • Stereotypes
  • Stonewalling
  • Strawman
  • Strongman
  • Streisand Effect
  • String Theory
  • Sundown towns
  • Sunk cost
  • Superorganism
  • Supremacy
  • Symbiosis — psychological concept from Erich Fromm on what fascist followers get out of their relationship with the Strongman
  • Sycophant — one who flatters the ruler, no matter how awful their ideas
  • Tangent
  • Tang pingTang Ping (or “lying flat”) is a Chinese social movement advocating a minimalist lifestyle and rejection of societal pressures for overwork and consumerism, in response to burnout and unsustainable economic demands.
  • Tariffs
  • Teleological fallacy
  • Terminal velocity model
  • Texas sharpshooter
  • Third Story
  • Tightly coupled — when a system is unforgiving, or has little buffer between its components
  • Tilting at windmills
  • Time to completion
  • Tipping point
  • Toxic masculinity
  • Toxic positivity
  • Tragedy of the commons
  • Trauma bonding
  • Treadmill effect
  • Triangulation
  • Trickle-down economics
  • Trolley problem
  • Tu quoque
  • Turtles all the way down
  • Tyranny
  • Tyranny of choice
  • Tyranny of small decisions
  • UBI — Universal Basic Income
  • Umgebung — in contrast to the provincial, proprietary umwelt, the umgebung is the actual world, that exists beyond our mere perception of the world
  • Umwelt — the small subset of the world we can detect or perceive, in contrast with umgebung which is the “bigger” reality
  • Uncertainty
  • Uncertainty avoidance
  • Vatnik
  • Veil of Ignorance — John Rawls
  • Venn diagram
  • Vertical axis of morality
  • Violent othering — When members of racial, ethnic, religious, or other types of groups are targeted for political violence for spurious reasons
  • Wadler’s Law
  • Wave function
  • Wave-particle duality
  • Whac-a-mole — solving one problem only to have a new one pop up elsewhere, a reference to a Japanese video game from the 1970s that became popular in America as well
  • Whataboutism
  • White Jesus
  • White supremacy
  • Wisdom of the crowds
  • Wolves and sheep
  • Worst case scenario
  • Zero-risk bias
  • Zero sum game
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Hurricane Helene disinformation made disaster recovery that much harder

Unraveling Hurricanes Helene and Milton: Disinformation in the Eye of the Storm

While Hurricane Helene wreaked physical destruction across the southeastern United States, another less visible but equally dangerous force emerged in its wake: disinformation. As communities grappled with the devastating impact of the storm, false narratives and conspiracy theories quickly flooded digital platforms, undermining relief efforts and sowing confusion. The Hurricane Helene disinformation campaign serves as a stark reminder of how misinformation can exacerbate the challenges already faced during natural disasters.

The Storm of False Narratives

As Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida on September 26, 2024, and tore across multiple states, the usual flood of news reports and social media posts followed. However, amidst the legitimate updates, a tide of disinformation quickly began to circulate. Rumors ranged from claims that federal disaster funds were being siphoned off to suggestions that FEMA was using the chaos as an opportunity to seize private property. These baseless theories were amplified through social media platforms, with some posts gaining widespread traction and undermining public trust in government responses.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene — of “Jewish space lasers” and Christian nationalism infamy — claimed that it’s obvious Democrats control the weather, as evidenced by a shared C-SPAN clip from the Obama years with then-CIA Director John Brennan talking about the highly theoretical and as of yet untried science of geoengineering. Because the very best way to keep your global conspiracy a top secret is to broadcast it into the public domain on C-SPAN.

Some viral posts alleged that the government had restricted airspace above affected areas, not for safety reasons, but as part of a shadowy conspiracy to cover up the true extent of the damage (for what reason is not specified). Other false reports claimed that FEMA was blocking local relief efforts and taking control of private land for nefarious purposes. These rumors not only spread fear and confusion but also hindered relief operations, as some individuals refused aid or hesitated to evacuate based on false information — endangering and perhaps even taking lives.

The Role of Digital Platforms in Spreading Misinformation

Digital platforms, especially social media, have played a significant role in the proliferation of disinformation during Hurricane Helene. The fast-moving nature of these platforms allowed misleading posts to go viral before accurate information could be verified and shared. The challenge for both federal agencies and local authorities was to quickly counter these false claims while also managing the logistics of the emergency response.

Continue reading Hurricane Helene disinformation campaigns
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gamergate illustrated by midjourney

Today, we’re diving into the labyrinthine tale of Gamergateβ€”an episode that unfolded in 2014 but echoes into today’s digital sociology. What was Gamergate? It was a kind of canary in the coalmine — a tale of online intrigue, cultural upheaval, and for some, an awakening to the virulent undercurrents of internet anonymity.

I. Origins and Triggering Events: The Spark That Lit the Fire

In August 2014, an unassuming blog post titled “The Zoe Post” by Eron Gjoni set off a chain reaction that few could have foreseen. Through this post, which detailed his personal grievances against Zoe Quinn, a game developer, the seed of misinformation was sown. The post falsely implicated Quinn in an unethical affair with Nathan Grayson, a gaming journalist, suggesting she had manipulated him for favorable coverage of her game Depression Quest. This unfounded claim was the initial spark that ignited the raging internet inferno of Gamergate.

The allegations quickly spread across forums like 4chan, a breeding ground for anonymity and chaos. Here, the narrative morphed into a menacing campaign that took aim at Quinn and other women in the gaming industry. The escalation was not just rapidβ€”it was coordinated, a harbinger of the kind of internet and meme warfare that has since become all too familiar.

II. Targets of Harassment: The Human Cost of Online Fury

What followed was an onslaught of harassment against women at the heart of the gaming industry. Zoe Quinn wasn’t alone in this; Anita Sarkeesian and Brianna Wu also bore the brunt of this vicious campaign. This wasn’t just trolling or mean tweetsβ€”it was a barrage of rape threats, death threats, and doxing attempts, creating a reality where digital assault became a daily occurrence.

Others got caught in the crossfire, tooβ€”individuals like Jenn Frank and Mattie Brice, who dared to defend the victims or criticize Gamergate, found themselves subject to the same malevolent noise. Even Phil Fish, a game developer, saw his private data leaked in a cruel display of digital vigilantism.

III. Nature of the Harassment: When Digital Attacks Go Beyond the Screen

Gamergate painted a harrowing picture of the scope and scale of online harassment. Orchestrated attacks didn’t stop at vitriolic tweets; they extended to doxing, where victims’ personal information was broadcast publicly, and swatting,” a dangerous “prank” that involves making false police reports to provoke a SWAT team response.

Platforms like Twitter, 4chan, and its notorious sibling 8chan were the stages upon which this drama played out. Here, an army of “sockpuppet” accounts created an overwhelming maelstrom, blurring the lines between dissent and digital terrorism.

Gamergate red-pilled right work to inflict pain, elect Trump

IV. Motivations and Ideology: Misogyny and Political Underpinnings

At its core, Gamergate was more than just a gamers’ revolt; it was a flashpoint in a broader cultural war, defined by misogyny and anti-feminism. This was a resistance against the shifting dynamics within the gaming worldβ€”a refusal to accept the increasing roles women were assuming.

Moreover, Gamergate was entangled with the burgeoning alt-right movement. Figures like Milo Yiannopoulos latched onto the controversy, using platforms like Breitbart News as megaphones for their ideas. Here, Gamergate served as both a symptom and a gateway, introducing many to the alt-right’s narrative of disenchantment and defiance against progressive change.

Gamergate’s Lasting Legacy and the “Great Meme War”

Gamergate wasn’t just a flashpoint in the world of gaming; it was the breeding ground for a new kind of online warfare. The tactics honed during Gamergateβ€”coordinated harassment, the use of memes as cultural weapons, and the manipulation of platforms like Twitter and 4chanβ€”became the playbook for a much larger, more consequential battle: the so-called β€œGreat Meme War” that helped fuel Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

The very same troll armies that harassed women in the gaming industry turned their attention toward mainstream politics, using the lessons learned in Gamergate to spread disinformation, amplify division, and create chaos. Memes became more than just jokes; they became political tools wielded with precision, reaching millions and shaping narratives in ways traditional media struggled to keep up with. What began as a seemingly insular controversy in the gaming world would go on to sow the seeds of a far more disruptive force, one that reshaped modern political discourse.

The influence of these tactics is still felt today, as the digital landscape continues to be a battleground where information warfare is waged daily. Gamergate was the first tremor in a cultural earthquake that has redefined how power, politics, and identity are contested in the digital age. As we move forward, understanding its origins and its impact on today’s sociopolitical environment is essential if we hope to navigateβ€”and counterβ€”the dark currents of digital extremism.

In retrospect, Gamergate wasn’t an isolated incident but a prelude, a trial run for the troll armies that would soon storm the gates of political power. Its legacy, while grim, offers critical insights into the fragility and volatility of our online spacesβ€”and the urgent need for vigilance in the face of future campaigns of digital manipulation.

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the divine right of kings, as illustrated by Midjourney

The divine right of kings is one of history’s most audacious power playsβ€”a political theory that essentially says, β€œI’m in charge because God said so.” Monarchs throughout Europe wielded this doctrine like a holy scepter, justifying their absolute rule by claiming they were directly appointed by the Almighty. Forget elections, parliaments, or even the will of the people; in this worldview, earthly rulers were accountable to no one but God. To challenge a king’s authority was not just treasonβ€”it was blasphemy.

Core Principles of the Divine Right of Kings

At its heart, the divine right of kings boiled down to a few central tenets, all of which worked to reinforce the unassailable power of monarchs:

  1. Divine Authority: Monarchs didn’t just claim political powerβ€”they asserted that their right to rule came straight from God. No earthly institution could grant or revoke this authority. In the grand cosmic hierarchy, the king was just one step below God Himself.
  2. Absolute Power: Under this system, the monarch had total, unquestionable power. Whether dealing with rebellious nobles, restless clergy, or the murmurs of an unhappy populace, the king was above it all. No parliament, no council, and certainly no commoner had any right to challenge royal decrees.
  3. Accountability to God Alone: This was the ultimate trump card. If a king was unjust, cruel, or tyrannical, only God could judge them. The people were meant to suffer in silence, trusting that divine justice would eventually comeβ€”likely in the afterlife, but certainly not on the earthly plane.
  4. Sacrosanct Rule: Any attempt to restrict or overthrow the monarch wasn’t just an act of political rebellion; it was an affront to God’s will. Deposing a king was painted as sacrilege, a sin of the highest order.

Justifications and Interpretations

Monarchs and their theologians weren’t content with just making grand claims; they sought to root their power in religious texts and metaphors that reinforced their divine legitimacy.

  • Biblical Backing: Monarchs often cited verses like Romans 13:1 (β€œLet every soul be subject unto the higher powers…”) to suggest that their rule was divinely sanctioned. The Bible became a political tool, shaping earthly governance with the weight of holy writ.
  • Metaphorical Comparisons: Kings weren’t just leadersβ€”they were God’s lieutenants on Earth, strict father figures to their subjects (parens patriae), and the heads of the body politic. This imagery elevated their role from mere mortal ruler to something quasi-divine, making any opposition seem unnatural.
  • Pre-selection by God: Some went even further, claiming that kings were chosen by God and predestined to rule others before they were born. This preordained selection made their authority seem as inevitable as the rising sun.
the divine right of kings stained glass style

Historical Context and Evolution

The divine right of kings didn’t just spring out of nowhereβ€”it was the product of centuries of theological and political evolution.

  • Medieval Roots: The seeds of the doctrine were planted in the medieval period when rulers were seen as having been granted power by God to maintain order on Earth. But it wasn’t until later that the idea was fully weaponized by monarchs to cement their grip on power.
  • Reformation Impact: The Protestant Reformation inadvertently turbocharged the doctrine. As monarchs in Protestant countries broke away from the Catholic Church, they claimed not only political but also religious authority. The king was no longer just a ruler but also the defender of the faithβ€”a potent combination.
  • Peak Influence: The divine right of kings reached its zenith in the 16th to 18th centuries, particularly under figures like James I of England and Louis XIV of France. These monarchs were its fiercest proponents, with Louis famously declaring, β€œL’état, c’est moiβ€β€”β€œI am the state.”

Implications of the Divine Right

This doctrine wasn’t just abstract theologyβ€”it had real-world consequences that shaped politics, religion, and society.

  • Absolutism: The divine right of kings was often used to justify absolute monarchy, where the king held total control over the state. It concentrated power in the hands of one individual, with no checks or balances to limit their rule.
  • Religious Authority: Monarchs also claimed the right to enforce religious uniformity. In Protestant nations, kings became heads of the church, dictating what their subjects could believe and how they could worship. This fusion of political and religious power only made them harder to challenge.
  • Resistance to Reform: The doctrine was a powerful bulwark against efforts to limit royal authority. Calls for more representative government or constitutional limits on monarchical power were met with accusations of heresy or treason.

Decline and Legacy

As potent as the divine right of kings was, it eventually met its match. The Enlightenment, with its emphasis on reason, individual rights, and the social contract, dealt a fatal blow to the idea that kings ruled by divine mandate. The English Civil War, the Glorious Revolution, and the French Revolution all demonstrated that the peopleβ€”and their representativesβ€”were no longer willing to accept unchecked royal power.

But even as the doctrine waned, its echoes can still be felt. The idea that rulers are chosen by a higher power hasn’t entirely disappearedβ€”it just takes on new forms. From autocratic strongmen who claim destiny to religious leaders with political power, the shadow of the divine right lingers on, reminding us of the dangerous allure of absolute authority cloaked in divine justification.

In the end, the divine right of kings was a masterful fusion of theology and politics, granting monarchs an iron grip on power that was, for centuries, unassailable. But as history shows, even claims to divine authority can’t stand forever against the rising tide of human agency and the demand for justice.

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right-wing media outlet echo chamber

The Echo Chamber of Deceit: Right-Wing Media Outlets, Disinformation, and the Conspiracy Industrial Complex

In an era where truth is increasingly under siege, disinformation has become a weapon of mass confusionβ€”and no faction wields it with more fervor than the vast right-wing media machine. From fringe conspiracy theorists lurking in dark corners of the internet to mainstream outlets that once feigned journalistic credibility, these media entities have mastered the art of crafting narratives that distort, divide, and deceive.

But the effects of this disinformation aren’t limited to a few misguided souls. These conspiracy-laden outlets drive real-world consequences, spreading chaos and undermining democratic institutions with each clickbait headline and manufactured outrage. Whether fueling distrust in elections, amplifying extremist ideologies, or fostering a sense of victimhood among their audiences, these outlets play a pivotal role in shaping the political landscapeβ€”and not for the better.

In this post, we’ll dive into some of the most notorious right-wing media outlets pushing disinformation and conspiracy theories, exploring how they have built empires of falsehoods and what it means for a society increasingly untethered from reality (for the antidote to this list, please see our set of curated trusted expert sources on political and historical topics).

Building Empires of Falsehoods

These right-wing media outlets have built empires of falsehoods by capitalizing on two critical factors: the erosion of trust in traditional media and the increasing polarization of political discourse. As public faith in mainstream journalism wanes, largely due to relentless attacks branding them as “fake news” or “liberal bias,” alternative outlets step into the vacuum. They promise their audiences “unfiltered truth” but deliver carefully curated content designed to inflame rather than inform. The business model thrives on sensationalismβ€”conspiracy theories and emotionally charged stories that draw clicks, shares, and ad revenue. Whether it’s the undermining of election results, promoting COVID-19 misinformation, or fostering anti-government sentiment, these outlets operate in an ecosystem where outrage is profitable, and facts are malleable.

For a society increasingly untethered from reality, the implications are grave. When large swaths of the public are consistently exposed to a parallel universe of disinformation, the ability to engage in reasoned discourse or even agree on basic facts erodes. This creates a fertile ground for extremism, where misinformation is weaponized to radicalize, isolate, and enrage. Civic institutions that rely on trust and shared realityβ€”elections, the judiciary, and public healthβ€”are undermined, weakening the very foundation of democracy. In a world where conspiracy theories and falsehoods become the currency of political influence, society drifts ever closer to a reality in which truth is irrelevant, and power is achieved through manipulation and division.

right-wing media outlets brainwashing the MAGA faithful

Let’s take a look at some of the most egregious offenders on the right, who routinely eschew any interest in journalistic integrity or independent verification of facts or sources and instead have a tendency to, well, make shit up (or enable bad shit to happen on their platforms).

Right-Wing Media Outlets

Outlet or IndividualDescription
4chanSince its launch in 2003, 4chan has become a key platform in shaping internet subculture, particularly through its creation and dissemination of memes. The site operates as an anonymous imageboard, with users posting on a wide range of topics, from anime to politics. With over 22 million unique monthly visitors, 4chan remains one of the most influential and controversial online communities, often cited for both its creative output and its association with extremist content.
8chanKnown for its alt-right extremism and ties to mass shootings, 8chan was crucial in spreading conspiracy theories like QAnon. Banned and later rebranded as 8kun, the platform gained notoriety during the Gamergate controversy, attracting users banned from other platforms.
Alex JonesFounder of InfoWars, a prominent conspiracy theorist known for promoting various false claims and conspiracy theories.
Alexander MarlowEditor-in-chief of Breitbart News, known for maintaining the site’s far-right editorial stance.
American NewsAmerican News is a conservative news outlet that focuses on pro-Republican content. With a significant online presence, it engages a large conservative audience, contributing to the polarization of political discourse in the U.S. through its right-leaning coverage.
American RenaissanceWhite supremacist website run by Jared Taylor.
Andrew AnglinWhite supremacist who started the Daily Stormer in response to Obama‘s election
Ben ShapiroFormer Breitbart columnist and founder of The Daily Wire
Blaze TVGlenn Beck’s network
Breitbart NewsOnline news site known for its right-wing perspectives. Former chairman Steve Bannon; funded by Robert Mercer.
Cassandra FairbanksCassandra Fairbanks is a political activist and journalist best known for her support of Donald Trump. Previously a Bernie Sanders supporter, she has worked for outlets like Sputnik News and The Gateway Pundit.
Chanel RionChief White House correspondent for OANN, known for her conservative reporting and support of Trump.
Charles HurtOpinion editor of The Washington Times, known for his conservative political commentary.
Christopher RuddyCEO of Newsmax and significant figure in operational and editorial direction.
Daily StormerWhite supremacist, neo-Nazi website founded by Andrew Anglin in reaction to Obama’s election.
Dan BonginoDan Bongino is a prominent American conservative commentator, radio host, and author. His background includes serving as an NYPD officer from 1995 to 1999, followed by a distinguished career as a US Secret Service agent, where he worked on the Presidential Protective Division under both the Bush and Obama administrations. Bongino is highly educated, with a BS and MS from Queens College and an MBA from Penn State. His popular show, “The Dan Bongino Show,” attracted about 8.5 million listeners as of October 2021, ranking second among those vying to succeed Rush Limbaugh. He has authored several New York Times bestsellers, including Spygate: The Attempted Sabotage of Donald J. Trump, and hosted “Unfiltered with Dan Bongino” on Fox News until April 2023
Drudge ReportThe Drudge Report is a U.S.-based news aggregation website founded by Matt Drudge, known for breaking the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. The site consists primarily of links to stories from other news outlets and was once considered conservative, though its political leanings have been questioned since 2019.
EndingtheFedPopularized by Ron Paul, Ending the Fed advocates for eliminating the Federal Reserve, criticizing it for contributing to inflation and financial crises. The platform is closely aligned with Tea Party movements from 2008 to 2012.
Epoch TimesA multi-language outlet founded by Chinese Americans associated with Falun Gong, known for its critical stance on the Chinese Communist Party, staunch support for Trump, and echoing of the Big Lie about Election 2020.
Fox NewsMajor cable news network known for its right-wing slant and influential conservative commentary. Fox News was found liable in a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems, resulting in a settlement of nearly $1 billion after the network repeatedly aired false claims that Dominion’s voting machines were used to rig the 2020 presidential election.
Free BeaconFounded in 2012, The Washington Free Beacon is a conservative news website known for its investigative reporting. Although aligned with conservative viewpoints, it has been criticized for publishing potentially misleading content.
Gateway PunditThe Gateway Pundit is a far-right website founded in 2004, notorious for publishing falsehoods and hoaxes. In 2021, it was demonetized by Google. The site expanded significantly during the 2016 election and has faced multiple defamation lawsuits, leading to a Chapter 11 filing.
Gavin McInnesCo-founder of Vice Media in 1994 and the Proud Boys in 2016
Greg KellyNotable host on Newsmax, known for his conservative views and support of Donald Trump.
InfoWarsFounded in 1999 by Alex Jones, InfoWars is notorious for promoting conspiracy theories like the New World Order and the Sandy Hook shooting “hoax,” for which it was ordered to pay $1.5 billion in damages. In 2024, InfoWars is scheduled to auction its assets as part of bankruptcy proceedings.
Jared TaylorJared Taylor is an American white supremacist and the editor of American Renaissance magazine. He founded the New Century Foundation to promote racial advocacy and hosts the annual American Renaissance Conference. Taylor has been widely accused of promoting racist ideologies.
Jordan PetersonJordan Peterson is a Canadian clinical psychologist, professor emeritus at the University of Toronto, and bestselling author who has gained widespread recognition for both his work in psychology and his often controversial views on cultural and political issues. His book 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos became an international bestseller, selling over 5 million copies and being translated into more than 45 languages, propelling him to global fame as a public intellectual. Peterson has built a substantial online following, with over 7 million subscribers on his YouTube channel, where he shares lectures and discussions on psychology, philosophy, and culture. He gained notoriety for his opposition to Canada’s Bill C-16, which added gender identity and expression as protected categories, a stance that sparked both support and criticism.
Judicial WatchA conservative watchdog group founded in 1994, Judicial Watch is known for its FOIA lawsuits targeting Democratic administrations. Under president Tom Fitton, it has been labeled by the SPLC as an anti-government extremist group, despite its significant influence in conservative circles.
Kathryn LimbaughKathryn over some responsibilities for managing his media empire following her husband Rush Limbaugh’s death.
Larry BeasleyPresident and CEO of The Washington Times, overseeing the newspaper’s conservative editorial direction.
Laura IngrahamPrime-time opinion host on Fox News, known for her conservative viewpoints and outspoken criticism of liberal policies.
Mike CernovichMike Cernovich is an American right-wing social media personality and conspiracy theorist known for his involvement in #Gamergate and his segments on ‘The Alex Jones Show.’ He initially associated with the alt-right but now identifies with the new right, frequently promoting controversial views on free speech and engaging in inflammatory rhetoric.
Neil PatelCo-founder and publisher of The Daily Caller, focusing on conservative news and commentary.
NewsmaxNewsmax is a conservative news and opinion media company founded in 1998. In 2014, it launched a cable television channel that reaches approximately 75 million households. The network is known for its right-wing and far-right leanings as well as its staunch pro-Trump coverage.
One America News Network (OANN)OANN (One America News Network) is a far-right, pro-Trump cable news channel founded on July 4, 2013. Based in San Diego, it reaches an audience of 150,000 to 500,000 viewers and heavily relies on AT&T networks for revenue. The channel is known for promoting conspiracy theories and misinformation.
ParlerParler, launched in 2018, is a social media platform promoting free speech, attracting predominantly right-wing users and Trump supporters. It saw a user surge during and after the 2020 U.S. presidential election amid accusations of censorship by mainstream platforms. The platform was removed from app stores following its role in organizing the January 6th Capitol riot but plans a relaunch in 2024.
RedStateRedState, founded in 2004 and owned by Salem Media Group, is a leading conservative blog known for its political activism and organizing events. The site has undergone staffing changes, notably during Trump’s presidency when critics of Trump were dismissed.
RedState WatcherFounded in 2004, RedState Watcher is a conservative blog operated by Townhall Media, known for its right-wing bias and opinion pieces. It has a strong alignment with the Salem Media Group’s conservative perspectives.
Richard SpencerFormer Editor of the racist rag Taki’s Magazine and an early figure in the alt-right.
Right Wing TribuneRight Wing Tribune is known for its right-wing propaganda and election season misinformation. It has been criticized for amplifying conspiracy theories and sensationalist stories that align with extreme conservative narratives.
Robert Herring, Sr.Founder and CEO of One America News Network (OANN), known for its conservative, pro-Trump coverage.
RumbleRumble is a video-sharing platform launched in 2013 that positions itself as an alternative to YouTube, particularly for creators who feel they are censored or deplatformed by mainstream platforms. Rumble gained popularity among conservative, right-leaning, and libertarian creators, though it markets itself as a platform that champions “free speech” and content that may not fit with the guidelines of other social media giants.
Rupert MurdochAustralian media mogul and founder of Fox and key influencer in the Fox News network’s overall direction.
Rush Limbaugh (deceased)Original host and pioneering figure in conservative talk radio, known for his influential and controversial views. One of the first in a wave of political right-wing “shock jocks.”
Sean HannityFox News host known for his strong conservative viewpoints, significant influence in right-wing media, and close relationship with Trump.
Steve BannonFormer executive chairman of Brietbart News and a key figure in shaping the outlet’s editorial stance.
StormfrontFounded by former KKK leader Don Black in 1996, Stormfront was the first major online hate site, centered on white nationalism. It has attracted over 300,000 registered users, with the site repeatedly taken down for violating hate speech policies.
Suzanne ScottCEO of Fox News Media, overseeing all aspects of the network’s operations and editorial direction.
Taki’s MagazineTaki’s Magazine, founded on February 5, 2007 by Taki Theodoracopulos, is known for its extreme right-wing political stance. The publication has drawn criticism for its racially controversial content and its backing of individuals associated with white nationalism, while continuing to publish provocative material critical of political correctness.
Tenet MediaTenet Media is a far-right media organization implicated in Russian influence campaigns in the United States. It has been linked to the promotion of disinformation, especially around political elections and controversial social issues. The platform is currently under investigation by the DOJ for its involvement in spreading foreign-backed propaganda. Operating primarily through social media and online outlets, Tenet Media targets conservative audiences with sensationalized content that aligns with extreme right-wing views.
The Daily CallerThe Daily Caller, founded in 2010 by Tucker Carlson and Neil Patel with funding from conservative businessman Foster Friess, was launched as a right-leaning alternative to The Huffington Post. It aims to provide news and opinion content from a conservative perspective. Alongside its for-profit media site, The Daily Caller also operates a non-profit arm, The Daily Caller News Foundation, which has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest and tax issues. Despite early claims of ideological independence, the outlet has been criticized for publishing misleading stories and engaging in partisan reporting. In 2020, Tucker Carlson sold his ownership stake, leaving Neil Patel as the majority owner.
The Daily WireThe Daily Wire, an American conservative media company founded in 2015 by Ben Shapiro and Jeremy Boreing, has rapidly grown into a major player in digital media. By 2019, it ranked as the sixth-leading English-language publisher on Facebook, drawing massive engagement. The company surpassed $100 million in annual revenue in early 2022 and employed 150 people. Expanding its reach, The Daily Wire launched DailyWire+ in June 2022, offering video on demand for its popular content, including podcasts and video productions. Notably, “The Ben Shapiro Show” became the second most listened-to podcast in the U.S. by March 2019.
The Right StuffLargest white nationalist podcast network in the US.
The Rush Limbaugh ShowLong considered a staple of conservative talk radio, influential in shaping right-wing discourse.
The Sean Hannity ShowRadio show mixing news and conservative commentary, hosted by Sean Hannity.
The Washington ExaminerA conservative news outlet founded in Washington, D.C., the Washington Examiner transitioned from a daily newspaper to a weekly magazine in 2013. Owned by oil magnate Philip Anschutz, it is known for its right-leaning coverage and is often rated as having a “Lean Right” bias.
The Washington TimesNewspaper known for its conservative editorial content and often conspiratorial perspectives.
Tim PoolTim Pool is an independent journalist and political commentator who gained initial fame for his on-the-ground reporting during the Occupy Wall Street protests in 2011. Over time, Pool has shifted to a right-leaning stance, often criticized for promoting conspiracy theories and misinformation, particularly surrounding elections and COVID-19. He runs a popular YouTube channel where he discusses current events, frequently framing issues in a way that appeals to conservative and libertarian audiences. Though he claims to be politically independent, his content often aligns with right-wing perspectives, leading to accusations of bias.
True PunditTrue Pundit is a far-right fake news website known for promoting baseless conspiracy theories, especially regarding mass shootings and political figures. Operating with a “well-known modus operandi” of publishing unverified stories, the site ceased publishing new content in 2021.
TruthfeedTruthfeed is a far-right news outlet notorious for publishing conspiracy theories and misinformation. Known for its strong right-wing bias, the platform has been criticized for aligning with conservative political agendas and contributing to a controversial media landscape dominated by conspiracy-driven narratives.
Tucker CarlsonCo-founder of The Daily Caller, no longer actively involved but was instrumental in the site’s creation. Went on to have a career as a Fox pundit before being abruptly terminated following the January 6 coup attempt and Dominion lawsuit.
VDAREFounded in 1999 by Peter Brimelow, VDARE is a far-right website that advocates for strict immigration policies and is widely associated with white nationalism and white supremacy. The site has long been a platform for anti-immigration rhetoric, often intertwined with racist ideologies. Despite its influence in far-right circles, VDARE announced a suspension of its operations in July 2024, marking a potential end to its two-decade presence in the online white nationalist movement.
WikiLeaksLaunched by Julian Assange in 2006, WikiLeaks is renowned for leaking classified documents, including U.S. diplomatic cables and military logs, sparking debates on government transparency. It gained prominence for releasing DNC emails obtained from Russian hackers during the 2016 election, with Assange expressing a controversial preference for a GOP victory over Hillary Clinton.
YourNewsWireFounded in 2014, YourNewsWire is a clickbait website infamous for promoting conspiracy theories and fake news, including some of the most shared hoaxes on social media. Despite being debunked over 80 times, the site remains a significant source of misinformation.
Zero HedgeZero Hedge is a far-right libertarian financial blog known for its bearish investment outlook and promotion of Austrian School economics. In addition to financial news, the site expanded into political content, often promoting conspiracy theories. Zero Hedge has been accused of spreading Russian propaganda and misinformation, especially regarding the coronavirus pandemic. It was banned from Google Ads in 2020 but was later reinstated.
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