Tag Archives: republican

How Groups Become Extreme

Posted on March 13, 2012 by imitroff

In two recent op-eds in the Huffington Post (“Is Truth in Politics Possible? Is Truth Possible in Anything Human?” and “Absence of Truth: Why the Republican Candidates Can’t Get Anywhere Near the Truth”), I argued that historically there are at least four different kinds and meanings of “truth.” There are of course more than four. But four is enough for my purposes. Continue reading →

Posted in Blog, Media + Politics, Philosophy + Systems, Psychology | Tagged election, philosophy, politics, republican, truth | Leave a comment

Reality Wars: Measuring the Collective Mental Health of a Nation

Posted on February 23, 2012 by imitroff

As a nation, we are fighting several “reality wars” at once. These wars are not only political, but deeply psychological. As a result, our collective mental health as a nation is being severely challenged and tested. Since language is the primary means we use to describe and invent reality, the language a nation uses to frame and treat important issues is a measure, however imperfect, of its mental health. Continue reading →

Posted in Blog, Media + Politics, Psychology | Tagged class warfare, politics, psychology, republican | Leave a comment

Can This Political Marriage Be Saved? Should It?

Posted on February 2, 2012 by imitroff

The view that “politics is akin to a marriage” is a casual, if not an often-expressed, sentiment. Unfortunately, almost no one takes the metaphor seriously and thus uses it to do a serious evaluation of the state of health of American politics. If we did, we would soon conclude that the “marriage” between the two major political parties is headed towards divorce, if it is not already there but for the working out of the final terms of the divorce settlement and the formal signing of the papers. Continue reading →