Over 300 years ago, philosopher John Locke presented a little nugget of advice for fathers in his work called Some Thoughts Concerning Education. He noted: “The reservedness and distance that fathers keep, often deprive their sons of that refuge, which would be of more advantage to them, than an hundred rebukes and chidings. Would your
READ MORE
Over cocktails a few weeks ago, I was discussing literature with friends. Conversation inevitably swung to which book had the strongest claim as “the Great American Novel.” Huck Finn immediately sprang to my mind, which I quickly changed. It’s a tie, I said. Gone with the Wind and To Kill a Mockingbird. A no-brainer. Neither
READ MORE
The father of modern criminology, the 19th century Italian sociologist Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909), believed that criminality was genetically determined. “Born criminals” could be detected by the presence of a long list of “stigmata” such as an asymmetrical faces, sloping forehead, large ears or even left-handedness (very sinister!). Criminals were atavistic biological throwbacks, reversions to an
READ MORE
Do you have low self-esteem? If you are like many people, your immediate reaction is probably, no. After all, you don’t beat yourself up mentally and emotionally, you don’t think that you are incapable, and you don’t feel worthless. Well, these are all good things, but they don’t necessarily prove that low self-esteem isn’t a
READ MORE
I recently wrote how Ben Franklin had a strong aversion to church services, despite the fact that he believed in God. This posed a practical problem to him. Franklin took morality seriously and he found himself wondering how he could possibly complete his “bold and arduous project of arriving at moral perfection” minus the structure
READ MORE
Contrary to the claims of some notable thinkers, among them the late Christopher Hitchens, Benjamin Franklin was not an atheist. He was raised as a Presbyterian and discussed his faith at length in The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, the unfinished work Franklin wrote from 1771 to 1790. Here’s what he had to say on his
READ MORE
Most Read from past 24 hours
Most Read from past 30 days
Most Read of All Time
Most Read of All Time
