Core Considerations

As fields of study, history, philosophy and economics are matters of perspective, fallible assessments of truth. In reality, they are the attempt at capturing the essence of life, the product of affection, avarice, preference, passion, and — in their highest forms — love. They are mankind’s best effort at seeking to understand, or otherwise distort, the most fundamental questions before us: what drives human action, and what is our purpose on planet earth?

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The Deal with Tariffs

Over the course of President Trump’s two terms, there has been much talk around the matter of tariffs — taxes on imported goods. However, much of the talk seems to miss the point. After all, for those of us who seek the truth, it’s not really a question of whether tariffs are ‘good’ but whether they are preferable to other kinds of taxes — assuming, of course, that taxes are the rule, as certain as the eventuality of death. First, let’s establish the theory: beyond the generic purpose of revenue generation for the state, the institution of tariffs ordinarily serves to reduce (or discourage) imports by making them artificially more expensive, while encouraging domestic production by making domestic products more appealing on a relative price basis. In the realm of foreign affairs, tariffs are instituted or threatened in the course of international trade negotiations in order to signal dissatisfaction with existing trade barriers and to push for more favorable trade terms; or in ord...

Fischer: Tortured in the Pasadena Jailhouse (featuring the Morals of Chess by Benjamin Franklin)

Buy your copy today of Fischer: Tortured in the Pasadena Jailhouse (featuring the Morals of Chess by Benjamin Franklin) , available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble . The name Bobby Fischer reigns supreme in the world of chess, yet there was a time when it hogged headlines, struck fear into the eyes of the competition, and was on the lips of folks all across the globe. More than the face of the centuries-old game, there was a time when Bobby Fischer was synonymous with the cause and spirit of America, that his moves on the chessboard sought more than checkmate but to pit the strength of “raw-boned American individualism” against “the Soviet megalithic system” which had come to dominate the game of chess at the same time it dominated Cold War politics. Fischer’s triumph over the USSR's Boris Spassky in the ’72 World Chess Championship would ultimately be celebrated as a symbolic and diplomatic victory for the U.S., but, as time would tell, it would not mean the American...

Asiana Airlines Flight 214’s Over-Reliance on Automation

On the sixth of June, 2013, Asiana Airlines Flight 214 departed Incheon International Airport near the capital city of Seoul, South Korea. Its destination: San Francisco International Airport. Unfortunately for the crew and the passengers of Flight 214, that destination wouldn’t come without incident. On final approach, the aircraft would come up just short of the runway, the landing gear impacting the seawall, causing the Boeing 777 to tumble and the tail section to break off after impact. For the crew of Flight 214, this would prove to be the ultimate test and, for the total 307 souls on board, the most poignant lesson in the risks posed by misunderstood technologies, the dangers of unintuitive systems operated by fallible human beings, and the extreme costs incurred in matters of human life. In terms of numbers, for Flight 214 that cost begins at the three lives lost, the 187 who were injured, and all who suffered and who carry the trauma of the incident. As is the case in virtually...

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