What is the point of freedoms if one feels he can’t use them? Continue reading
Tag Archives: learned helplessness
Let’s Not Talk About the Dragon!
There is no good way to address populist fearmongering. The good news is that you shouldn’t do it anyway Continue reading
How Many Protesters Do You Think Are Enough?
When protests, outrage, public opinion and voting results are all ignored Continue reading
“Just hand it in and see what happens!”
The painfully familiar feeling of regulatory helplessness is a sign of something more sinister Continue reading
Helplessness is a many-splendored thing
How legal, economic, regulatory, political and electoral helplessness contribute to the rise of autocracy Continue reading
An authoritarian regime must never retreat
Inducing the sense of helplessness in the victims makes autocracy cheaper and easier than outright open violence ever could Continue reading
Divorcing Choice From Responsibility
…as a way not to feel helpless Continue reading
Destruction as a Way of “Taking Back Control”
Destruction seems as good a form of control as any when there is no other way to alter our environment constructively Continue reading
But Why Should I Smile?
In the East, smiling is taken as a sign of weakness Continue reading
A Rat Fell Out of a Hospital Ceiling. It Was the Rat’s Fault
Never admit. Never apologize. Don’t even promise an investigation. Just deny, attack the whistleblower and intimidate the public Continue reading
