You can find a complete listing of all the articles on this site here. They are listed in reverse chronological order, and are all clickable links. Twenty-five articles are displayed per page, with the publication date included. To find older articles, click on the page numbers at the bottom.
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The Origin Of A Certain Wedding-Cry
The fifth century Gallo-Roman writer Sidonius Apollinaris, in a letter to his friend Heronius, mentions hearing during his travels the congratulatory shout of “Thalassio” in the streets, theaters, and marketplaces. An editor’s footnote to the text explains that the exclamation was a standard Roman expression of good wishes to a newlywed couple.
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The Ghosts Of St. Paul Island
St. Paul Island is one of those innumerable specks of land in the northeast Atlantic that are perpetually lashed by frigid wind and wave. It is located about fifteen miles northeast of Cape North on Cape Breton Island; it is near the Cabot Strait between the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Atlantic Ocean. In…
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Swords And Years
There is an anecdote found in Valerius Maximus (VI.2.10) that calls our attention to the difference between the respective powers of raw force and steady patience. A brutal consul named Cnaeus Carbo was threatening to put the city of Placentia under siege. He ordered a city magistrate named Marcus Castricius to give him hostages as…
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Verdicts Vary With Time
The political philosopher Ibn Zafar, in his masterful treatise Consolation for the Ruler During the Hostility of his Subjects, states as follows:
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On The Impudence Of Servants
There is an unintentionally amusing passage in a letter Petrarch sent to his brother Gherardo in 1349. In it, the harried scholar pours out his frustration at the antagonistic and insulting behavior of his servants:
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On The Collapse Of Friendship
Some of our most painful experiences can be the unexpected dissolution of friendships once thought to be robust and dependable. The memories of shared joys persist, troubling our consciences with conflicting and perplexing emotions. How did the collapse happen? What degree of culpability do I share in this outcome? What, if anything, might have been…
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A Very Tragic Story (Podcast)
I recently watched a compelling four-part Netflix documentary entitled Crime Scene: The Vanishing At The Cecil Hotel. I had never heard of the Elisa Lam story before, and I was struck by how tragic it was, on so many levels. In this podcast, I try to explain why. What are your thoughts? What do you…
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The Preface To “Centuries”: A Podcast Reading
My new collection of essays, Centuries, was published on June 23, 2024. It contains all pieces published between 2020 and 2023. The book is currently available in both paperback and Kindle, and a hardcover version will be coming shortly. This podcast is a reading from the book’s preface. It distills some of the ideas I…
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“Centuries” Is Now Available
Centuries, the complete collection of my essays from 2020 to 2023, was released today. The book is available in paperback, hardcover, and Kindle editions. The essays deal with varied topics in moral philosophy, history, and biography. In addition to essays, the volume also includes a special collection of aphorisms and maxims under the chapter “Gnomology.”…
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Thoughts On Friedrich Nietzsche (Podcast)
Nietzsche is one of the most popular and discussed of the modern philosophers. He tends to be highly polarizing: some see him as a kind of secular saint, while others see him as a laughable poseur. I wanted to give my own thoughts on his life, ideas, and place in the history of thought.
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“How To Get Over A Breakup”: An Ancient Guide To Moving On (Literary Review)
How To Get Over A Breakup: An Ancient Guide To Moving On, by Ovid. Translated and introduced by Michael Fontaine. Princeton University Press, 2024. Available in hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook. Ovid is the most famous of the amorous poets of Rome’s literary Golden Age. What distinguishes him from his approximate contemporaries Tibullus and Propertius is…
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With Useless Delays, Threats Succeed
According to the biographer Ibn Khallikan, the poet Ibrahim Al-Suli (?—857 A.D.) was once employed by a caliph to compose a threatening letter to some rebellious subjects. The letter contained the following words:
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You Can’t Separate The Message From The Messenger (Podcast)
Some people think the only thing that matters is what a teacher or instructor says, not what their character is. I don’t agree with this. In choosing a teacher or instructor, we have to remember that character and integrity are all-important. Nothing good can ever come from moral corruption, as Cicero has said. You have…
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How Do You Define Success? (Podcast)
In this podcast, we discuss a very revealing video that appeared on YouTube a few weeks back. Someone who prioritizes materialism and appearances is confronted by another man who has a very different value system. The resulting clash between the two of them is highly revealing.
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The Tale Of The Rat And The Gerbil
The following tale is found in Ibn Zafar’s political treatise, The Consolation For The Ruler During The Hostility Of His Subjects. Because it is likely to unfamiliar to most readers, I will paraphrase it here.
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Two Letters Of Consolation From Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln’s literary powers were a product of his life experiences and his innate abilities. From a young age, his exposure to tragedy had been personal and continuous. The death of his mother, the death of Ann Rutledge, and various other hardships had given him an acute sensitivity to the meaning of loss. In the…
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Let Us Never Despair (Podcast)
This is a podcast reading of my essay Let Us Never Despair, which was published here on May 18, 2024. What is the origin of despair? And how may it be confronted? We provide some answers to these questions, and related ones, in this podcast. The man of virtue and fortitude will never abandon himself…
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Let Us Never Despair
There is an inscription in the Bayeux Tapestry which reads Isti mirant stella, or “these men wonder at the star.” The scene in which it appears depicts a group of men pointing to a highly stylized image of Halley’s Comet, which made an appearance around the time of the Norman conquest of England.
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A Conversation With “Lance’s Legion”
I had a great conversation yesterday with Lance, the proprietor of DVX Publishing, a publisher dealing with books in the areas of political science, history, leadership, and military affairs. It was a free-flowing discussion that covered a lot of ground in moral philosophy, ethics, and current events. I also encourage you to follow him on…
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What Happened To The Progressive Right?
It has been clear for some time that neither the American political right, nor its counterpart on the left, has capably embraced the leadership challenges of twenty-first century modernity. Even a cursory survey of the political landscape reveals a dismal picture. On the right, we find the mouthpieces of corporatist and plutocratic reaction, mixed with…
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A Program Of Education
A reader has asked me to provide my thoughts on what topics would be suitable for the homeschooling of his precocious eight-year-old daughter. I thought I would take the opportunity to expound at some length on what would be a suitable course of study for any student of any age, male or female, seeking to…
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Fourteen Days Of Happiness
The historian Edward Gibbon, in Chapter LII of his history, offers an instructive quotation alleged to have been spoken by the first emir of Cordoba, Abd Al Rahman III. This prince ruled a considerable part of Spain for a period of thirty-two years, from A.D. 929 to 961. Upon the death of this laborious and…
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Seconds Away From Armageddon: The Story Of Soviet Submarine K-129 (Podcast)
Kenneth Sewell’s cogent, well-argued, and deeply unsettling book Red Star Rogue claims that on March 7, 1968, a rogue Soviet submarine destroyed itself while attempting to launch its ballistic missiles at Honolulu. How could this submarine have penetrated US waters undetected? What actually happened aboard the K-129? Why has the incident been kept secret for…
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When Courage Is Needed, Someone Always Has To Go First
It has been said that both courage and cowardice are contagious. This is certainly true, as anyone who has spent time with a group engaged in some kind of enterprise knows well. Courageous or cowardly actions always begin with one man; his example, witnessed by the rest of the group, is like a firebrand thrown…
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How To Destroy Your Business (Podcast)
Why do some businesses do inexplicable things that harm their brands? How is it that they do not appreciate the need to stay loyal to their customers or clients? What are the consequences of these failures? We take a look at how Colt Firearms, an iconic American brand, made a series of decisions in the…
Original copy of Cicero’s De Officiis (On Duties) published in Holland in 1642. From the collection of Fortress of the Mind.
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