Denial and Panic – How my Great Grandfather Foresaw the Holocaust

Very few Jews in Germany between the two World Wars saw the Holocaust coming. My great grandfather, however, foresaw it with grizzly detail. No – this wasn’t any Gift of Prophecy, and it wasn’t Extrasensory Perception. Rather, it was that Read more

It can be hard to confront our unconscious biases. Here’s why.

Late last year, a web-site called Divided States of Women did a really great video on the topic of confronting our unconscious biases. This is a very important issue in Algorithmic Rationalism and is key to improving our level of Read more

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A cross, a Torah scroll, and a Buddha statue are all tossed into a cardboard box with the symbol of agnostic atheism drawn on it's outside. This images is for articles on my blog (virtualstoa.org) that deal with my renunciation of religion.

Is it possible to uphold Christian values without believing in God?

While some of the attitudes encouraged in Christianity are unhealthy (even if not all such values require a belief in God per-se) there are a lot of values which Christianity shares with other religions and which are also good values Read more

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: An open book with writing represents a journal - specifically, a meditative journal, which is an ancient time-honored ingraining technique. Above it and to the left, a chain of Death Beads used in a very recently-devised ingraining technique. Above the book and to the right (slightly overlapping) is a blue silhouette of someone running - a symbol of exercise - as the ingraining techniques are key philosophical exercises for Stoicism. Above all that are, in big red letters, the words "EVERY DAY" highlighting the importance of making it an every-day practice to use whatever regimen of ingraining techniques are found to be appropriate for you. This image is for articles in this blog pertaining to Stoic ingraining techniques - whether they be ingraining techniques that we get from the Classical Stoics, or whether they be those developed in modern times by Modern Stoics.

Why We Shouldn’t Surrender to Emotion

It is part of Plurationalist teaching that we should not surrender to our emotions, but master them. Here is why Plurationalism is right in teaching that. Recently, I shared with some people the following gatha that I use in my Read more

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: We see one of those turkeys drawn in the style that we learned to draw them in grade school based around a hand's outline. Behind it burns the flame which represents the Logos, which is the spirit of logic and reason. This image is made for writing on this site (virtualstoa.org) that connects Stoicism to the holiday of Thanksgiving.

#9: A Stoic Thanksgiving with the Emperor Marcus Aurelius

Though you may not realize it, Thanksgiving Day can be a very Stoic holiday. The Emperor Marcus Aurelius shows us how this can be. [powerpress /] This piece is Episode 9 of the podcast: Philadelphia Stoic Thouhts By the normal Read more

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Against a grey background, we see the red flame that represents the Logos (the spirit of reason that animates the Universe). In front of that, we see a badly-drawn representation of a human brain - on which there is a lightbulb that is lit, representing thought. Some of the rays from the lightbulb's glow gradually blend into the flame, representing how our reasoning faculty is part of the Logos. This image is for articles in this blog dealing with logic and critical thought.

#8: Empathy vs. Rational Compassion: Part 3: Examples of Empathy Causing Harm

The arguments as to why empathy is problematic as a moral compass and ought to be replaced with ratonal compassion are not mere theoretical hair-splittings. History has actually demonstrated disasters wrought when decisions are driven by emotional empathy. [powerpress /] Read more

IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A purple hollow-triangle with the extentions of the "mars symbol" and the "venus symbol" is featured in the foreground. This is one of the symbols of the transgender community. Behind it is the fire that represents the Logos. This image is for articles in this blog (virtualstoa.org) that pertain to transgender issues and how Stoicism applies to them.

#5: Stoicism – Personal Power for Transgender Folk

One group of people for whom Stoicism can be a very powerful philosophy is those, such as myself, who are on the transgender spectrum. [powerpress /] This piece is Episode 5 of the podcast: Philadelphia Stoic Thouhts Today is Friday, Read more