PinnedMember-onlyHow Social Media Has Made Us All RivalsIt’s a Chamber of Desire from which there is no escape — In the isolation of the pandemic, our need for social media has been especially acute. It helps us to make sense of who we are. We didn’t know what to desire. So we turned to other people, on our phones, to tell us: Watch Tiger King, drink negronis, adopt dogs…Social Media8 min readSocial Media8 min read
6 days agoMember-onlyThe Anti-Mimetic DigestEdition #3—New things I’m seeing, reading, doing, contemplating, or wanting. — The Anti-Mimetic Digest is a breakdown of what I’m seeing, reading, doing, contemplating, or wanting—a new feature published once/month for subscribers. 👀 What I’m Seeing Claire and I are in the middle of an intra-DC house move right now, so things are chaotic. I’ve been working 12–14 hour days — a nice combination of…Streaming5 min readStreaming5 min read
May 23Member-onlyHow to Craft an Anti-Mimetic CareerPractical Tactics for Discerning a Better Way Forward — This is a guest post on by Simone Stolzoff, a former design lead at the global innovation firm IDEO whom I had the pleasure to speak with and get to know in 2021. …Career Advice8 min readCareer Advice8 min read
May 18Member-onlyThe “Versus Everyone” ParadoxDetroit Vs. Everyone, and the problem of the One and the Many “Men, it has been well said, think in herds; it will be seen that they go mad in herds, while they only recover their senses slowly, one by one. —Charles MacKay I’m from Michigan, so the “Detroit Vs…Self12 min readSelf12 min read
May 13Member-onlyMy Life-Saving Lesson from a Hitman in VegasDisruptive Empathy can break in and change the vector of even the most dangerous cycles. — The story below is an adapted excerpt from my book Wanting, which has now been translated into nearly 20 languages. Dave Romero had a thin ponytail and a sallow face. His narrow eyes and deep crow’s feet gave the impression that he could read your soul. He walked proudly, with…Books8 min readBooks8 min read
Apr 21Member-onlyTruth Is Revealed In TaboosWhat the weird new fascination with cannibalism reveals about what everyone really wants. — Bones and All, a romantic horror about two cannibalistic teenage lovers on a road trip across 1980s America, received a ten-minute standing ovation when it debuted at the Venice Film Festival last summer. It is the latest in a growing trend of non-fantastical films and series juxtaposing cannibalism alongside themes…Film4 min readFilm4 min read
Apr 17Member-onlyThe Three City Problem: Athens, Jerusalem, and Silicon ValleyHow the Relationship Between Reason, Faith, and Technology Must be Disambiguated to Solve Our Most Pressing Problems — For more context, please see the introductory article that I wrote about this framework in WIRED Magazine last summer. It’s certainly not necessary, though, because I’m going to lay out the core idea out again here — and add to it. The Foundational Idea The third century Christian thinker Tertullian asked, “What has…Philosophy12 min readPhilosophy12 min read
Apr 7Member-onlyThe Erosion of Free Will: Why Society’s Loss of Belief in Freedom is DangerousPay attention to how people are talking about freedom. It’s a leading indicator of cultural (and economic) trends. — Everyone is fighting for “rights” and the freedom to make various choices, yet few people seem to believe that we actually have any. All ideas are in some sense correlated. In other words, your idea about one thing — especially something as fundamental as whether creation is good, or whether…Freedom9 min readFreedom9 min read
Apr 3Member-onlyTuning In to a Different RhythmThe tick-tock metronome of content and news drowns out the real signals of life. — I’ve been feeling down this past week. It might be because I’ve been listening to too much discordant music: the uncoordinated, nonrhythmic pulse of content, which is less like a pulse — which indicates life — and more like clashing cymbals (symbols!). An infinite array of them. I’m writing this…Time6 min readTime6 min read
Mar 18Member-onlyWhat It Will Sound Like When the Content Bubble BurstsIt’s not what we even wildly imagine. — What will it sound like when the content bubble bursts? The Silicon Valley Bank collapse has only led to a louder and louder cacophony of voices, and drawn attention away from the spiritual emptiness and moral confusion of most people in the business world — especially the venture capitalists who…Content6 min readContent6 min read
