Pessimism of the Will

White Sin, White Marx

I wrote this in March 2015, when Rhodes was falling but Fees were as yet ascendant. I’m struck now by the note of condescension towards sincere self-reflection. The intention was not to rehash the tiresome accusation of ‘virtue signalling’, but to consider, as always, how good intentions…

How I Learned to Start Worrying and Hate the Pundits

As a South African who lived in the US for most of a decade (and who arrived there already-obsessed with the vagaries of American politics), this past year I’ve found myself on occasion asked to (ok fine, I would interrupt people…

Free speech makes you stupid

We keep hearing that free speech is inherently good. Let’s accept the trivial point that freedom is good and constraints on freedom are bad. No liberal society considers unfettered freedom practically achievable or desirable. We accept the need to impose limits on the harm you…

Dogmatic Slumber?

The ethics of CEO SleepOut

I’m surprised to see critics of the critics of the CEO SleepOut once more deploy the “the event has raised millions for charity” and “what have you ever done?” defences.

The Case Against Affirmative Action

Why has so much political debate in South Africa, at least on social media, become about first principles and their application rather than, say, competing strategies or broad visions of a better society? Following South African Twitter is like being trapped in a…

A Handy Guide to Logical Fallacies & Biases

It’s easy to win the internet when you can demolish your opponent’s argument with a…