Latest Posts
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Thoughts on Chinese Atheism
A map popped up in the Washington Post last week, illustrating a recent report (pdf) on expressions of religiosity and atheism around the world. It seems China has the greatest share of the global population of self-identified atheists. And this… Continue reading
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Elderly caring for elderly may be good, but it’s not Confucian
A sadly familiar story – the declining amount of time and attention younger Chinese people can and do spend with their aging parents and grandparents – was in the news again this week. On Sunday, Reuters ran a piece: "Greying… Continue reading
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Confucianism is not catching on in the United States
As my semester winds down, and grading final papers and exams presses in on me, I find my attention turning (don't worry, I'll get back to the grading shortly) to more pleasant summer pursuits. For me, this year, those include… Continue reading
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Further to the Daoist Trolley (non)Problem
Wow. Lots of hits for my post on a Daoist response to the Trolley Problem. It was put up on the Reddit Philosophy page and that brought a deluge of readers, many, I imagine, first-time visitors to this blog. Hundreds… Continue reading
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Legalist “Tiger” parenting is bad for you
Over at Slate, Paul Tullis reports on some new research by Su Yeong Kim, a specialist in human development at the University of Texas-Austin, and others that suggests "Tiger Parenting" – made infamous by Amy Chua – is generally not… Continue reading
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To a Daoist, the Trolley Problem is not a Problem at all
A reader sent in an interesting email, asking how Daoism might respond to the "Trolley Problem." A great question! Let's think it through. For those not familiar with it, the "Trolley Problem" (I will link here to the obituary of… Continue reading
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No Self, No Other, Gish Jen, and Bipolar Disorder
I have ordered my copy of Gish Jen's new book, Tiger Writing, spured on by yesterday's review of it in the NYT. Here's the gist: …Jen’s father had been born into a culture whose parenting style explicitly intends the humbling… Continue reading
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The Dao of Wolverines
Just had to mention this article, which reports that Jon Horford, a forward on the University of Michigan basketball team, is a student of the Daodejing. Fantastic. And it seems that the young man has a good grasp on the… Continue reading
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Organizational Psychology Confirms Confucius: Helping Others is the Best Way to Help Yourself
Just saw this piece in the NYT: "Is Giving the Secret to Getting Ahead?" This graf gets at the main idea: Organizational psychology has long concerned itself with how to design work so that people will enjoy it and want… Continue reading
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Xi Jinping’s “China Dream” is not a Confucian Dream
Ever since his appointment as General Secretary of the CCP last fall, Xi Jinping has been playing up the notion of a "China Dream." In a number of speeches, most notably the one that ended the recent session of the… Continue reading
The Useless Tree 