Russellarbenfox
MY BLOGS
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In Medias Res
http://inmedias.blogspot.com/
Essays, notes, and fragments--personal, political, and philosophical--from the midst of things
LATEST ARTICLES ( 589 )
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Two Pedantic Problems with Representative Estes's Post
Dear Representative Estes,Thanks for sharing your reasoning about your January 6 challenge to the Electoral College results, thus your challenge to the... Read more
Posted on 23 January 2021 SOCIETY -
The 10 Best Books I Read in 2020
As always, in alphabetical order, by title. The Cult of Smart: How Our Broken Education System Perpetuates Injustice, by Frederik deBoer, is an odd book. Read more
Posted on 30 December 2020 SOCIETY -
The 10 Best Movies I Watched in 2020
I seriously considered abandoning, or at least completely changing, this viewing list tradition of mine--between the pandemic, the general shift to streaming... Read more
Posted on 29 December 2020 SOCIETY -
Some Possibly Helpful Thoughts on Localism, Populism, and Proximity During a...
[Cross-posted to Front Porch Republic]The departure of Donald Trump from the White House [crosses fingers] will assuredly not mean the departure of Trumpism fro... Read more
Posted on 28 December 2020 SOCIETY -
Why The Cult of Smart is a Book for Every Parent in 2020 (Whether...
[Cross-posted to Front Porch Republic]This past summer a book was published, with little fanfare, that made what was, in retrospect, an argument that millions o... Read more
Posted on 21 December 2020 SOCIETY -
What Happens When Parties Can No Longer Be Managed Moderately?
[This is a somewhat expanded version of a piece that appeared in the Wichita Eagle over the weekend; I received an e-mail on Sunday which causes me to think mor... Read more
Posted on 08 December 2020 SOCIETY -
Messages of Gratitude from the Desert (and for It, Sort Of)
[Cross-posted to By Common Consent] For years, our family has had a "Thanksgiving Tree" tradition. We write on cut-out leaves something we are thankful for, the... Read more
Posted on 25 November 2020 SOCIETY -
The Anti-Federalists Were Right About Trump (and Many Other Things as Well)
[ Cross-posted to Front Porch Republic]Gillian Brockell, a talented writer and researcher for The Washington Post's history blog Retropolis, interviewed four... Read more
Posted on 21 November 2020 SOCIETY -
On Partisanship and Punishing Politicians
[Cross-posted to Wichita Story]It would be wrong to say I know James Clendenin. I've met him a few times at different city events. Read more
Posted on 19 November 2020 SOCIETY -
Three Quick Addenda on Civic Friendship on Election Day
Apropos my sermon from a few days ago on the difficulties of civic friendship, three quick thoughts, this Election Day morning. Read more
Posted on 03 November 2020 SOCIETY -
Matthew Workman Never Wastes a Drive
Matthew Workman is many things. He's a husband and a father, a story-teller and a writer, a journalist and a podcaster. He is almost certainly one of the... Read more
Posted on 01 November 2020 SOCIETY -
Thoughts on the Difficulty of Friendship at the Present Time
[Cross-posted to By Common Consent][A slightly expanded version of a presentation on civility I gave at Friends University on October 26. Read more
Posted on 29 October 2020 SOCIETY -
Three Thoughts (with Supporting Subpoints) About Trump, Biden, and the 2020...
It's a week before the election. I cast my vote early, and very likely a large percentage of anyone who happens to read this already has also. So this isn't... Read more
Posted on 27 October 2020 SOCIETY -
Sukkot and Settling Into Fall
[Cross-posted to By Common Consent]This year I planted a spring garden for the first time. Probably because of the pandemic, but because of other plans that I'v... Read more
Posted on 05 October 2020 SOCIETY -
On Cities and Tongdong Bai's Confucian Modernity
[The following is a version of comments that I have been invited to give at a book symposium being hosted by the Center for East Asian and Comparative Philosoph... Read more
Posted on 21 September 2020 SOCIETY -
Glimmers of a Different Wichita
[Cross-posted to Wichita Story]Two weeks ago, the Wichita City Council, by a 4-3 vote--a result which surprised more than a few Wichitans--implemented a mask... Read more
Posted on 17 July 2020 SOCIETY -
Star Trek, The Animated Series: The Final Binge
Season 4, Sort OfYes, I had to be a completist when it came to binging Star Trek, The Original series, so I went through all twenty-two episodes of Star Trek:... Read more
Posted on 17 July 2020 SOCIETY -
Star Trek, The Orginal Series, Season 3: The Third Binge
Season 3And, after Seasons 1 and 2, on to the third season we go! This one deserves its reputation, unfortunately--not that it was atrocious, but rather just... Read more
Posted on 16 July 2020 SOCIETY -
Our Own Vines and Our Own Fig Trees: a Post-Independence Day,...
[Cross-posted to By Common Consent]Like plenty of other Americans (and, given likely demographics, probably in particular like plenty of readers of this blog),... Read more
Posted on 05 July 2020 SOCIETY -
Left (not Liberal) Conservatism (or Communitarianism, If You Prefer): A...
[Cross-posted to Front Porch Republic]Recently, Tablet Magazine published a lengthy essay by Eric Kaufmann, heralding the revival of "left-conservative"... Read more
Posted on 03 July 2020 SOCIETY