Published in Psychology Today on 29th September 2016. Are you looking forward to reading an article about death? Probably not. Simply reading it-that-must-not-be-named can arrest us in our place. With torturous futility, we fill our heads with whatever is in mind’s reach to ignore one of the surest of facts: To paraphrase Descartes, “I think, therefore I’ll die”. The certainty that our mortality…
Tag: well-being
Why It’s Impossible To Not Actually Be A Cannibal
Published in The Daily Banter, 29th April 2016: Why It’s Impossible To Not Actually Be A Cannibal. A dizzying number of publications recently ran a piece titled “Why It’s Impossible To Actually Be A Vegetarian”. Within it, philosopher Andrew Smith argued that because ecosystems tend to involve the transfer of matter from both plant to animal…
Nothing Lasts Forever: How an Atheist Copes With the Fear of Death
Published in Elephant Journal, 19th January 2016: ‘Nothing Lasts Forever: How an Atheist Copes With the Fear of Death’. Excerpt: “Death. Simply reading the word can arrest us in our place, causing an instant tingling of visceral unease. The certainty that our mortality will eventually be realized binds us not only in solidarity, but in…
The Dangers of Pseudo-Profound Bullshit
Published in The Daily Banter, 19th January 2016: ‘The Dangers of Pseudo-Profound Bullshit’. Excerpt: “Though seemingly harmless, there is a sinister element to this digitised Xanax. Under the glowing skin of innocuous pseudo-profundity, they lead to an abscess of anti-modern medicine and pro-alternate medicine content.” “Some may argue that they find comfort in the memes…
‘Vegan’ and ‘Veganism’: Ideas Versus People in the Wider Fight For Progress
Published in The Daily Banter, 17th January 2016: ‘Vegan’ and ‘Veganism’: Ideas Versus People in the Wider Fight For Progress. Excerpt: “When one demands their right to criticize religion, they can do so by appealing to their fundamental right to lambast any idea. In the words of Maajid Nawaz, “No idea is above scrutiny, just…
The Pollution of Good Ideas
It is surprising to see how easily some promising ideas continue to be smeared, tarnished and highjacked by misinformation. For example, discussions on meditation are shrouded in so much ignorance that identifying any proven benefit seems akin to finding decent music on the radio; it’s there, but only if you know where to look, what…
Buying Happiness
(Artwork by Najin Jun) I recently viewed some posts on my Facebook newsfeed that made me think – one status was by a friend announcing that they had just bought a new house, underneath this was another friend publicizing a charitable donation they had just made, and upon scrolling further down the page was a…
Steve Stankevicius 