Caleb Wachter's Blog

There are three camps in the ‘Nature vs. Nurture’ debate, summarized something like the following:

Nature determines most, if not all, of an organism’s behavior and potential since the building blocks dictate that organism’s behavior. (sometimes referred to as ‘Biological Determinism’) Nurture determines most, if not all, of an organism’s behavior and potential since the environmental experiences shape and mold that organism’s behavior. (sometimes referred to as ‘Blank Slate Theory’) Nature...

Rhetoric is anathema to reason, just as debate is anathema to dialectic. So why are rhetoric and debate so much more popular than reason and dialectic? Why would our thought leaders not want to encourage discussion rather than argument, or inquiry rather than advocacy?

 

I think it’s because there is a certain strain of humanity which is, has been, and will forever be disinclined to think for themselves. I’m going to start thinking (see what I did there?) of this phenomenon as cogitophobia, a...

Believe it or not, there is an inarguable connection here. Here’s a primer on what I’m talking about, which is an interview between UKIP MEP candidate Carl Benjamin (aka Sargon of Akkad, who, with his comical-philosophical approach to current events, is one of the most potent YouTubers in today’s culture wars and is treated as such by his opponents, many of whom are in or affiliated with corporate/mainstream media) and BBC host Victoria Derbyshire. If you’re not up for watching the interview,...

So by now most people know that the Deep Web (firmly rooted in places like 4Chan and Reddit) is a pretty…bizarre place.  Bizarre doesn’t cover it, actually–it’s straight-up foul down there.  Populated by people who care more about free speech than what is actually being said, these people played an active role in Donald Trump’s election by producing an endless barrage of high-quality memes.  These memes ran the gamut from goodnatured fun-poking at various personalities, to impressively keen o...

 

This isn’t intended to be comprehensive or exhaustive.  It’s more of a place-holder note which I hope to come back to and update as time goes on.

I grew up as a Republican in a solid red district, and it was pretty obvious to me early in life that the tradition of American conservatism was, and remains to this day, a profoundly good one compared with all available alternatives.

But it wasn’t until my mid-twenties that I realized the modern Republican Party was not conserving the things I th...

First off, let me say this: now that he’s been apprehended, and assuming he’s guilty of the acts for which he stands accused, Cesar Sayoc needs to be punished to the max extent under the law. Full stop.

Now I’ll share a few random thoughts which, I think, paint a reasonable narrative of this lunatic’s thought process and motives.  Your commentary is welcome, naturally.  Here’s another pic of his van.

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It’s painfully obvious that he wanted to get caught and that he set up his van in a calculat...

Chapter: Asymmetric Warfare

“There are five possible operations in war:

If one can attack, attack;

If one cannot attack, defend;

If one cannot defend, retreat;

If one cannot retreat, surrender;

If one cannot surrender…

Die.”

~Sima Yi

“Disengage the warp drive,” Captain Had’lyuk commanded, completely heedless of the small miracle which had just occurred below decks. Even had he been apprised of it, his species’ inclination to focus on the hunt would have rendered recognizing its occurrence irr...

Episode 0: The Great Fall

Chapter: A New Hope

“Cogito, ergo sum.”

transl:

“I think, therefore I am.”

~René Descartes

Hurtling across the star system at thirty times the speed of light, the valiant warship Iron Fury moved into position to deal a killing blow to the nearest rebel squadron.

Broadcasting a Republican battle hymn meant to both inspire the loyal and terrify the rebellious, the Iron Fury swept behind a tiny moonlet in orbit of the system’s fourth planet and locked her targeting syst...

So I get asked a LOT for a timeline of the Spineward Sectors novels, since there are multiple separate tracts of storytelling going on which splinter off, rejoin, then splinter off from the mainline Admiral Who? books.  I thought I’d go ahead and drop a primer here.

To start, the suggested order, followed by an explanation of (and at) the break:

Admiral Who? (Mainline Series 1)

Admiral’s Lady: Eyes of Ice, Heart of Fire (Admiral’s Lady 1)

Admiral’s Gambit (Mainline Series 2)

No Middle Ground...

We’re closing in it