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“When religion is used as a political weapon, it becomes weakened and tainted. And this is the flip side of the state-church separation coin. The separation of state and church is also meant to allow religion to remain free of the taint of this world, of the day-to-day political power struggle. This is why Madison wrote that “religion and government will both exist in greater purity, the less they are mixed together.”
― The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American
― The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American
“very act of congregating is an exceptionally powerful stimulant. Once the individuals are gathered together, a sort of electricity is generated from their closeness and quickly launches them to an extraordinary height of exaltation.13 In such a state, “the vital energies become hyperexcited, the passions more intense, the sensations more powerful.”14 Durkheim believed that these collective emotions pull humans fully but temporarily into the higher of our two realms, the realm of the sacred,”
― The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion
― The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion
“it’s easier to deter people from crime if the lawful alternative is more appealing.”
― The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined
― The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined
“After all, as Voltaire noted, often the art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.”
― PLAYING GOD: An Evolutionary History of World Religion: Vol. 1 The Evolution of God & The Gods of Monotheism
― PLAYING GOD: An Evolutionary History of World Religion: Vol. 1 The Evolution of God & The Gods of Monotheism
“That was always the answer when violence broke out. The force of the mob destroyed individual control, giving people the freedom to be their worst selves. What I was seeing in Indonesia was something I had seen in the Philippines and someday would see in countries around the world as the power of disinformation began to devastate the minds, and transform the behavior, of often less educated people or those less familiar with the internet. Education determines the quality of governance. An investment in education takes a generation to bear fruit.”
― How to Stand Up to a Dictator: A Nobel Laureate's Fight Against Authoritarianism -- Includes an Introduction by Amal Clooney
― How to Stand Up to a Dictator: A Nobel Laureate's Fight Against Authoritarianism -- Includes an Introduction by Amal Clooney
Phil’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Phil’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
59 books
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127 friends
649 books
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73 friends
68 books
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82 friends
1 book
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42 friends
361 books
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26 friends
824 books
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105 friends
145 books
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81 friends
1,045 books
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40 friends
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