Category Archives: Economy

The Greater Good and Its Rivals

Posted on October 1, 2019 by hessd

Of all the ways to “look at things,” I would like to explore one particular set that is currently bedeviling us. These ways of looking at things are based on value premises that are contradictory, if either is allowed to … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Political Psychology, Sustainability, Uncategorized | Tagged Adam Smith, Elinor Ostrom, Gordon Gecko, mediating institutions, self interest, the good of all | Leave a comment

Recharge your battery!

Posted on December 13, 2017 by hessd

There is a new ad by a product called 5 Hour Energy that I found really appealing—until I had a chance to think about it. [1] Then I found it appalling. Today I’d like to write about the appalling part. … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Living My Life, Paying Attention, Uncategorized | Tagged a good night's sleep, causes of low energy, just charge your batteries, low energy, stimulants | Leave a comment

The sensible pursuit of class goals

Posted on November 26, 2017 by hessd

What is a “class goal?” When I was in high school, one of the traditions was to collect money so that the graduating senior class could give a gift to the school. We did the same thing in college. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Political Psychology, Society | Tagged being poor, being virtuous, class goals, cultural misunderstndings, no backtalk | Leave a comment

Leaving home and coming home

Posted on July 26, 2016 by hessd

“Coming and going and going and coming, and always too soon,” sings Lili von Schtupp in her Wild West barroom show in Blazing Saddles. When I began to call the series of essays describing this move “Moving in Time,” part … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Getting Old, Politics, Society, Uncategorized | Tagged a society of salience, an economy of sucrose, grafting a new branch, moving in, moving out, retirement centers, the politics of hormones | Leave a comment

We have met the enemy and he is us[1]

Posted on April 10, 2016 by hessd

In 1888, Edward Bellamy wrote a very influential book called Looking Backward. That’s Bellamy in the next paragraph. He placed the action well into the future—the beginning of the 21st Century—so that his readers could get some distance on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Economy, Politics | Tagged dominance by local warlords, ecological catastrophe, hard SF, Kim Stanley Robinson, technological mastery, the earth as a future catastrophe | 2 Comments

No More Buildings Named after YOU

Posted on July 10, 2015 by hessd

When we moved to Portland, we moved into the Wilson High School attendance area. As a result, I am the proud father of Wilson alums. Wilson is named for President Woodrow Wilson. [1] It’s a thing in Portland. We also … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Political Psychology, Politics | Tagged private grievances, public issues, racism, renaming public institutions, sexism, Woodrow Wilson | Leave a comment

Sexism still sells cars

Posted on March 29, 2015 by hessd

I’d like to spend some of your valuable time today thinking about a topic nearly everyone would call “sexism.” I’m not quite sure what to call it, myself, but when you look at this Buick ad, you will know exactly … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Society, Uncategorized, ways of knowing, Words | Tagged Buick, consumer demand, Payton Manning, sex objects, sexism, success objects, the Garcias | 2 Comments