Category Archives: Life

Pragmatic utilitarianism?

Posted on June 30, 2021 by Paul Frijters

I have been a utilitarian for about 30 years now and am seen in my academic work as an extreme version of the genre. I did my Phd on the topic. I do not merely say that governments should make … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural Critique, Dance, Death and taxes, Democracy, Economics and public policy, Ethics, Geeky Musings, History, Humour, Life, Parenting, Personal, Philosophy, Religion, Science, Social, Social Policy, Society | 13 Comments

Book Launch of the Handbook for Wellbeing Policy-Making July 1st

Posted on June 16, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Wellbeing & Policy Making Book Launch Event on 1st July 5-6.30pm London Time. Attending the Launch is Free, the book is not! [blurb from Nancy Hey, director of the WW Centre for Wellbeing]: The What Works Centre for Wellbeing, and our … Continue reading →

Posted in Death and taxes, Democracy, Economics and public policy, Health, History, Life, Philosophy, Political theory, Politics - international, Politics - national, Public and Private Goods, Science, Social, Social Policy, Society, Theatre | Leave a comment

Peace, food prices, (hunger?) deaths and inequality

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Now and then one should look up and see if there are any trends that are not usually talked about in the media but that say something big about how humanity is going. I here want to briefly discuss the … Continue reading →

Posted in Death and taxes, Health, Inequality, Life, Politics - international, Science, Social, Society | 14 Comments

Vale Ed Diener, Mr Happiness

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Ed Diener, one of the best-known scholars of happiness died this week at the age of 76. He was known as Dr Happiness in the United States, well-known for his 7-item scale on wellbeing and his constant refrain that the … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, Death and taxes, Life, Science | 4 Comments

Australia or Sweden: which has had the better 2020?

Posted on April 14, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Compared to the trends on January 2020, has Australia or Sweden lost more wellbeing in 2020? And which has seen the greater damage to expected future wellbeing years for after 2020? The Table below summarizes the answers to this. For … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Cultural Critique, Death and taxes, Ethics, Health, Life, Politics - international, Science | 43 Comments

Uncertainty, Part 1: McGurk

Posted on March 23, 2021 by Paul Frijters

As one the best illustrations of the way our minds deal with uncertainty, consider the following video. Please listen and watch at least 30 seconds so you can experience the three sequences of spoken words. Pretty much all humans who … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics and public policy, Life, Media, Philosophy, Political theory, Science, Social, Theatre | 21 Comments

Three lessons on Chinese culture and politics

Posted on December 1, 2020 by Paul Frijters

The animosity between the Chinese and Australian authorities is heating up, so we Westerners need to understand some of Chinese culture and politics. I do not have all the answers, but some 10 years of working and teaching on China … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Life, Science, Social, Society, Uncategorized | 40 Comments