Category Archives: Society

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

Citizen-jury appointments?

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Dear Troppodillians, lend me your critical eye. I ask you to consider the system of citizen-jury appointments I have in mind, and tell me how the vested interests would try to game it, ie why it would not work and … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Cultural Critique, Democracy, History, Law, Libertarian Musings, Political theory, Politics - national, Social, Society, Sortition and citizens’ juries, Theatre | 49 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

What has the pandemic told us about wellbeing?

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Paul Frijters

Wellbeing science has behaved very honourably during this pandemic in my opinion, particularly in the UK, where many of the best-known wellbeing researchers openly pointed to the disproportionate costs of lockdowns compared to their (dubious) benefits. Many stood up in … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, History, Science, Social, Social Policy, Society | 14 Comments

Is the birthrate in Victoria dropping fast?

Posted on May 26, 2021 by Paul Frijters

One of the things I keep track off in covid-times is what is happening to births. Though it was initially suggested couples might use their extra lockdown-time to produce babies, it has become clear that in the Western world the … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Death and taxes, Health, Parenting, Social, Society | 14 Comments

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

Common features of the Covistance

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Paul Frijters

I am co-writing a book on the Great Panic to explain what happened and what can be done to avoid a repeat. In the course of our research for that book, me and co-authors are scouring websites in the rest … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronavirus crisis, Cultural Critique, Health, History, Humour, Social, Society, Terror | 61 Comments