Catallaxy Posts 2004-2005
Please note that due to server collapses the links are not available. This is a record of activity, not an archive of material. Sadly!
December 2004
9 Liberals and libertarians, left out of the left to right spectrum.
9 Four groups who muddied the waters of economic rationalism, (including wet conservatives).
10 Jan Lester's case for the zero state. Revised version.
12 Jim Vincent, an outstanding Australian scientist. Interview.
14 Windschuttle on White Australia and Bill Hutt on the origins of apartheid.
16 Great policy analysis: MacCoun and Reuter on US drug policy.
17 A rejoinder to the claim that economic rationalism is the cause of problems at the universities
19 A review of a book of essays on the history of Australian science. Revised version.
21 The dreadful quality of books that attack economic rationalism
23 Peter Rose (editor of Australian Book Review) on reviewing.
26 Popping up again, heads up on a biography of Popper and a rejonder to David Stove's critique of Popper on science
27 Government failure in science, education, health etc.
7 Jim Franklin's book on the history of philosophy in Australia.
28 Summer reading - CIS Policy, The Skeptic, Quadrant.
28 Roderick Murchison, the power of one man in science policy.
30 Difficult writing is not necessarily profound!
30 Jacques Barzun and the debate on education.
31 The cost of giving: annual update on the cost of the "12 days of Xmas" gift basket.
2005
January
4 Don't be too quick to rubbish 'whacky" research projects (with reference to Keith Barley).
5 Death by slides and boring presentations.
8 From Jason's bookshelf, serious crit of John Gray's "Straw Dogs".
9 Rubbishing the cultural cringe, recycling Len Hume's demolition of the myth of the "cultural cringe".
9 From Jason's bookshelf - Mark Lilla on intellectuals and the lure of totalitarianism - first of three posts.
9 Lilla on intellectuals and politics - Carl Schmitt's alliance with fascism.
10 Last post on Lilla - why are so many intellectuals infatuated with tyranny?
11 Some physical therapies - Alexander, Feldenkrais, Rolfe, Pilates.
11 The wide-ranging scholarship of Ernest Gellner.
11 An article predicting that Japan will soon turn their economy around.
12 Why Britain was a bad place to start the industrial revolution.
12 Peter Coleman and the thin anti-red line of the Association for Cultural Freedom.
12 David McKnight defends communism.
13 Roger Sandall on the role of film in shaping our ideas about history.
14 Chile, a South American success story.
14 Review of "Us and Them" eds Sawer and Hindess.
15 Review of Sokal and Bricmont on the waffle of the pomos.
16 Review of "The Sociological Imagination" by C Wright Mills.
17 Debating communism, moving on from an exchange about the subversion of the communists.
17 Overview of the oil industry.
18 A description of the Moscow air show.
18 Bill Hutt on the right to strike.
18 Critical rationalism and Soviet science.
19 Caldwell on Hayek and The Road to Serfdom.
21 Politically correct Trafalgar.
22 The Harry Mackenzie interviews (1) Karl Popper.
23 The economics of crime and crime prevention: insights into the mafia.
25 Ed West on the rise of public schooling - to the detriment of public education.
26 In defence of the traditional university.
27 We wuz robbed: Catallaxy done over in the battle of the blogs.
February
5 The life of Sir Hal Colebatch, stalward knight of free trade.
6 Review of Bryan Magee's "confessions of a philosopher".
7 Politically correct and incorrect dictatorships.
7 Review of Wade Hands on the philosophy of science in economics.
9 Bill Hutt on the rise of apartheid and the need for limited government to protect minorities.
10 Popper among the libertines: commentary on some papers in the Popper session at the Mont Pelerin meeting in Christchurch.
10 Radnitzky on the European miracle, science, critical thinking and taming the state.
13 Evolutionary epistemology: review of the proceedings of a conference in Australia.
15 Rene Wellek's rejoinder to deconstruction in its anarchistic tendencies.
15 An Australian critique of high theory in literature: Freadman and Miller.
15 Michael Warby reviews "the wisdom of crowds".
19 Karl Buhler, pioneer and teacher.
19 Boo to Freud and Hooray for Ian D Suttie.
22 Are the poor getting poorer? No!
23 Review of Swann and Pratt on methods of education research.
Series of posts on Popper's Open Society, condensed . Revised version.
March
4 Mario Vargas LLosa gets a gong.
4 A course in critical thinking.
5 Internet dating, niche sites.
7 Bill Hutt on industrial relations.
8 Perception of compromise as weakness in some cultures.
11 Dumbing down in education - anti-education comments by educators.
11 Footballers as bad role models and the decline of civilisation.
11 Dropping out of school (into more appropriate training or work).
12 The Armadillo story, for the Troppo people, from Rudyard Killing's Just So stories.
13 The origin of WEL, the Women's Electoral Lobby with a mention of Beatrice Faust.
13 The abstract society (Popper) with a link to Auden on the open and closed society.
20 ABC bias - your taxes at work.
22 An essay on Edmund Wilson.
22 Liam Hudson 1933-2005.
22 Samples of hate speach directed at economic rationalists 20 years ago.
23 Charles Baird speaks on the language of liberalism at CIS.
25 "Liberty, property and no excise": the defeat of a state whiskey tax in the US 200 years ago.
26 Some wonders of science.
27 The new laws on conscientious objection to military service in Australia.
28 Notice of the book of proceedings from the 2002 Popper Conference in Christchurch.
28 An apololgy from the Bulletin to Keith Windschuttle for remarks by Catherine Lumby.
30 Australian football roundup - on my proposed football blog.
31 The benefit of low taxation and small government (Ireland compared with Belgium).
April
1 Samuel Brittain on two types of democracy.
3 The centenary of Ayn Rand.
5 Beware of academic remainders (great bargains from Clouston and Hall).
5 Failure of community care after the NSW mental hospitals were emptied, post Richmond Report.
6 The UN discovers free market environmentalism (at least in principle).
7 Flying the flag at half mast.
8 Rorty and Dawkins revisited.
9 The alliances of classical liberals.
15 Has the left been left behind?
16 Rene Wellek's crtique of the "new nihilism" in literary theory.
16 Jacques Barzun, pioneer in cultural studies.
20 Critique of Fukayama on national sovereignty.
24 Lieutenant Christopher Champion RIP.
26 The Labor left in Britain confronts New Labour.
27 Review of a book on the downside of sport on US campuses.
28 The centenary of Einstein's big year of major papers.
May
8 John Quiggin strikes out three times.
8 Hoppe - target of political correctness in the US universities.
9 Nicholas Gruen on lifesaving lessons in health services.
11 Several cheers for the Monthly - first edition.
13 Fond memories of the Melbourne Age Monthly Review.
15 Arthur Koestler 1905-1983.
21 Alarming results of a Palestinian poll (re support for suicide bombing and sharia law).
21 Lack of concern in the city about the impact of drought on farmers and rural exports.
22 What is the value of the film "Three Dollars" (silly depiction of the business world).
22 Absurd proposal in the US for internal security provisons.
22 Useful Hayek site with many major articles on line.
26 A thing or two about Industrial Relations - links to topical pieces.
30 Mixed views on the "science wars" among academics with an interst in the topic.
June
4 check in your own baggage and no refunds (Ryanair).
4 The science wars in summary (1).
4 The science wars continued: paradigm theory to POMO.
5 Noel Pearson on Insiders.
9 BBC survey of the great philosophers, to be decided from a short list of 20.
12 Can science be value-free? (Yes).
14 How to help the Third World: doubt cast on Sachs and debt forgiveness.
15 Spiro Latsis, scholar and magnate.
16 Some progress in the Third World but not due to State to State aid.
16 The hard left, still doing what they do best, creating misery.
16 Political correctness vesus malaria control.
18 The damage done by logical positivism.
20 India, the emerging giant.
21 Libertarian movies, including "The Castle" (Australian).
21 Who is winning in Iraq?
22 Inside Iraq, positive and negative.
23 Amazing moves on drunken youth in Britain - army and police involved.
23 Bruce Caldwell on Hayek and Popper.
26 Mugabe: going for gold in mass murder and destruction.
27 Contents of Critical Review, Summer 1997, including Foucault's hyperliberalism.
27 What is the problem with DDT? Bias amoing scientists.
29 Norbert Weiner: Father of Cybernetics: a new biography of this disturbed genius.
30 Prolific book reviewers: the brothers Judd.
July
3 Popper and Lakatos, in reply to John Quiggin.
5 Scientism, cargo cults, demarcation and anti-science: more on the disasters of positivism.
15 Is heavy thinking ruining your life, from Randi via Barry Williams.
16 Marx takes out the BBC philosophy championship.
19 Bill Bartley, scholar, editor, biographer.
21 Australian Policy on Line: data on the benefits of dropping out of school (for some people).
18 Whigs setting the world to rights (blog).
23 The downside of Winston Churchill - dirigst and interventionist.
23 The cult of Che.
23 Dictator watch: updates on Zimbabwe, Burma, Iran, Libya, Balarus, North Korea.
27 A new site for fans of Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings.
29 Ernst Gombrich, art historian.
31 Good stuff from Tech Central - the economics of recycling.
August
1 Thinking in stereotypes - we can do better!
3 A dream team of thinkers to replace the set of 10 planned for Sydney Uni.
4 Puns out of control.
6 The amazing career of John Buchan and the history of Haliburton, Brown and Root.
9 In the long run...grave sites of famous economists.
10 Bob Catley - his ideological progress and simplistic diagnosis of the prospects for the ALP.
12 Dubioius icons of conservatism: why Hayek was not a conservative!
12 Free thoughts from Italy.
24 Gender-neutral hiring - for the manager of a women's refuge: mixed reaction
25 Clean, green and nuclear, but don't export yellowcake in case it ends up in a warhead!
26 Beware the East Asian Economic Community (a Chinese goal).
27 ABC wins the Skeptic's Bent Spoon award with a forum on alternative medicine.
30 Ross Campbell, Rhodes Scholar and wit.
30 Jan Lester, the political compass revisited.
September
2 Gordon Barton remembered.
3 Introduction to Austrian economics - the main features.
3 Interview with Sudha Shenoy (super).
5th The Mises Institute view on New Orleans and Hurricane Katrina.
6 Link to my 1985 paper on the Austrians in relation to local policy.
6 Sinclair Davidson on the benefits of tax cuts - benefits for everyone!
7 Instrumentalism in economics - for Cato, ref to Boland on Friedman.
8 George Soros and the Open Society Institute, publications and activities.
8 Trevor Cook on blogging.
9 Ross Farrelly and the Education Unbound website plus the EG West Centre on private education.
10 Warren Mundine speaks out on Aboriginal welfare, hope for the ALP?
12 A critical look at Beyond Left and Right by David McKnight.
13 Review of some books on Australian nationalism.
15 Beyond Right and Left Chapter 2.
16 Beyond Left and Right, Chapter 3 on Hayek.
17 Great expectations - statements about Latham before he self-destructed.
19 Heads up, McKnight on Late Night Live.
21 Feyerabend remembered: good interview with a colleague.
22 Political comment in US daily comic strips - conservatives strike back.
22 Comics again, The Eagle and the age of wholesome heroes.
23 Beyond Right and Left chapter 5 what was socialism?
23 Beyond Right and Left Chapter 6 the culture war and moral politics.
23 What are the academic philosophers up to?
25 Yasir Arafat, Nobel Peace Laureate.
25 Hysteria over "stolen generation" will result in deaths, but more sense is being talked at last.
26 Changing patterns of US household spending over 30 years.
26 Copyright problems for Google and books on line.
26 Beyond Right and Left, more on the culture war and moral politics.
27 Beyond Right and Left chapter 9 A new humanism.
28 Is the UN adding value? The Millenium Project.
28 Bird notes from Crikey (ALP-oriented newsletter), jokes on the habits of politicians.
29 Wolfowitz at the World Bank: Maiden Speech.
29 Enterprise Africa, from the Templeton Foundation out of the Mercatus Centre at George Mason University.
29 The Austrian Economists blog.
October
4 Advances in medical science - An Australian Nobel (bacteria &stomach ulcers) etc.
4 Ronnie Barker (the big one) - 1929-2005.
5 Rediscovering the underclass: Charles Murray on a result of the Great Society programs.
5 Political corrrectness gone mad in Britain.
6 Cinderalla Man (the movie).
7 Economic stagnation because the wrong side wom the battle of economic methods 100 years ago.
8 Charitable giving on the rise in Australia since 1997 (despite neoliberalism and consumerism!).
11 Johan Norgberg (CIS lecturer) on global capitalism and the problem of Africa.
11 Boettke on Nobel prizewinner Thomas Schelling.
12 Finland and the Nordics tops on competitiveness. Wake up US. Aust up from 14 to 10.
13 David Williamson, carmudgeon of the year? Dissing middle Australians.
13 Arthur Seldon, 1916-2005 Founder and director of the Institute for Economic Affairs.
14 Happy Birthday Margaret Thatcher (80).
19 Enterprise Africa at work - case studies from the field.
20 The financial acumen of Chomsky.
21 David Williamson replies to the "right wing heavies" who ganged up on him.
21 Chomsky Again - pressing on with his fixed ideas and a huge popular audience.
25 Boettke and Coyne on happiness research.
25 A staircase of opportunity for Aborigines - Noel Pearson at CIS.
26 Introducing Andrei Schleifer.
27 Drake's Drummer - more tributes to Arthur Seldon of the Institute of Economic Affairs.
29 The great funeral oration of Pericles. 2000 US soldiers dead in Iraq.
November
1 Richard Blandy supports IR reform.
3 Seeking opinions on Bill Bryson's book about everything.
6 The condensed Road to Serfdom.
11 Taxes at work - the philosophers.
14 Around the blogs.
15 Perverse incentives - Noel Pearson on some problems in the deep north.
15 Jack Birner on explanation in the social sciences.
15 The rise of the trade unions.
21 Around the blogs...
25 Ignorant armies - clashing IR paradigms.
25 Competition and productivity in biology and commerce (survival of the productive).
December
5 Problems in the British universities.
6 A salute to Robert Conquest.
6 Books on line - the Australian Gutenberg project.
11 Mosman Art Gallery - two great shows including the windjammers!
12 The Mechanics Institutes.
12 IR in India - moves towards flexibility.
18 Paddy Macguinness and research grants.
19 Austrian watch.
19 Saunders vs Saunders (Santa vs Scrooge?).
22 Around the blogs.
30 Around the blogs.
