May, 2015

UTOPIAS: Social Experimentation

Utopias are an expression of a new social order, political system, human behavior experiment or satire. Architects, thinkers, philosophers and urban planners have all imagined utopian cities. Aristotle would be the first in his work of political philosophy titled “Politics” to mention such ideas. Generally speaking, these imaginary cities consists…

Social Force

It is present in every aspect of society – from conversations, to concerts, to production, to war – social force is inescapable. Some call it “peer pressure”, which is correct, but I have chosen to use a unique term. “Peer pressure” is often understood pejoratively and in limited contexts, i.e….

Album Review – Wale’s ‘The Album About Nothing’

“I figure, they don’t care nothing about albums… So why not give them an album about *giggles* [nothing],” Wale says towards the end of “The Intro about Nothing,” the energetic opener and greatest track off his latest album. Olubowale Victor Akintimehin, better known by his more famous and actually pronounceable…

Why Getting ‘G-M-Over it’ Misses the Point

At risk of being called a heretic by my 20-something year old peers, I’m not a fan of Chipotle (or any other knockoff build-your-burrito assembly lines). My thoughts usually include: Yes, I know the very average guacamole is extra. I wish they’d distribute the ingredients so one side isn’t all…

Leningrad et les 900 jours

Quand on pense à la Seconde Guerre mondiale, on pense souvent à des épisodes comme le blitz de Londres, l’attaque de Pearl Harbor ou encore la bataille de Stalingrad. Cependant, on se souvient peu, hors de Russie, du siège d’une ville mythique de l’ancien Empire de Russie, Léningrad, actuelle Saint-Pétersbourg;…