New Political Review

30/08/2024

“There is almost always a way, though sometimes a much slower way, of doing things without violence. For it is not by hostility that good things are achieved.“

— Bertrand Russell, New Hopes for a Changing World (1951)

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Image: Bertrand Russell, 1954.

Russell was a passionate philosopher and mathematician who was outraged by what he considered humankind's irrational beliefs and needless cruelties. Russell wrote and spoke to be understood. His clarity of expression reflects the clarity of his thought. Unlike many philosophers, Russell is well-known for his lucid and elegant prose style. In his philosophical works, there is little abstract jargon nor do we find many flowery expressions. Russell valued getting to the point. At the age of eighty nine Russell was imprisoned for his role in a peace and nuclear disarmament demonstration. He was offered leniency by the magistrate on the condition that he promised to maintain ‘good behaviour’. Russell's laconic response, simple yet forceful, was:

“No, I won’t.”

30/08/2024

“We can control AI” — Brunch with DeepMind’s first policy chief, Verity Harding

Sifted

The former global head of policy at DeepMind says her worries around AI are less about the technology itself, more about humans disengaging

29/08/2024

Interesting article below in Psychology Today about a mind issue normally regarded as sensitive: the Self. Our sense of Self may appear trivial, but in reality is quite a very complex psychological subject. It is multi-dimensional and related with the dynamical complexity of Life and Reality. Simple interpretations are always bound to be wrong and lead to error in decision-making...

Psychology Takes a New Look at the Self
What y

What do you come up with when you ask the question “Who am I?” A new comprehensive review points to five possible answers with important implications for your mental health.

27/08/2024

Intelligence may not be that relevant for academic success. Motivation, determination, a deep curiosity and 'love' of knowledge and understanding are much more relevant! Cultural leaning towards the liking of knowledge may be a geographical 'lottery', but it can be trained for the seriously interested! :)

Non-cognitive skills: DNA-based analyses suggest a hidden key to academic success

A new Nature Human Behaviour study, jointly led by Dr. Margherita Malanchini at Queen Mary University of London and Dr. Andrea Allegrini at University College London, has revealed that non-cognitive skills, such as motivation and self-regulation, are as important as intelligence in determining acade...

27/08/2024

Brilliant Music Stuff take 2 from Blur! Take the Music Up. (Y)

Blur - Russian Strings (Official Visualiser)

Blur - Russian Strings (Official Visualiser) Russian Strings - taken from the new album ‘The Ballad Of Darren’The Ballad Of Darren OUT NOW: http://blur.lnk.t...

27/08/2024

Simply Brilliant! Blurred but brilliant... :)

Blur - Barbaric (Official Visualiser)

Blur - Barbaric (Official Visualiser) Barbaric - taken from the new album ‘The Ballad Of Darren’The Ballad Of Darren OUT NOW: http://blur.lnk.to/theballadofd...

25/08/2024

If Your World Is Not Enchanted, You're Not Paying Attention

The Convivial Society: Vol. 5, No. 11

24/08/2024

22/08/2024

What Europe's politicians hope for new Taiwanese chip plant in Germany

Science|Business - Table.Media partnership Science|Business has partnered with Table.Media, a leading source of news about higher education and research in Germany. Each week, we are publishing one of each other’s stories to give readers an even broader range of insight into R&D policy across Euro...

22/08/2024

Thoughts. The current hype around the coming US Presidential Election is in my opinion not good for Democracy. The role of US President is important, but the US is a complex and balanced set of political institutions, where the President's role is scrutinized and with some good level of supervision. The media hype is only justified by the impotance for US international relations the President final decisions may have.... What bothers me is why on Earth someone with criminal charges and with some minor criminal sentences can run for such an important role. Or even have the ability to influence and put people of his willing in the Supreme Court.

21/08/2024

If for some reason people find of you that you are 'erased' or somewhat 'unenlighted', simply respond that you don't know what that is objectively. That you prefer to have a serene, safe and authentically bright light. Without causing glare.

19/08/2024

Thoughts. In times like the ones we live in, in which problems sometimes take on extreme or highly unpredictable characteristics, we very often see attempts to take political responsibility... Frankly, this is a sign of political decadence. Where everyone is responsible and, either there is not, or everyone is to blame. The phenomenon is not localized to a specific country but the testimony we obtain is that of a pattern in the so-called countries of Western Civilization and Liberal Democracies.

There is a generalized feeling of childishness, condescension, negligence, which can be found in contexts of success and abundance. Let's not be fooled, success also has its challenges, and what comes after success is what we see in front of our eyes and hear in our ears...

The problems of the future for these countries will require a change of attitude. More discipline, more rigor and better Ethics in all procedures, including communication ones. And they will require maturity and much less complacency...

19/08/2024

Reflexão. Em tempos como os que vivemos, em que os problemas por vezes assumem características extremas ou altamente imprevisíveis, assistimos com muita frequência o tentar de assacar responsabilidades políticas... Francamente, isto é sinal de decadência política. Onde todos são responsáveis e, ou não há, ou são todos culpados. O fenómeno não é localizado num país específico mas o testemunhp que obtemos é o de um padrão nos chamados países da Civilização Ocidental e Democracias Liberais. Existe Uma sensação de infantilidade generalizada, de condescendência, de negligência, que se podem encontrar em contextos de sucesso e de abundância. Não nos deixemos enganar, o sucesso tem também os seus desafios, e o que vem depois do sucesso é o que vemos à frente dos nossos olhos e ouvimos nos nosso ouvidos...

Os problemas do futuro para estes países vão exigir uma mudança de attitude. De mais disciplina, mais rigor e melhor Ética em todos os procedimentos, incluindo os comunicacionais. E vão exigir maturidade e muito menos complacência...

17/08/2024

Yes, that's it! Strive for your favourite self! Not the 'best' self version of yourself imposed from outside of you. Your 'within favourite' self.

Becoming Your Favourite Self - Reconnect with the parts of you that are looking to shine.

Rather than relentlessly pursuing your highest, ideal, or best self at all times, pause, get curious, and reflect deeply: What does it feel like to be your favourite self?

10/08/2024

Contrary to what many might believe modern China is not quite a communist country, not at least in the traditional XXth century fashion... Yes, it is ruled as centralized authocracy with only one party allowed, the old communist party. But through many reforms through the last several decades China's Economy today is not different from a centralized Capitalist one, competitive, productive and capital intensive.

The recent investments in critical technological sectors of the future, such as is proof of this. Most of the investments are made by sophisticated private sector venture funds or entreprises managed as a for profit private business. Central State authorities participate in these investments with smaller strategic stakes.

So to the socialists ideals this should ring as what in reality ends up happening for modern, competitive economies: there is a very narrow path for centralized planning for economies to succeed. In the end you always will need Private Entreprise, managed in a way that prioritizes competiveness and not centralized planning.

Experts urge EU to increase investment in photonics

New research has revealed that investments from government and regional clusters worth billions of euros have enabled China to become the world’s biggest photonics powerhouse – prompting calls from EU photonics experts for increased funding to close the gap in critical technologies.

04/08/2024

Pensamentos. Leio por vezes 'por aí'' sobretudo em alguns circulos intelectuais anglo-saxónicos que o Liberalismo implica igualitarismo e progresso social. Talvez seja tendência de uma forma de Liberalismo que se construiu como contra-ponto a sociedades muito conservadoras.

Mas permitem-me qué discorde. Para mim o verdadeiro Liberalismo implica a prioridade que dá a que as instituições formais políticas possam proteger o indíviduo da discrecionaridade do poder político. O Liberalismo no seu melhor não se rebela irresponsavelmente conttra normas socials de consenso amplo. Compatibiliza-se com as mesmas, esforçando-se por melhorá-las. O que que não 'negociamos' cegamente é a dignidade, mesmo que controversa, da decisão ou das decisões individuais de Vida dos individuos. Os mesmos devem depois ter a responsabilidade de responder perante o Estado de Direito.

Portanto o melhor Liberalismo não implica igualitarianismo ou progresso social vazio. Em muitas ocasiões, e a práctica e dados históricos económicos confirmam-no, sociedades como um todo assim como cdaa um dos seus individuos saem a ganhar com o livre desenrolar de acontecimentos socio-económicos que por regra determinam mais, não menos, desigualdade. Daí que para mim o Liberalismo é em larga medida incompatível com o Socialismo.

O melhor Liberalismo também não é conservador. Embora possa mais facilmente compatibilizar-se com o conservadorismo moderado. O que mais interessa ao Liberal é qué não hajam instituições formais de poder político que imponham 'vontades' ou valores discrecionariamente, sem critério ou justificação rational, sobre individuos ou grupos minoritários na sociedade. Muito menos em nome de uma suposta 'certeza' de igualdade social que nunca vai existir. Tal é diferente da aceitação de um bom e justo Estado Social que aprovenha aos mais fracos e/ou desafortunados que sabemos que as sociedades inevitavelmente acabam sempre por ter.

02/08/2024

Erudite Music suggestion for your Weekend. Listening to the clear powerful and sweet Cecilia Bartoll's voice is moving, pleasurable and a way to enter summer vacation with something to cheer about

Cecilia Bartoli chante le retour au Château de Versailles d'Agostino Steffani

02/08/2024

If both parties are peers, it's appropriate to argue. But if one person is clearly more knowledgeable than the other, it is preferable for the less knowledgeable person to approach the more knowledgeable one as a student and for the more knowledgeable person to act as a teacher

02/08/2024

With Ray Dalio – I just got recognised as one of their top fans! 🎉

30/07/2024

The EU Capital Markets Union promises to bring about the dynamics needed for a new outlook for investments in European companies. It is indeed a need for Western European countries (with some of Eastern side as well...) to get the economic growth needed to address the XXI Century challenges. Will this be much more than a 'gamble' on savings...? We hope so.

Europe’s €10 trillion gamble

POLITICO Europe

From Athens to Berlin, governments are coalescing around an idea to turbocharge the economy. If successful, it could be transformative ― but it’s a big if.

20/07/2024

Fascinating article here in about what might be the real evolutionay purpose of Consciousness. I am not completely in agreement with the idea that human subjective (actually I often find it hard to define subjective experience satisfactorily... but obvioulsy know what it is beeing talked about) conscious experience do not have real causal influence in what happens in our lives. It might be too much complex the issue (philosophically and evem scientifically) to have such a certainty on the part of an exclusive neural correlate of biological brain processes to have such a causal influence.... But nonetheless the main point here is to agree that Consciousness is an exclusive Brain process. There is no ghost in the machine and there is no duality with respect to consciousness and Mind.

I'd recommend readers to go through the links for the scientiifc studies for further dense reading.

Consciousness Evolved for Social Survival, Not Individual Benefit

A recent study suggests that consciousness evolved not for individual survival, but for social purposes, helping humans communicate ideas and emotions.

19/07/2024

Vivemos tempos em que a arte da negociação deve ser maximizada nas Democracias. Na realidade Democracia pressupõe a arte de negociar. Nunca me convenci muito dos argumentos das maiorias que decidem... Sim, podem tornar processos mais optimizados e rápidos, mas depois acabam por ter um preço, por vezes eleitoral, a pagar. O risco das negociações 'intermináveis' é de que depois decisões urgentes ou prioritárias fiquem reféns de atrasos... Mas a nova era de Parlamentos fragmentados e mais negociação deve ser vista positivamente pelas Democracias, ao contrário do que se possa pensar e veicular...

Governo só revela limites da despesa perto da entrega do Orçamento para 2025

Público #2025

O quadro plurianual das despesas públicas devia ter chegado ao Parlamento e Aguiar-Branco já pediu o documento obrigatório por lei, mas só depois de haver acordo com Bruxelas é que será conhecido.

19/07/2024

The new UK Government might be in for something with their new government-owned type of companies willing to attract private capital and incentivise investments in critically important public-impact sectors. Long gone are the days of outdated nationalization models of mid-XX Century. But there is yet a 'prove of the pudding' to be made here. Interesting to read an think about though...

Can the UK’s new state-owned GB Energy become a role model for others?

The newly elected Labour government in the UK is promising to create a state-owned entity, GB Energy, to drive forward its energy transition. Robert Johnston at CGEP explains what it is, and how it could be a model for other nations. Up until now, the policy toolkit of high-income OECD countries has...

13/07/2024

Every Saturday I receive this newsletter called LUX_Capital Riskgaming from a NY US blogger on Economic & Markets issues worth reading. Full of lenghty essays about those topics. This Saturday was no exception, plenty of interesting content.

With critical thinking vibes worth your attention. For all its economic might, the US has some economic problems we here in Europe do not have and may scratch our heads understanding... Yes, there are problems with the US Economy to pay attetion to, and ones subsidiary of a proper Classical Liberal critic of high-quality sort. Why America's' Economy gradually diverged from that early days of Adam Smith's 'mantra', to become an economy rife with state-based economic initiatives mired in corruption, incapable of having a modern transport infrastructure, or having the world's most expensive and at times inefficient healthcare system... ? Good questions posed by this good insighful read:

" Once globally competitive, protectionism has annihilated the productivity of America’s most important sectors
There’s an old joke in development economics that goes something like this. A World Bank inspector and a local ministry official inspect three bridges as part of a country-wide review.

After years of planning, the first bridge they visit shows some signs of construction activity, but it’s way behind schedule. The inspector asks what’s taking so long and the official responds, “It’s a completely corrupt-free process run by the best engineers in the world.” Meanwhile, the second bridge they visit is fully finished and operating, but the official notes that “it took a bit of greasing the wheels to get it finished — maybe 30% of the cost.” “Corruption?” the inspector inquires. “One could say,” the official responds. " (...)

AMERICA’S MOLLYCODDLED INDUSTRIES

One of the key lessons of Riskgaming is that it’s not nearly enough to inform people about complex and technical issues, since the underlying negotiations between different parties are ultimately what constructs the final outcome. Why can some parties extract their rents, and others either don’t...

08/07/2024

Personality Politics: What Makes a Successful Politician?

Researchers found that aspiring politicians embark on challenging careers driven by a mix of ambition, idealism, and sometimes narcissism.