Fortress Of The Mind

17/08/2024

The fifth century Gallo-Roman writer Sidonius Apollinaris, in a letter to his friend Heronius, mentions hearing during his travels the congratulatory shout of “Thalassio” in the streets, theaters, …

10/08/2024

St. Paul Island is one of those innumerable specks of land in the northeast Atlantic that are perpetually lashed by frigid wind and wave.  It is located about fifteen miles northeast of Cape N…

04/08/2024

There is an anecdote found in Valerius Maximus (VI.2.10) that calls our attention to the difference between the respective powers of raw force and steady patience.  A brutal consul named Cnaeu…

28/07/2024

The political philosopher Ibn Zafar, in his masterful treatise Consolation for the Ruler During the Hostility of his Subjects, states as follows:

20/07/2024

On The Impudence Of Servants

There is an unintentionally amusing passage in a letter Petrarch sent to his brother Gherardo in 1349.  In it, the harried scholar pours out his frustration at the antagonistic and insulting b…

13/07/2024

This week's essay:

Some of our most painful experiences can be the unexpected dissolution of friendships once thought to be robust and dependable. The memories of shared joys persist, troubling our consciences with …

06/07/2024

I recently watched a compelling four-part Netflix documentary entitled Crime Scene: The Vanishing At The Cecil Hotel. I had never heard of the Elisa Lam story before, and I was struck by how tragic…

29/06/2024

My new collection of essays, Centuries, was published on June 23, 2024. It contains all pieces published between 2020 and 2023. The book is currently available in both paperback and Kindle, and a h…

23/06/2024

Centuries, the complete collection of my essays from 2020 to 2023, was released today. The Kindle version is currently available, and the paperback and hardcover versions will be available in the c…

22/06/2024

Nietzsche is one of the most popular and discussed of the modern philosophers. He tends to be highly polarizing: some see him as a kind of secular saint, while others see him as a laughable poseur.…

15/06/2024

How To Get Over A Breakup: An Ancient Guide To Moving On, by Ovid. Translated and introduced by Michael Fontaine. Princeton University Press, 2024. Available in hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook. Ov…

08/06/2024

According to the biographer Ibn Khallikan, the poet Ibrahim Al-Suli (?—857 A.D.) was once employed by a caliph to compose a threatening letter to some rebellious subjects. The letter contained the…

05/06/2024

Some people think the only thing that matters is what a teacher or instructor says, not what their character is. I don’t agree with this. In choosing a teacher or instructor, we have to remem…

02/06/2024

In this podcast, we discuss a very revealing video that appeared on YouTube a few weeks back. Someone who prioritizes materialism and appearances is confronted by another man who has a very differe…

01/06/2024

The following tale is found in Ibn Zafar’s political treatise, The Consolation For The Ruler During The Hostility Of His Subjects.  Because it is likely to unfamiliar to most readers, I will p…

25/05/2024

Abraham Lincoln’s literary powers were a product of his life experiences and his innate abilities. From a young age, his exposure to tragedy had been personal and continuous. The death of his mot…

24/05/2024

This is a podcast reading of my essay Let Us Never Despair, which was published here on May 18, 2024. What is the origin of despair? And how may it be confronted? We provide some answers to these q…

18/05/2024

There is an inscription in the Bayeux Tapestry which reads Isti mirant stella, or “these men wonder at the star.”  The scene in which it appears depicts a group of men pointing to a highly sty…

12/05/2024

I had a great conversation yesterday with Lance, the proprietor of DVX Publishing, a publisher dealing with books in the areas of political science, history, leadership, and military affairs. It wa…

04/05/2024

It has been clear for some time that neither the American political right, nor its counterpart on the left, has capably embraced the leadership challenges of twenty-first century modernity. Even a…

27/04/2024

A reader has asked me to provide my thoughts on what topics would be suitable for the homeschooling of his precocious eight-year-old daughter. I thought I would take the opportunity to expound at …

25/04/2024

This podcast is a reading of the short story “Silence: A Fable” by Edgar Allan Poe. Published in 1838, it is a very short, mysterious prose poem with evocative imagery and dark symbolis…

20/04/2024

The historian Edward Gibbon, in Chapter LII of his history, offers an instructive quotation alleged to have been spoken by the first emir of Cordoba, Abd Al Rahman III. This prince ruled a conside…

13/04/2024

Kenneth Sewell’s cogent, well-argued, and deeply unsettling book Red Star Rogue claims that on March 7, 1968, a rogue Soviet submarine destroyed itself while attempting to launch its ballisti…

06/04/2024

It has been said that both courage and cowardice are contagious. This is certainly true, as anyone who has spent time with a group engaged in some kind of enterprise. Courageous or cowardly actio…

01/04/2024

Why do some businesses do inexplicable things that harm their brands? How is it that they do not appreciate the need to stay loyal to their customers or clients? What are the consequences of these …

30/03/2024

It will be useful to compare the leadership styles of two wartime American presidents of the nineteenth century. James Madison was president during the War of 1812, while Abraham Lincoln occupied …

27/03/2024

There are people who feel starved for direct, real experience. They see themselves as living a lie, and are desperate to fill the void. So they channel their energies into avenues that offer little…

23/03/2024

The burning of Washington [PD: US] It is unfortunate that the War of 1812 is understudied, for it furnishes us modernly with a great many lessons on the consequences of a lack of preparedness and m…

21/03/2024

In September 2023, I was fortunate enough to participate in a webinar to discuss some aspects of Cicero’s On the Nature of the Gods. It really was a great discussion. The participants were Dr…