Category Archives: politics

What About the Plague?

Posted on April 14, 2020 by Abigail

What About the Plague? I feel it’s a privilege to be alive at this time, as it is at all times. It’s now being said that we can’t shake hands – perhaps ever again! Henceforth, our hands will be condemned … Continue reading →

Posted in Absurdism, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, American Politics, Anthropology, Art of Living, Autonomy, beauty, bureaucracy, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Existentialism, Faith, Freedom, Friendship, Health, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, history of ideas, Ideality, Identity, Institutional Power, Journalism, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Love, memory, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, non-violence, Ontology, Oppression, pacifism, Past and Future, Peace, politics, politics of ideas, Power, presence, promissory notes, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, science, scientism, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, Terror, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Time, twenty-first century, victims, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged apparent indifference, beyond touch, building new remedies, clean up their acts, collective silence, common suffering, common touch, community revival, community survival, complex community, creative risk, deathbed farewells, detecting infection, educated guesswork, entrepreneurial creativity, essential services, frustrated farewells, global traffic, grief, handshake, handshake prohibition, human touch, least harm, losing touch, medical research, mourning, mourning ceremony, muted farewells, on standby, one size won’t fit all, out of touch, outward indifference, personal contact, personal losses, plague, plague reflections, practicality, protecting the human race, protective remedies, qualitative essentials, quality of life services, remedial alternatives, remedial policy, scientific research, sense of touch, service enterprises, shared suffering, skill, small businesses, societal recovery, speaking silence, staying in touch, the human norm, the privilege to be alive, toxic practices, viral waves, Wuhan “wet markets” | Leave a comment

My Therapist is a Horse

Posted on November 12, 2019 by Abigail

My Therapist is a Horse By that I don’t mean that it’s healthy for me to relax and do something different, rather than “think” all the time. I mean Cali [aka California], a tall pinto, is my therapist. Last Friday, … Continue reading →

Posted in Absurdism, Academe, Action, Alienation, American Politics, Anthropology, Art, Art of Living, beauty, books, bureaucracy, Chivalry, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Courtship, cults, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Femininity, Feminism, Friendship, Gender Balance, glitterati, Guilt and Innocence, Health, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Institutional Power, Jews, Journalism, Judaism, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Male Power, Masculinity, master/slave relation, Memoir, memory, Mind Control, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, nineteenth-century, novels, Ontology, Oppression, Past and Future, Phenomenology of Mind, Philosophy, Political Movements, politics, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, radicalism, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Roles, Romance, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, Sexuality, social climbing, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, victimhood, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged 19th century novels, Abigail L. Rosenthal's "Confessions of a Young Philosopher", academic feminism, academic job struggle, academic prestige, author’s platform, “About Abigail Rosenthal” video, “Autumn Leaves”, background music, blaming Holocaust victims, book genre, Brooklyn College Philosophy Department, Charles de Gaulle, Charles Dickens’s Tale of Two Cities, Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre", collegial friend, Columbia philosophy department, Columbia Religion Department, communication, Coulda been a contender, CUNY, Currer and Acton Bell, equine therapist, Fair Play for Cuba Committee, Fidelista, French philosopher, Hannah Arendt, Hannah Arendt's Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil, horse sense, horse tracks, Houyhnhnms, human therapist, Israeli ambassador, Jane Austen, Laurel Nobilis stables, Les feuilles mortes, life strategy, love of wisdom, male pseudonyms, manuscript design, mass executions, multi-tasking, natural riding, opinion shapers, opportunism, overthinking, philosophy of language, philosophy students, podcast, preamble and outgo, public space, purposive action, R&R, reaching readers, receptive silence, relaxation, remembering where you’re headed, rest and recuperation, seeking readers, staying invisible, success as a full-time job, success tradeoffs, Susan Sontag, the Bronte Sisters, therapist, truth-seeking, whitewashing Nazis, women writers, words and images | Leave a comment

The Return of the Well-Tailored Proto-Nazi

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Abigail

The Return of the Well-Tailored Proto-Nazi This is about my return encounter with the dapper gentleman who first surfaced last May, when I gave a talk at California’s Claremont School of Theology, based on a chapter from my book, A … Continue reading →

Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Alienation, American Politics, Anthropology, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, Biblical God, books, Chivalry, Christianity, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Femininity, Feminism, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, glitterati, Guilt and Innocence, Health, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, ID, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Institutional Power, Jews, Judaism, life and death struggle, Love, Masculinity, master, master/slave relation, memory, Mind Control, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, non-violence, Ontology, Oppression, pacifism, Past and Future, Peace, Philosophy, Political Movements, politics, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Race, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, scientism, secular, Seduction, self-deception, social climbing, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, Terror, terrorism, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twenty-first century, victimhood, victims, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged a quiet life, Abigail L. Rosenthal's "A Good Look at Evil", adversary’s energy field, bad vibes, banality of evil, book about evil, Claremont School of Theology, deceiving appearances, defending the Holocaust, denouncing evil, Divine intervention, essentially Jewish, experimental neuropathy treatment, force of will, founding TWW, frustrating the adversary, genocide, gentle reader, gentleman, giving ground to the adversary, giving no openings, Hannah Arendt, he’s back, Holocaust Denial, Jerry L. Martin, Jewish defensiveness, Jewish self-defense, justifying genocide, Loma Linda Neuropathic Therapy Center, martial arts, martial arts of the spirit, mental focus, mental self-defense, New York Subway, not the type, petitionary prayer, power of prayer, powers of darkness, predatory vibes, rationalizing genocide, silent aggression, speak of the devil, the best of taste, Theology Without Walls, TWW trialogue, wanting to flee, young theologians | 4 Comments

The Thrill of Admiration

Posted on June 11, 2019 by Abigail

The Thrill of Admiration These days I’m reading Jacob Howland’s wonderful book about Plato’s Republic, the great dialogue that shows how hard it is to teach virtue in the political arena. At the same time, I’m mentally settling down … Continue reading →

Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, American Politics, Art, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, beauty, books, bureaucracy, Childhood, Chivalry, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Courtship, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Femininity, Feminism, Films, Freedom, Friendship, Gender Balance, glitterati, Guilt and Innocence, Health, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Immortality, Institutional Power, Jews, Journalism, Judaism, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Male Power, Martyrdom, Masculinity, master, master/slave relation, Memoir, memory, Mind Control, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, Oppression, Past and Future, Philosophy, Poetry, Political, Political Movements, politics, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, scientism, secular, Seduction, self-deception, Sex Appeal, social climbing, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, Terror, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, Utopia, victimhood, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged a long romance, Abigail L. Rosenthal's "A Good Look at Evil", admirers and detractors, Adolf Eichmann, Aristotle, “call no man happy”, buffetings of public opinion, Chaim Tchernowitz, death and glory, deserved honors, fall from grace, fame and fortune, Hannah Arendt's Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil, history’s big stage, history’s unfair verdict, history’s verdict, inflated reputation, Jacob Howland’s Glaucon’s Fate: History Myth and Character in Plato’s Republic, Jewish history, legacy, lost reputation, lucky in love, mental programming, mindless bureaucrats, named professorships, Nazi bureaucracy, opinion shapers, Plato, Plato's Republic, posterity's verdict, posthumous reputation, public disfavor, public esteem, Rav Tsair, reputation, reversals of fortune, risks to happiness, Solon of Athens, the Holocaust, the just and the unjust, the just man, the race well run, uplifting versus defaming a reputation, victims and perpetrators, W.H. Auden's In Memory of W B Yeats, writers and philosophers | Leave a comment

The Burning of Notre Dame

Posted on April 16, 2019 by Abigail

The Burning of Notre Dame The first photos showed the cathedral’s high spire falling, its skeletal wood frame silhouetted against the engulfing red flames and – seen from the city’s venerable center – a column of smoke rising. Notre Dame … Continue reading →

Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Alienation, Anthropology, Art, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, beauty, Bible, Biblical God, books, Chivalry, Christianity, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Courage, Courtship, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Freedom, glitterati, Guilt and Innocence, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, hierarchy, History, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Immortality, Institutional Power, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Martyrdom, Medieval, memory, Mind Control, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, nineteenth-century, novels, Ontology, Oppression, Past and Future, Phenomenology of Mind, Philosophy, Poetry, Political, Political Movements, politics, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, radicalism, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, secular, self-deception, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, Suffering, Terror, terrorism, The Examined Life, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twenty-first century, victimhood, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged 9/11, a city’s heart, accidental fires, architecture of the human soul, “set fires”, barbarian invaders, believing nothing, churches at risk, churches desecrated, churches vandalized, defensive city perimeters, emptying a population, erotic Paris, gothic architecture, gothic architecture's exemplar, la plus belle ville du monde, life and death of cities, medieval city, New York fireman, nihilism, Notre Dame, Notre Dame burning, Notre Dame’s high spire, Parisian skepticism, photos of Notre Dame burning, Rome’s aqueducts, sacking of Ancient Rome, secular Paris, spiritual thirst, the heart of Paris, towers of Notre Dame, Vandals and Visigoths, Wars of Religion, World Trade Center | 6 Comments

Jewish Time

Posted on March 19, 2019 by Abigail

Jewish Time Lately, I’ve had a growing sense of living my life on something I call “Jewish Time.” Have I anything concrete in view? In my childhood, when my parents were awaiting Israeli dinner guests, they expected them to be … Continue reading →

Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Afterlife, Alienation, Anthropology, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, Bible, Biblical God, books, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, Cultural Politics, Culture, Desire, dialectic, Erotic Life, Eternity, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, Faith, Fashion, Freedom, Friendship, Gnosticism, Guilt and Innocence, Hegel, hegemony, hidden God, History, history of ideas, ID, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Institutional Power, Jews, Judaism, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Love, Memoir, memory, Mind Control, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, novels, Ontology, Past and Future, Peace, Phenomenology of Mind, Philosophy, Poetry, Political, Political Movements, politics, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Race, radicalism, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, scientism, secular, self-deception, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, Suffering, Terror, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, Utopia, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged being orphaned, Bucks County PA, Buddhism, covenant, covenant and geography, covenantal history, covenantal signatories, covenantal time, defining boundaries, desert vista, Divine intervention, divine manifestations, divine thunderclap, Eastern religion, empirical life, essential being, false transcendence, Fear and Trembling, getting one’s bearings, God as Co-Author, God in the storm, Hinduism, holy land and covenant, home sweet home, homelike experience, insider knowledge, Israeli time, Jewish time, late for dinner, lateness, life in history, loved and hated, meaningful timeline, modern Orthodox women, New York City, non-theistic systems, personal God, philo-semitism and antisemitism, philosophy, philosophy intro class, philosophy of religion, promised land, providential intervention, provincial customs, punctuality, religious boundary disputes, religious geography, setting one’s course, sincere words, spiritual systems, sub specie aeternitatis, subliminal losses, trans-empirical life, unspoiled landscape, worldly customs | Leave a comment

“Evil is Really Not Banal”

Posted on March 5, 2019 by Abigail

“Evil is Really Not Banal” This past week we’ve been in California, where I’ve resumed my treatments for neuropathy at the Loma Linda hospital. The other event of the week, salient for me, was a talk at the Claremont School … Continue reading →

Posted in "Absolute Freedom and Terror", Absurdism, Academe, Action, Alienation, American Politics, Art of Living, Atheism, Autonomy, Biblical God, books, bureaucracy, Christianity, Cities, Class, conformism, Contemplation, Contradictions, Cool, Courage, cults, Cultural Politics, Culture, dialectic, Ethics, Evil, Existentialism, exploitation, Faith, Fashion, Femininity, Feminism, Freedom, Friendship, glitterati, Guilt and Innocence, Hegel, hegemony, Heroes, hidden God, History, history of ideas, Idealism, Ideality, Identity, Ideology, Idolatry, Immorality, Institutional Power, Jews, Journalism, Judaism, Law, Legal Responsibility, life and death struggle, Literature, Martyrdom, Memoir, memory, Mind Control, Modernism, Moral action, Moral evaluation, Moral psychology, morality, Mortality, Oppression, Past and Future, Peace, Philosophy, Political, Political Movements, politics, politics of ideas, post modernism, Power, presence, promissory notes, Propaganda, Psychology, public facade, Public Intellectual, Race, radicalism, Reading, Reductionism, relationships, Religion, Roles, secular, Seduction, self-deception, social construction, Social Conventions, social ranking, spiritual journey, spiritual not religious, Spirituality, status, status of women, Suffering, Terror, terrorism, The Examined Life, The Problematic of Men, The Problematic of Woman, the profane, the sacred, Theism, Theology, Time, twentieth century, twenty-first century, victimhood, victims, Violence, War, Work, Writing, Zeitgeist | Tagged Abigail L. Rosenthal's "A Good Look at Evil", audience Q&A, author/publisher relation, “The Rake’s Progress”, banality of evil, behaviorism, Bernard Harrison’s Blaming the Jews: The Persistence of a Delusion, blaming the Jews, book endorsements, book reviewers, book reviews, bureaucratic mindset, Claremont School of Theology, Coincidences, conscious evil, diabolical cunning, Evil, evil personified, excusing the Holocaust, explaining evil, fiction and real life, fighting the good fight, firming resolve, futile counterargument, groupthink, guidance from above, Hannah Arendt, Hannah Arendt's Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil, Holocaust research, illustrations from life, knee fracture, Loma Linda Hospital, meaning what you say, moral coverup, Nazi arguments, Nazi canards, Nazi materials, Nazi talking points, neuropathy treatments, publishing snafus, speaker event, synchronicities, the Holocaust, the seducer, theologians, traps of argument, truth stranger than fiction, white-washing evil, wolf in sheep’s clothing | 11 Comments

	How Jewish Am I? \|… on “Yenta”
	Abigail on Another Door
	Johan Herrenberg on Another Door
	Abigail on The Paranormal and Me
	Ken Kaplan on The Paranormal and Me

Category Archives: politics

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