Archedelia

Archedelia explores political theory through a critical lens, delving into various socio-political phenomena such as the impact of technology, the structure of meritocracy, antihumanism, and the interplay between individual and collective identities. It addresses historical perspectives, current issues, and potential future implications of societal norms and governance structures.

Political Theory Technology and Society Meritocracy and Aristocracy Antihumanism Identity and Culture Automation and Human Activity Gender Relations Nationalism and Ethnomasochism Social Control and Governance Economic and Corporate Dynamics Historical Perspectives on Society

The hottest Substack posts of Archedelia

And their main takeaways

The nobleman versus the meritocrat

4618 implied HN points • 22 Jan 24
💾 History
  1. European aristocrats had a moral imperative to uphold standards for the common good.
  2. Standards ennoble all who aspire to meet them, regardless of their capacities.
  3. A French winemaking family demonstrated how the practice of service and education is passed down through generations.

The Count and the Kamikaze

2122 implied HN points • 18 Jan 24
🎭️ Culture Books Movies
  1. The novel 'A Gentleman in Moscow' explores the life of a Russian aristocrat under house arrest in a hotel after the Bolshevik revolution.
  2. The movie 'Godzilla Minus One' depicts the story of a kamikaze pilot choosing to live and love after rejecting his mission during WWII.
  3. Both the novel and the movie explore themes of moral choices and grace in challenging historical contexts.

Why the meritocracy is not viewed as a legitimate ruling class

1631 implied HN points • 30 Jan 24
📖 Philosophy Society Culture Morality Ethics History
  1. The nobility in an aristocratic society upholds standards that tie them to the common good, unlike meritocrats.
  2. Meritocrats are individuals who rely on intelligence and hard work for their position, without a sense of duty to sustain culture.
  3. The bourgeoisie, as described by François Furet, is defined by wealth and lacks a specific tradition or place in the community.
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Fear and courage

3066 implied HN points • 26 Sep 23
🎭️ Culture
  1. The post discusses fear and courage
  2. It includes a childhood memory from the 1970s
  3. The post offers a 7-day free trial to read the full archives

Old cars and the logic of dispossession

1336 implied HN points • 11 Dec 23
🎭️ Culture History Society Environment Policy Ethics
  1. Cash for clunkers programs aim to remove older cars from the road for environmental benefits.
  2. There is a history of aggressive zoning laws targeting properties with old cars, affecting individuals and businesses.
  3. Prejudice against old cars is deep-rooted in American culture, influenced by aesthetics and notions of progress.

The upside of risk

2103 implied HN points • 26 Oct 23
⛪ Faith & Spirituality Faith
  1. The post discusses the upside of risk.
  2. The author references an experience on a dirt bike in Virginia.
  3. There is an option for a 7-day free trial to access full post archives.

Misanthropic uses of the nudge

1533 implied HN points • 12 Nov 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics Morality Behavior Purpose
  1. Machine gambling terminals are designed to create addiction through behavior design.
  2. Players are absorbed into pseudo-action at slot machines, seeking a sense of control and zone of efficacy.
  3. The libertarian response to issues like machine gambling may overlook the impact of external forces and fail to address the need for regulation.

War and comradeship

1356 implied HN points • 23 Oct 23
🎭️ Culture War Society Journalism Documentaries Books
  1. The films highlight the real experiences of war and the deep bonds formed among soldiers.
  2. Returning home from war can be challenging in a modern, distant society.
  3. War demands human qualities that may conflict with public principles in contemporary society.

Antihumanism

2555 implied HN points • 23 Jul 23
📖 Philosophy Social control
  1. The idea of antihumanism is discussed in relation to systems of social control.
  2. An anecdote about a Google self-driving car facing a practical issue is shared.
  3. The impact of social norms on technology like self-driving cars is highlighted.

Conversations with Andrew Sullivan and Marilyn Simon

904 implied HN points • 26 Nov 23
🎙 Podcasts Interviews Education
  1. Conversation with Andrew Sullivan on the Dishcast podcast covered a wide range of topics from personal anecdotes to societal issues
  2. The conversation included discussions on bureaucracy, childhood supervision, diversity, and the impact of technology on society
  3. Andrew Sullivan is praised for being a gifted interviewer who brings humanity to his conversations

Minoritarian moralism

2142 implied HN points • 05 Aug 23
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Regime Political theory
  1. Transformations in political regime are shifting authority from majority rule to technical and moral clerisies.
  2. The ruling entity now focuses on protecting a vulnerable self in society, expanding managerial authority and dismissing common sense.
  3. The new minoritarianism centers around using recognition clients as symbols for social control, shifting control to a new class of social managers.

The corporate-state nexus

1434 implied HN points • 26 Aug 23
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Corporate Influence Civil Rights
  1. Corporations are not run by individual stockholders, but by managers who respond to asset managers and institutional investors.
  2. The theory of the free market is based on a universe of small proprietors, which is not applicable to today's corporate economy.
  3. Corporations were initially formed by government charters and are now influenced by state purposes, leading to a malfunction in a purely market-driven environment.

Seeing Like Google

2201 implied HN points • 18 May 23
🕹 Technology Internet Maps Empire
  1. The post discusses how technology is adding unnecessary layers of control, making simple tasks more complicated.
  2. It touches on the idea of these additional layers acting as a tax enforced by private commercial entities.
  3. The post invites readers to subscribe for a 7-day free trial to continue reading and access the full post archives.

Diversity and the nation

904 implied HN points • 19 Aug 23
📖 Philosophy Identity Nationalism Democracy Representation Politics
  1. Part One of the series discussed the relationship between political representation, statistical representation, and visual representations of under-represented groups.
  2. Diversity as an ideal impacts the imaginative basis of democracy and social survey research forms imagined communities rivaling the national community.
  3. The birth of the modern nation-state emphasized a uniform 'national' consciousness for self-government and the formation of an 'imagined community' based on common identity.

What is ideology?

1572 implied HN points • 21 Apr 23
📖 Philosophy Ideology
  1. Committing to abstractions can make you intolerant of reality.
  2. Ideological thinking wants to make the world fit its ideas.
  3. It's important to recognize and respect aspects of the world that don't align with our ideologies.

What makes women strong?

1139 implied HN points • 06 Jun 23
🎭️ Culture Gender Society Sports
  1. Women in the motorcycle racing sport start young and compete with boys, showing toughness and skill early on.
  2. In the world of dirt bike racing, there is no special treatment or separate classes for women, they just participate and race alongside men.
  3. Engaging in activities like riding dirt bikes can create a different dynamic in gender relations compared to more traditional environments.

The reality crisis

1277 implied HN points • 11 Apr 23
🎭️ Culture Philosophy Society Authoritarianism
  1. There is a focus on self-governance in philosophical inquiry and reclaiming reality.
  2. The concept of the situated self adapting to external reality versus the atomized self reshaping the world to fit itself.
  3. The rise of an inward-oriented liberal self leading to a loss of self-government, reliance on experts, and a potential path towards totalistic technocracy.

Gratitude and the modern condition

1061 implied HN points • 14 Jan 23
  1. Gratitude comes from acknowledging gifts or fortunate conditions beyond what is expected.
  2. Gratitude helps in reorienting oneself and shedding feelings of resentment or entitlement.
  3. Different personality types respond to the world differently, with some feeling gratitude for the present and others striving to improve it.

Anatomy of the consensus-borg

923 implied HN points • 02 Apr 23
📰 News Opinion Analysis Media
  1. The consensus-borg relies on various tactics to maintain narrative discipline.
  2. Sociological questions around generating consensus and truth are important, without falling into conspiracy theories.
  3. There is a machinery of narrative control that is top-down and influences the shaping of reality.

Love of one's own

1081 implied HN points • 27 Dec 22
  1. Nationalism can express love and civic friendship, not just hatred.
  2. Shared national character comes from common experiences and cultural inheritance.
  3. Ethnomasochism, denying love for one's own culture, impacts interactions and societal trust.

Making sense of the DMV experience

805 implied HN points • 04 Mar 23
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Government Corruption Multiculturalism Bureaucracy
  1. Getting things done at the DMV in California often requires engaging with 'fixers' who have connections in the bureaucracy.
  2. California's bureaucratic landscape reflects a shift towards multiculturalism and political monopoly, impacting how services are obtained.
  3. The collapse of the Republican Party in California has led to a political environment where competition occurs within the Democratic Party under a shared political vision.

Welcome to Archedelia

1022 implied HN points • 26 Nov 22
  1. Archedelia aims to understand the present political reality through an archaeological approach.
  2. Matthew B. Crawford is known for his books on skilled trades, attention crisis, and driving.
  3. Launching a Substack allows Crawford to freely share his thoughts on political theory in real time.

The origins of the therapeutic state

707 implied HN points • 10 Dec 22
  1. There was a top-down sexual revolution post-World War II that led to the therapeutic state.
  2. Men in online communities are abstaining from masturbation to reclaim self-control due to concerns about predatory pornography.
  3. The journalistic Left has linked sexual self-regulation movements to fascism, tracing back to 20th-century social engineering for sexual liberation.

The levers of social control in our post-democracy

609 implied HN points • 10 Dec 22
  1. Fear is a powerful tool used to craft compliance and submission.
  2. Micro-humiliations in public spaces can contribute to social control.
  3. State legitimacy can hinge on the promise of protection.

Gratitude in a time of apocalypse

530 implied HN points • 07 Jan 23
  1. There will be a lecture on gratitude in a time of apocalypse on January 9 at 7pm London time.
  2. The talk will be hosted at Unherd's club in Westminster.
  3. The speaker discusses the current sense of doom-savoring and the feeling of superiority that can arise.

What is "tech"?

1 HN point • 01 May 23
🕹 Technology Tech
  1. Technology today is often referred to as 'tech' and involves adding unnecessary complexity to aspects of life.
  2. The word 'technology' used to mean improvements to practical things, like gears.
  3. To read more, a 7-day free trial is available on Archedelia.