Weekly Roundup and Paul Berman on Roya Hakakian

Dear All,

This week, we offer an eclectic, timely selection of pieces, including curated responses to our recent roundtable on moral expertise, and a terrific essay by Paul Berman on Iranian-American poet, Roya Hakakian. Also be sure to check out our editorial on the disgraceful firing of Joshua T. Katz, whose penning of an editorial for Quillette ultimately seems to have led to his formal dismissal from my alma mater, Princeton University.

On our podcasts, Jon Kay chats with Aaron Sibarium about social panic at both Yale and Princeton, while I talk with Andy Bellin about George Plimpton and his time at the Paris Review on 27 Rouge.

Thank you as always for your engagement with heterodox ideas. And for those attending our event in Sydney, we look forward to seeing you on Friday.

Until next week,

Scott Newman, Associate Editor

Australian Election

The Twilight of the Australian Liberal Party

What should a centre-right party represent in the 21st century?

QuilletteAdrian Nguyen

Cancel Culture

The Disgraceful Firing of Joshua T. Katz

Joshua Katz knew it was dangerous to go public with his objections to a Princeton faculty letter, but he did so because his conscience demanded it. For this, he has paid an intolerable price.

QuilletteThe Quillette Editorial Board

Philosophy

Is Moral Expertise Possible? Four Responses

As long as there have been philosophers, there has been thinking about morality.

QuilletteQuillette

Culture

Roya Hakakian and How to Speak About What No One Wants to Hear

I. Roya Hakakian is an American writer from Iran who commands a distinctive ability to speak about large and horrific events in a chipper tone that appears to underplay the horrific quality and, by apparently underplaying, ends up subtly underlining. It is an artful tone. It is cagey, charming, disa…

QuillettePaul Berman

Why Not Polygamy?

Polygamy is a criminal offense throughout the Western world. Would making it legal be progress?

QuilletteCheryl Mendelson

Woke Capitalism’s Tragedy of the Commons

Woke capitalism is rational, but it is also unsustainable.

QuilletteIlya Levine

History

The Alchemist Emperor of Prague

As the Holy Roman Empire descended into religious conflicts, its Habsburg ruler surrounded himself with magicians, astrologers, and scryers.

QuilletteMartyn Rady

Conquering a Balkan Blood Feud—in Bovey, Minnesota

An American family descended from Serbian and Croatian immigrants finds a way to overcome old-world hatreds.

QuilletteJon Zobenica

Quillette Podcasts

Quillette Podcast #189: Progressive Social Panic at Yale and Princeton

Reporter Aaron Sibarium talks to Quillette podcast host Jonathan Kay about his recent scoops concerning the campaign against anti-woke Princeton classics professor Joshua Katz, and the unsettling radicalism of student activists at Yale Law School.

QuilletteQuillette

‎27 Rouge: A Quillette Podcast: The Very Best of Us-Andy Bellin on George Plimpton & The Paris Review on Apple Podcasts

‎Show 27 Rouge: A Quillette Podcast, Ep The Very Best of Us-Andy Bellin on George Plimpton & The Paris Review - 27 May 2022

Apple Podcasts

From Around The Web

He’s Australia’s 31st prime minister. So who is Anthony Albanese?

Unlike many politicians, Albanese does not appear to harbour a sense of entitlement to the top job - and his journey there has been a long one.

The ConversationPaul Strangio

The spate of gun violence shows American exceptionalism at its worst

Texas and the country are weeping, again. But will anyone act?

The EconomistThe Economist

Science is political - and that’s a bad thing

People who say “science is political” usually aren’t just stating facts - they’re trying to push something on you. Don’t let them

Science FictionsStuart Ritchie

‎The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan: Francis Fukuyama On How Liberalism Split Apart on Apple Podcasts

‎Show The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan, Ep Francis Fukuyama On How Liberalism Split Apart - 27 May 2022

Apple Podcasts