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kakistocracy

politicscomment

kakistocracy

There's a train of thought, among those fed up with the government of the day or cynical about politics in general, that all politicians are crooks, and that only bad people could even want to be in politics. But I've known some very nice people who have been politicians, so I know this isn't true.…

sex & sexuality answers

FAQscommentlgbt

sex & sexuality answers

I've answered a lot of questions about sexuality, sex, orientation and gender on Quora. There's often an element of personal opinion in such answers, but I try to stay objective, evidence-based, ethical and compassionate…

religion answers

FAQscommentbuddhism

religion answers

Answers on religious topics. Obviously this is much more about my opinion than the previous set of answers about Java and programming. But it has also been a chance for me to share what I've learned about Buddhism…

FAQ

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FAQ

I've been using the question-and-answer site Quora for almost exactly 3 years, and I've written nearly 1,000 answers…

pardon my yawn

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pardon my yawn

As an alumnus of three UK universities, I regularly get communications from them written in a tone of breathless excitement about some new development concerning their organisational structure. Birmingham University constantly reorganises, renames and rebrands itself and throws abbreviations at…

valentines day

commentmodern times

valentines day

Single people have traditionally hated St. Valentine's Day (in our modern, secular world now just called Valentines Day) because it supposedly celebrated coupledom - though personally it was always the crass commercialism of greetings-card makers that I found repugnant. Greetings…

the High Line

travelcommentmodern times

the High Line

Manhattan's “High Line” - a disused elevated railway line that has now been repurposed as a public footpath - wasn't open yet on my last visit to New York, in 2011. I went to visit it this year. It's brilliant.…

Richard of York

commentNewsimagining

Richard of York

...and What-If History The reburial of Richard III is in the news. I don't approve of burying Richard of York in Leicester, his only connections with the city being that he was murdered nearby and buried secretly in an abbey…

looks like equality...

commentpoliticsNewslgbt

looks like equality...

...but it still isn't. Today people are rightly celebrating that gay couples can now get married in the UK. But while this is another huge step towards equality, I'm frustrated that we're still not quite there yet. Now we have…

having experiences incorrectly

commentmodern timesphotography

having experiences incorrectly

Today's xkcd airs the debate over people (aka “kids nowadays”) who constantly photograph themselves in front of things. White Hat criticises them for “taking pictures instead of just enjoying the view” because “documenting your life distracts you from living it”…