Posts by Alexander Green
The Noblest Expression of the Human Spirit
What is the secret of eloquence, the standard of virtue, the basis of moral authority, the object of philosophy, the most formidable power on earth, the noblest expression of the human spirit, and beauty itself?
Read MoreThe Undiscovered Country
On the way to a conference last week, I caught a connecting flight in Charlotte.
As I approached my gate, I looked up and noticed a sign: Terminal Destinations. It was an airport health spa, but it reminded me of the debate I was on my way to hear between Dinesh D’Souza, a Christian apologist and author of Life After Death, and Michael Shermer, a historian of science, founder of Skeptic magazine, and author of Why People Believe Weird Things.
Read MoreWhat Jim Brown Knows
Jim Brown is arguably the best all-around athlete ever.
He was a track star, one of the nation’s finest lacrosse players, averaged 38 points per game on his high school basketball team, and broke NFL records as a running back for the Cleveland Browns. In 2002, The Sporting News named him the greatest football player of all time.
Read MoreAre You Losing Your Soul?
I recently bumped into an old acquaintance I hadn’t seen in years. “Are you still managing money?” he asked.
“No, I write investment advice now,” I said.
Read MoreAre You Amusing Yourself to Death?
CNBC — and its competitors — will only make you dumber and poorer.
This comes as a surprise to many. After all, financial channels offer a steady stream of well-credentialed experts, men and women with impressive titles from prestigious firms. Most have PhDs, years of experience, or manage large sums of money. They look good. They sound sharp. They have insightful opinions and reams of arcane investment data tripping off their tongues.
Read MoreAre You an Existentialist?
Existentialism is a philosophical movement that came about in the late 19th century. It is not some abstract set of theoretical truths.
Read MoreMeditations of a Philosopher-King
At the Roman Forum a few weeks ago, economist Mark Skousen — dressed in a toga — was delivering his “Persuasion vs. Force” talk to our group, when a passerby stopped to heckle him loudly. Skousen continued with his eloquent plea for freedom and tolerance unperturbed, asking only that the heckler hold his remarks until…
Read MoreThe Only Thing That Really Matters
Why do some folks look back on their lives and say they wouldn’t change much? Or anything? Is there a formula? Some mix of love, work, habits, or attitudes that offers the best chance of a well-lived life? Researchers at Harvard have been examining this question for 72 years by following 268 men who entered…
Read MoreThe literature of truth
According to Dr. Jon D. Miller, Director of the Center for Biomedical Communications, the number of scientifically literate adults in the U.S. has doubled over the past 20 years. The bad news? That only gets us up to 20 percent. Only 48 percent of Americans know that humans didn’t live at the same time as…
Read MoreThe Beginning of Wisdom
I watched in horror as my 11-year-old daughter Hannah plunged 150 feet down Cheakamus Canyon toward the river raging below. My wife Karen and I had both tried to talk her out of it. But she wouldn’t be dissuaded. She wanted to jump. Of course, she was attached to a bungee cord, one that “exceeded…
Read MoreThe One Thing That Changes Everything
One indispensable quality affects every relationship in your life. It holds together all your associations. It determines whether you realize your dreams, both personal and professional. And it virtually defines you to others. Without it, true success is impossible. Stephen M.R. Covey is even more emphatic. He writes: “There is one thing that is common…
Read MoreThe Power of Negative Visualization
When Norman Vincent Peale wrote The Power of Positive Thinking 60 years ago, he received a stack of rejection slips from publishers. Dejected, he threw the manuscript into the trash, forbidding his wife to remove it. She didn’t. The next day, however, she took the manuscript, still inside the wastebasket, to a publisher who accepted it. The book became a foundation of the human potential movement, selling more than 20 million copies in 47 languages.
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