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study critique (270)
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domain: slatestarcodex.com (1127 posts)
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domain: astralcodexten.com (560 posts)
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17 posts
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Moldbug Sold Out

Scott Alexander examines how Curtis Yarvin's current support for Trump-style populism directly contradicts his earlier detailed writings warning against exactly this type of right-wing populist movement.

acx
May 7, 2025 6,315 words 489 likes 680 comments Listen · 43 min Read Read

Why I Am Not A Conflict Theorist

Scott examines and rejects conflict theory (the idea that political disagreements come from material self-interest), arguing instead that political positions are primarily driven by psychological needs and identity rather than material interests.

acx
Feb 26, 2025 4,535 words 486 likes 900 comments Listen · 27 min Read Read

Less Utilitarian Than Thou

Scott Alexander explores the misconception of utilitarianism, arguing that many common political actions are more ethically questionable than his own 'utilitarian' views.

acx
Feb 28, 2024 970 words 236 likes 591 comments Listen · 7 min Read Read

Bad Definitions Of "Democracy" And "Accountability" Shade Into Totalitarianism

Scott Alexander argues that misusing terms like 'democratic' and 'accountable' can inadvertently justify totalitarianism, and suggests more careful usage of these terms.

acx
Jul 28, 2023 1,505 words 323 likes 706 comments Listen · 10 min Read Read

Your Book Review: 1587, A Year Of No Significance

A review of Ray Huang's '1587, A Year of No Significance', examining the decline of the Ming dynasty through the lens of an apparently uneventful year.

acx
Aug 19, 2022 9,067 words 175 likes 200 comments Listen · 63 min Read Read

Your Book Review: The Dawn Of Everything

A critical review of 'The Dawn of Everything' by Graeber and Wengrow, examining their challenge to standard prehistory narratives and proposing an alternative hypothesis.

acx
Jun 10, 2022 9,738 words 317 likes 340 comments Listen · 65 min Read Read

Contra Weyl On Technocracy

Scott Alexander critiques Glen Weyl's anti-technocracy essay, arguing for a more nuanced view of formal mechanisms in decision-making and defending rationalist approaches.

acx
Jan 29, 2021 5,537 words 219 likes 340 comments Listen · 37 min Read Read

Refactoring: Culture As Branch Of Government

Scott Alexander proposes viewing culture as a fourth branch of government to highlight its importance in societal function and governance.

ssc
Dec 19, 2018 759 words 0 likes 286 comments Listen · 7 min Read Read

Current Affairs’ “Some Puzzles For Libertarians”, Treated As Writing Prompts For Short Stories

Scott Alexander uses satirical short stories to critique and deconstruct thought experiments challenging libertarian principles, highlighting their flaws and misrepresentations.

ssc
Feb 21, 2018 5,376 words 0 likes 522 comments Listen · 37 min Read Read

Highlights From The Comments On Conflict Vs. Mistake

Scott Alexander addresses feedback on his conflict vs. mistake theory post, acknowledging criticisms while defending the core concept's usefulness as a starting point for understanding different approaches to societal problems.

ssc
Jan 29, 2018 5,015 words 0 likes 269 comments Listen · 37 min Read Read

Conflict Vs. Mistake

Scott Alexander explores the conflict vs. mistake theory dichotomy in politics, reflecting on his own mistake theory bias and considering the merits of conflict theory.

ssc
Jan 24, 2018 2,885 words 0 likes 22 comments Listen · 22 min Read Read

[REPOST] The Non-Libertarian FAQ

Scott Alexander reposts his 'Non-Libertarian FAQ' critiquing libertarian philosophy and arguments, noting it no longer fully reflects his current views.

ssc
Feb 22, 2017 30,585 words 0 likes 124 comments Read Read

Book Review: Singer on Marx

Scott Alexander reviews Singer's book on Marx, finding Marx's ideas deeply flawed, particularly his refusal to plan for communist governance and his belief in infinitely malleable human nature.

ssc
Sep 13, 2014 3,159 words 0 likes 236 comments Read Read

Archipelago and Atomic Communitarianism

Scott Alexander proposes 'Archipelago', a society of voluntary communities, as a potential solution to issues in modern politics and social organization.

ssc
Jun 7, 2014 6,855 words 0 likes 271 comments Listen · 47 min Read Read

Blogging The Anissimov – Smith Reaction Debate

Scott Alexander reviews and critiques a polite but underwhelming video debate between Noah Smith and Michael Anissimov on neoreactionary ideas.

ssc
Feb 11, 2014 3,172 words 0 likes 158 comments Read Read

A Something Sort Of Like Left-Libertarianism-ist Manifesto

Scott Alexander advocates for a political philosophy combining free markets with social welfare, proposing market-based alternatives to current welfare programs and regulations.

ssc
Dec 8, 2013 3,475 words 0 likes 384 comments Read Read

The Anti-Reactionary FAQ

This post systematically rebuts common Reactionary political beliefs on topics like societal decline, traditional governance, progress, and social issues through data analysis and historical examples.

ssc
Oct 20, 2013 35,234 words 0 likes 810 comments Read Read
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