Welcome to Open Society

The future depends on ourselves

I’ve been studying politics, philosophy, and history for just over six years now.

Since my aspiring professional sports career didn’t pan out (I was a slightly-above-average-at-best kind of football and basketball player at a small school in rural North Carolina), I was still trying to find a suitable profession by the time I was accepted into my first choice, Virginia Tech (#GoHokies!).

Thanks to the wonders of YouTube University, my passion for public debate was discovered after the 2018 midterm elections.

After working to improve my understanding of political affairs, I found an internship at a media bias agency. Then I started writing opinions columns for my university newspaper. Since college, I’ve been a full-time staff writer at a newspaper in Raleigh, North Carolina, guest blogging with think tanks and news websites, and writing pieces on Medium.

Why Open Society?

In an open society, individuals are free to think critically and challenge existing ideas, prioritizing individual freedom and the improvement of institutions. In practice, this means a liberal democracy where the pursuit of happiness through creative innovation and critical inquiry is championed. And during this political period specifically, it’s important to note that one of the tenets of an open society is the recognized value of the ability to remove bad leaders and policies without violence.

A closed society is stagnant and inhibits intellectual courageousness— often run by authoritarians who can’t imagine themselves being wrong or anyone having the gaul to correct their errors. Here at Open Society, we disobey!

Why the name Open Society? It is not only a reference to the philosopher in the 20th century, Sir Karl Popper, and his book The Open Society and Its Enemies, but also because it encapsulates the mentality under which this publication will operate.

What can readers expect?

Here we will aim to find a shared misinterpretation or inaccuracy in public discourse, and try to improve them using the best epistemological, historical, political, and moral facts available, forming creative and authentic solutions to the challenges we face as a country and as people.

We will pay close attention to the historical record, whether it’s ancient Greek philosophers, the American Founding Fathers, Israel-Palestine, World War II or the events of January 6th. I think discussing political or cultural affairs without a solid understanding of history leaves too much valuable context out of the conversation.

Articles on education and culture will be influenced by the theory Taking Children Seriously (TCS): children are people and deserve respect and freedom. You can get an idea for this content in my piece on why forcing students to read is bad. TCS extends far beyond children; it applies to every person—babies and teenagers to AGI robots and aliens.

Religious content will be more satirical and historically focused. I find exploring the history of Christianity and its theological interpretations to be fascinating. You can see that in my articles, Trump Really is the Modern Jesus and Origin of the War Between Good and Evil. American New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman and the late writer and orator Christopher Hitchens will be major inspirations for this particular content.

In fact, Hitchens indicates the tone in which the publication will be operating in one of my favorite quotes of all time:

Beware the irrational, however seductive. Shun the ‘transcendent’ and all who invite you to subordinate or annihilate yourself. Distrust compassion; prefer dignity for yourself and others. Don’t be afraid to be thought arrogant or selfish. Picture all experts as if they were mammals. Never be a spectator of unfairness or stupidity. Seek out argument and disputation for their own sake; the grave will supply plenty of time for silence. Suspect your own motives, and all excuses. Do not live for others any more than you would expect others to live for you.

The vast majority of articles here will be politically charged. You can get a vibe of the expected content in my articles critiquing the bans on trans athletes, explaining how Bill Clinton can help Republicans win the abortion issue, and evaluating signs of wokeness in modern sitcoms.

With the reelection of Donald Trump, there will be many times where serious inquiries into his leadership, character, and decision-making is needed. Americans — and our allies — should all hope he does well in his second term, but in the inevitable cases where he falls short, the best thing for an open society is to hold him accountable . Voters should be informed of our leaders failures: I think it’s necessary for an open society to function properly. After all, how can voters remove bad leaders without violence if they don’t know anything about the leader or the badness?

Check out my previous work on Medium, the books I’m reading on Goodreads, and my X posts to get a better idea of what I’m all about. Some articles I’ve written over the years will slowly be moved to this publication throughout the next few months.

All content will be free for the foreseeable future. I hope you’ll consider subscribing!