Sublime
An inspiration engine for ideas
After the war, John Maynard Keynes predicted countries wrecked by war would go on to have a “craving for social and personal security.” Which is what happened.
Morgan Housel • Same as Ever: Timeless Lessons on Risk, Opportunity and Living a Good Life
shattering certainty, Machiavelli showed how. “[T]he dilemma has never given men peace since it came to light,” Berlin lightly concludes, “but we have learnt to live with it.”78
John Lewis Gaddis • On Grand Strategy
Lincoln’s goal, in each of these instances, was to balance law against military necessity, in the expectation that the passage of time and the success of his armies would stabilize the equilibria. “If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong,” he wrote in 1864. “I cannot remember when I did not so think, and feel. And yet, I have never understood
... See moreJohn Lewis Gaddis • On Grand Strategy
War is not an act of unchecked ruthlessness but a declared contest between bounded societies, or states. If a state has no enemies it has no boundaries. To keep its definitions clear a state must stimulate danger to itself.
James P. Carse • Finite and Infinite Games
With that in mind, I want us to consider three great issues for our time as we use our backward gaze at history to gain insights for the future. First, can the world choose a path of shared prosperity, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability in this seventh age of globalization? We can call this the challenge of sustainable development.
... See moreJeffrey D. Sachs • The Ages of Globalization: Geography, Technology, and Institutions
American strategy prior to 1992 was to use military force to pursue its interest. Its greatest triumph was in World War II, when, in addition to defeating Germany and Japan, it gained domination of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, securing the United States from invasion, if not nuclear war. Since World War II, the United States has consistently
... See moreGeorge Friedman • The Storm Before the Calm: America's Discord, the Coming Crisis of the 2020s, and the Triumph Beyond
Theory versus practice. Training versus improvisation. Planning versus friction. Force versus policy. Situations versus sketches. Specialization versus generalization. Action versus inaction. Victory versus defeat. Love versus hate. Life versus death. Leading from within clouds versus keeping the ground in view. But no “versus” whatever between art
... See moreJohn Lewis Gaddis • On Grand Strategy
As the Athenian historian and general Thucydides concluded twenty-five hundred years ago, conflict is driven by fear and honor as well as interest.