Category Archives: Rationalism

Populists pandering to parochial identities, polarising multi-ethnic societies, posing extravagant claims but backtracking without any blushes after securing their objective (while the public doesn't seem to care), reversing rationalism, demonising dissent and blaming the other/outsiders for all ills. Welcome to the "Post-Truth" world where the truth is no longer an obstacle - and its very concept is contested.

But Donald Trump, the Brexiters, the climate change deniers, the anti-vaccination or anti-immigration crowd, even our own infallible leaders, and the like proliferating all around are consequences, not causes of the "Post-Truth" phenomenon.

And it is not only rooted to these people or issues, contends British political journalist Matthew D'Ancona, noting that even Trump's eventual departure from office will not mean its end since the phenomenon is not only a mere contest between two competing ideologies of the political spectrum.

Therefore it is necessary to know why it this different from politics so far, how did we get to such a state of affairs, and why should we care.

It is a new strain of politics, shows D'Ancona in this book, one which goes beyond the usual tactics of less than the full truth, exaggeration and hyperbole or spin seen so far but is far more worrying because of its unwholesome underpinnings, response of particularly credulous public and reach and impact of digital technology and social media which facilitate it.

"We have entered a new phase of political and intellectual combat, in which democratic orthodoxies and institutions are being shaken to their foundations by a wave of ugly populism. Rationality is threatened by emotion, diversity by nativism, liberty by a drift towards autocracy. More than ever, the practice of politics is perceived as a zero-sum game, rather than a contest between ideas. Science is treated with suspicion, and sometimes, open contempt."

And "at the heart of this global trend is a crash in the value of truth", with honesty and accuracy no longer prized in such politics.

D'Ancona notes Trump figures quite a bit but clarifies his book is not about him or the the far right or any other ideology, but seeks to explore truth's "declining value" for society and its implications.

"If indeed we live in a Post-Truth era, where do its roots lie? What are its principal symptoms? And what can we do about it?" he asks and seeks to go to some quite unexpected areas to find the answers.

For its roots, he, tracing warnings from George Orwell in the age of totalitarianism, seeks to lay some culpability on Dr Sigmund Freud and his system of therapy giving primacy to emotions to the post-modernists and their attack on the notion of any objective reality.

But D'Ancona also shows how blame also lay in eroding trust in institutions spanning the governments, parliaments, big business (especially banks in 2008), media and experts of all stripes, which led to to "an uprising against the established order and a demand for ill-defined change".

And there was no shortage of politicians, to use this trust deficit- not only out of unscrupulousness but also of zealotry (sometimes closely linked to bigotry too) and the conviction they are right.

The symptoms of this phenomenon are too well known for anyone who follow the revolt against the status quo, seen most in the Brexit campaign and Trump's rise. D'Ancona is particularly scathing on the latter, terming him "a soiled Gatsby" or an entertainer with a talent for emotional narrative who has successfully "recast the presidency as the most desirable role in show business" and pointing how erroneous his statements are.

D'Ancona not only describes this "pernicious trend" of Post-Truth and its dangers but also calls on anyone who is worried about it not to sit passively for it to dispel but fight to defend respect for the truth, and rational, scientific thinking against its practitioners' "plutocratic, political and algorithmic firepower". He also offers a selection of strategies, ranging from vigilance to verification, and even satire, to confront it.

Ultimately it is up to us to determine if we want to think independently or allow someone's prejudices to determine our choices and future. IANS

Title: Post-Truth - The New War on Truth and How to Fight Back; Author: Matthew D'Ancona; Publisher: Ebury Press/Penguin Random House UK; Pages: 164; Price: Rs 399

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A world where the truth matters not - Mathrubhumi English

The post-truth age.

Title: Post-Truth - The New War on Truth and How to Fight Back Author: Matthew D'Ancona Publisher: Ebury Press/Penguin Random House UK Pages: 164 Price: Rs 399

Populists pandering to parochial identities, polarising multi-ethnic societies, posing extravagant claims but backtracking without any blushes after securing their objective (while the public doesn't seem to care), reversing rationalism, demonising dissent and blaming the other/outsiders for all ills. Welcome to the "Post-Truth" world where the truth is no longer an obstacle - and its very concept is contested.

But Donald Trump, the Brexiters, the climate change deniers, the anti-vaccination or anti-immigration crowd, even our own infallible leaders, and the like proliferating all around are consequences, not causes of the "Post-Truth" phenomenon.

And it is not only rooted to these people or issues, contends British political journalist Matthew D'Ancona, noting that even Trump's eventual departure from office will not mean its end since the phenomenon is not only a mere contest between two competing ideologies of the political spectrum.

Therefore it is necessary to know why it this different from politics so far, how did we get to such a state of affairs, and why should we care.

It is a new strain of politics, shows D'Ancona in this book, one which goes beyond the usual tactics of less than the full truth, exaggeration and hyperbole or spin seen so far but is far more worrying because of its unwholesome underpinnings, response of particularly credulous public and reach and impact of digital technology and social media which facilitate it.

"We have entered a new phase of political and intellectual combat, in which democratic orthodoxies and institutions are being shaken to their foundations by a wave of ugly populism. Rationality is threatened by emotion, diversity by nativism, liberty by a drift towards autocracy. More than ever, the practice of politics is perceived as a zero-sum game, rather than a contest between ideas. Science is treated with suspicion, and sometimes, open contempt."

And "at the heart of this global trend is a crash in the value of truth", with honesty and accuracy no longer prized in such politics.

D'Ancona notes Trump figures quite a bit but clarifies his book is not about him or the the far right or any other ideology, but seeks to explore truth's "declining value" for society and its implications.

"If indeed we live in a Post-Truth era, where do its roots lie? What are its principal symptoms? And what can we do about it?" he asks and seeks to go to some quite unexpected areas to find the answers.

For its roots, he, tracing warnings from George Orwell in the age of totalitarianism, seeks to lay some culpability on Dr Sigmund Freud and his system of therapy giving primacy to emotions to the post-modernists and their attack on the notion of any objective reality.

But D'Ancona also shows how blame also lay in eroding trust in institutions spanning the governments, parliaments, big business (especially banks in 2008), media and experts of all stripes, which led to to "an uprising against the established order and a demand for ill-defined change".

And there was no shortage of politicians, to use this trust deficit- not only out of unscrupulousness but also of zealotry (sometimes closely linked to bigotry too) and the conviction they are right.

The symptoms of this phenomenon are too well known for anyone who follow the revolt against the status quo, seen most in the Brexit campaign and Trump's rise. D'Ancona is particularly scathing on the latter, terming him "a soiled Gatsby" or an entertainer with a talent for emotional narrative who has successfully "recast the presidency as the most desirable role in show business" and pointing how erroneous his statements are.

D'Ancona not only describes this "pernicious trend" of Post-Truth and its dangers but also calls on anyone who is worried about it not to sit passively for it to dispel but fight to defend respect for the truth, and rational, scientific thinking against its practitioners' "plutocratic, political and algorithmic firepower". He also offers a selection of strategies, ranging from vigilance to verification, and even satire, to confront it.

Ultimately it is up to us to determine if we want to think independently or allow someone's prejudices to determine our choices and future.

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The world where the truth matters not (Book Review)- The New ... - The New Indian Express

Even the most skeptical people have had psychic experiences whether they rationalize it as coincidence or embrace that it was a psychic experience. In my personal experience as a witch and psychicthere isno such thing as coincidence but rather that of endless synchronicity.

When we view the world as purely coincidental, we blind ourselves to the magick that is contained withinour every day life and the messages that are being sent to us. It is through synchronicity that witches read omens, signs auguries. It is also through synchronicity that the right runes or tarot cards that drawn are the ones that are meant to be.

In Hermetics theres the axiom As above, so below; as below, so above. which is called The Law of Correspondence in the Kybalion.Which simply means that all things have a connection, agreement and correspondence to different planes. Hermeticism teaches that all things that occur in the physical realm also has a correspondence in the mental realm and the spiritual realm.

Carl Jung, the founder of Analytical Psychology was a man very interested in mysticism and occultism. His work was a major contribution to western occultism and the majority of his writings were exploring occult topics, religious ideas and mythological themes. Jung coined the theory of synchronicity, which he defined as an acausal (or related by meaning) connection of two or more psycho-psychic phenomena, which appear to be a coincidence on the surface.

The idea is that the universe via the Collective Unconscious is always trying to communicate to us psychic information throughsymbolism, including in the real world but that rationalism keeps us from understanding it. This idea of the Collective Unconscious is once again very similar to the Kybalions statements regarding the Law of Mentalism which states THE ALL IS MIND; The Universe is Mental. and The Universe is Mental held in the Mind of THE ALL. Especially when you pair that with theLaw of Correspondence.

He discovered this when was having a session he had with a psychotherapy client where she was talking about her dream of a golden scarab and the next day an insect flew into his window and after catching it, he found that it was a golden scarab. This was extremely unusual for his location and climate, however there it was! It seemed far too strange to be a coincidence. He thought about the historical symbolism ascribed to the scarab and realized that it was what she needed (symbolic death and renewal) to recover from her psychological ailments. This began his exploration of the concept.

Jung believed that behind all of these synchronicities, archetypal constellations were the key. An archetype is a primordial psychic image that serves as a model for a character, symbol or role that isinherently universal becauseit arises from the Collective Unconsciousness, which were all tapped into. The Collective Unconscious speaks through symbols that we have ascribed meaning to throughout our existence as a human species. The easiest examples arethe archetypes of the hero and the villain or friend or monster or healer or lover, which are all universal and everyone understands what type of character that is.

An archetypal constellation is when various elements begin to merge in the Unconscious Mind from the Collective Unconscious into patterned relationships externally for the Conscious Mind to assimilate and understand. This means that we can see a very observable link between these premonitions that seem to be coincidental and a direct message related to your experience and what you need to know.

Carl Jung was heavy into exploring the realm of dreams and the meanings behind them. He believed that the Collective Unconscious was speaking viasymbols through dreams. Heavy emphasis was placed on the interpretation of dreams and the archetypes and symbols within them to understand the messages that the individual was receiving. Many spiritual and mystical traditions around the world view the waking world as a dream or as having equal importance or validity to dreams.

By recognizing the synchronicity around us and acknowledging it, we begin to see patterns and themes. I believe that one should try interpreting synchronistic events in the same way that one would interpret dream symbolism. Doing so leads to a more open psychic state to the messages of the spirits, gods, ancestors, Higher Self and universe.

A talented psychic is an observant psychic, in this physical reality and others, constantly translatinginformation between realms, whether that be the physical, mental or spiritual planes. By paying attention to synchronicity you begin opening up those channels of language between different planes. So pay attention the next time a strange coincidence occurs within your life. Its an opportunity to open your lines of communication and guidance within your life.

Link:

Synchronicity & the Psychic Witch - Patheos (blog)

John Kaldor has been helping international artists transform Sydney since Christo and Jeanne-Claude wrapped the coast of Little Bay in 1969. In 2016, he and his team made it possible for Sydney artist Jonathan Jones to take-over part of the Royal Botanic Gardens with his ambitious public art project barrangal dyara.

Next up, Kaldor Public Art Projects has set its sights on Sydneys Observatory Hill, where Berlin based Albanian artist Anri Sala will be taking over the 105-year-old Rotunda with the world premiere of a new public art project inspired by the site and by Sydneys colonial history.

The subject of a major career survey at New Yorks New Museum in 2016, Sala is best known for works that engage with social and political histories. For the last 15-or-so years, hes been increasingly interested in music and sound as psychologically-charged mediums for evoking and reinterpreting the past.

From a distance, Kaldor Public Art Project 33 will look like business as usual; as you approach the Rotunda on Observatory Hill, however, youll hear the difference: orchestral music, and the sound of 38 snare drums. Suspended from the ceiling of the pavilion, with reflective mirror skins facing down, the snares will tap out an altered version of Mozarts Clarinet Concerto in A Major, in sync with a recorded track.

A site visit in 2012 inspired Salas project, titled The Last Resort. The artist became fascinated with the history of Dawes Point as a site of First Contact, and the conversations between lieutenant William Dawes (an astronomer with the First Fleet) and young Indigenous woman Patyegarang that led to the first European record of local Aboriginal language.

Mozarts Clarinet Concerto in A Major (K. 622), written in 1791, was chosen by Sala as an emblem of the European Enlightenment a movement directly related to colonial expansion, with its mantra of science, rationalism and progress.

Sala says: I look at [The Last Resort] like a musical artefact that we have thrown in the ocean the winds, the waves, the water currents take it one way and the other and it eventually reaches somewhere, though not as it originally started out, as it is transformed by the journey."

In other words: you should be able to recognise Mozarts original melodies within Salas new interpretation (one movement of the Concerto, for example, is altered so that the tempo changes according to recorded weather patterns of a voyage from Europe to Australia).

Premiering in October 2017, The Last Resort is five years in the making. John Kaldor first met Sala in 2011, and organised for him to visit Sydney in 2012 the same year as Project 25, by Thomas Demand: The Dailies. It was Demand who had suggested Kaldor look into Salas work. The original intention was to present Salas KPAP in 2013, but as Kaldor says, then Anri got selected to represent France at the Venice Biennale in 2013, and obviously he had to do that. And [his work Ravel Ravel Unravel] was one of the best things at the Biennale, it was fantastic.

Kaldor and Sala stayed in touch and kept bouncing ideas back and forth, until the artist asked Kaldor to find him a pavilion to work within, and the Observatory Hill site became available. Its a magnificent site, a great tourist destination, and the most beautiful view of the harbour expanse, says Kaldor. Its also the most elevated point in Sydney (at over 40m above sea level) and the site of Australias first observatory, administered by the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences (MAAS).

Anri is one of the most committed artists that Ive come across, says Kaldor. He did a lot of research, and contrasted what was happening in Australia when the First Fleet arrived in 1788 with what was happening in Enlightenment Europe at the time.

On KPAPs philosophy of taking over iconic Sydney sites, Kaldor says: If you do a project in the art gallery or a similar institution, people go there with certain expectations: to see art. But if you do it in strange places whether its in a church, or Bondi Beach people dont know what to expect. We get a completely different audience, which is exciting; an audience who is not necessarily looking to see art, but who encounters art unexpectedly.

The Last Resort will run from October 13 to November 5 at the Observatory Hill Rotunda, Millers Point.

Check out the best art in Sydney this month.

Dee is the Arts & Culture editor for Time Out Australia, which means on any given night shes probably seeing a show. She started out writing about film, and still fantasizes about finding a way to Have It All. Her favourite films includeWithnail and I,Picnic at Hanging Rock,The Big Lebowski,Chungking ExpressandBringing Up Baby. Her pet peeves include the dearth of interesting theatrical roles that are not straight white men, and unintelligible artist statements.

See more here:

An acclaimed international artist is taking over Sydney's Observatory Hill - Time Out Sydney (blog)

We still need time for the dust to settle before the outcome of the fight between populism and its opponents becomes apparent.

The tsunami of populism appears to have ebbed after Brexit and the election of Donald Trump, but there is still a long road ahead. The unseating of established political forces came fast and lasted a long time.

I recently listened to an excellent American thinker explaining what populism is and how it can be overcome. He was right in saying that its not enough for it to be defeated electorally.

Its imperative that the fight be won with reason, to convince the public that there truly is another way.

The power of populism is based on three myths:

-The myth of the people as victims. This has held since the first moments of the Greek crisis.

-The myth of the enemies of the masses. And there were convenient enemies right from the early days of the crisis as well, both foreign and domestic.

-The myth of the leader taking on the powerful as if they were some kind of monster to blame for the plight of the people. Alexis Tsipras responded to this sentiment by using them as scapegoats and its amazing that to this day you hear the phrase Hes trying but hes faced with beasts.

Populism is based on blaming the other for all the suffering a beleaguered society is experiencing. We Greeks have this entrenched in our DNA. We remember and always want to believe that were the ones being attacked but then we easily forget whos helped us.

For the fight to be won, three things are needed: Someone who can be the face of anti-populism who can convince people that they are not a relic of the past and who can tap not only into the mind but also the desires of every voter.

Anti-populist politicians must be reborn to have a shot in an unequal fight. Its also important to take full advantage of technology and means of communication.

Until recently, the advance of communication technology clearly favored populists. French President Emmanuel Macron has shown that with a little thought, the same tools, particularly social media, can be used as the weapons of responsible forces.

The American thinker ended on an excellent point, saying those who believe in liberal principals and rationalism must keep a clear mind and a stiff upper lip. There is really no other way to deal with the forces of populism.

As weve said, its not defeat at the polls thats important. What is important is that the battle of arguments is won and that there can be an ideological shift in Greek society.

In Greece, populism exists not just in places youd expect but also in political parties that supposedly represent the liberal, pro-European direction of the country.

Continued here:

The three myths of populism - Kathimerini

It can be easy to think that all the good ideas have already been thought; after all, philosophy have been going on for more than 2500 years. But that isn't true! There are still some genius philosophers out there, of course. Here, we give you ten living people with ideas worth learning about.

Noam Chomsky

One of the most cited philosophers of the modern age, Chomsky has written extensively on linguistics, cognitive science, politics, and history. His work has had an effect on everything from developmental psychology to the debates between rationalism and empiricism, and led to a decline of support for behaviorism. He remains an active social critic and public intellectual, including here on Big Think.

noam-chomskys-trick-for-avoiding-political-letdown-low-expectations

Colorless green ideas sleep furiously

Slavoj Zizek

Zizek is a modern Marxist who has commented extensively on culture, society, theology, psychology, and our tendency to view the world through the lens of Ideology. He has devoted a great deal of time to updating the idea of Dialectic Materialism. He is also a frequent Big Think contributor.

why-be-happy-when-you-could-be-interesting

Humanity is OK, but 99% of people are boring idiots.

Cornel West

Cornel is an American philosopher who focuses on politics, religion, race, and ethics. Hardly shy for the camera, West is often seen on television talk shows and even had a cameo in the Matrix films. His work has expanded on the ideas of W.E.B. Du Bois on more than one occasion, and continues to focus on the issues of being an Other in modern society. His Big Think videos can be found here.

cornel-west-love-and-justice-are-indivisible

The Enlightenment worldview held by Bu Bois is ultimately inadequate, and, in many ways, antiquated, for our time.

Martha Nussbaum

An American philosopher at the University of Chicago, Martha has written about subjects as diverse as ancient Greek philosophy, ethics, feminism, political philosophy, and animal rights. Along with Amartya Sen,she alsodeveloped the Capability Approach which inspired the United Nations Human Development Index.

Now the fact that Aristotle believes something does not make it true. (Though I have sometimes been accused of holding that position!)

Alasdair Macintyre

Alasdair Macintyre is a Scottish Philosopher who has written on ethics and morality, political philosophy, theology, and the history of philosophy. His most popular book, After Virtue, helped to fuel a resurgence in Virtue Ethics. His thought shifted from a Marxist view in his early work to one that combines his former Marxism with his new Catholicism and Neo-Aristotelian insights.

We are waiting not for Godot, but for anotherdoubtless very differentSt. Benedict.

Daniel Dennett

An American philosopher, cognitive scientist, and one of the so-called Four Horsemen of New Atheism. He has written on free will for decades, and supports the compatibilist view. He has also written on how philosophers think, explaining how the idea of the Intuition pump can both mislead and enlighten us. He also has very many interesting interviews with BigThink.

daniel-dennett-on-the-nefarious-neurosurgeon

The Darwinian Revolution is both a scientific and a philosophical revolution, and neither revolution could have occurred without the other.

Philip Kitcher

An analytic philosopher working at Columbia University, Dr. Kitcher has done extensive work on the philosophy of science itself. His work has focused recently on the criteria for good science, and the philosophy of climate change.

philip-kitcher-climate-science-is-there-any-room-for-skepticism

"A great scientific theory, like Newton's, opens up new areas of research... Because a theory presents a new way of looking at the world, it can lead us to ask new questions, and so to embark on new and fruitful lines of inquiry."

Peter Singer

A modern Consequentialist who puts his money where his ideas are. Author of The Life You Can Save, a book on how utilitarianism demands altruism from you right now, he went on to create an organization dedicated to the idea. He has also written on animal rights, and is a vegetarian. His stances on euthanasia and quality of life have been the cause of a great many protests over the years, often preventing him from speaking. His BigThink videos help explain his philosophy.

exploring-morality-and-selfishness-in-modern-times

We are responsible not only for what we do but also for what we could have prevented.

Amartya Sen

An Indian Philosopher and Nobel Prize Laureate who was worked for decades in welfare economics, capability theory, and on the questions of justice. He often writes on the need to view the implementation of philosophical ideals in degrees of success, rather than as existent or non-existent. His work went on to inspire Martha Nussbaum, and they continue to compliment each others work.

Democracy has to be judged not just by the institutions that formally exist but by the extent to which different voices from diverse sections of the people can actually be heard

Judith Butler

An American Philosopher who has written on gender, politics, ethics, the self, and cultural pressures. She developed the theory of Gender performativity, arguing that no gender exists beyond actions used to express a gender role. Her BigThink work can be found here.

your-behavior-creates-your-gender

There is no gender identity behind the expressions of gender; that identity is performatively constituted by the very "expressions" that are said to be its results.

Continue reading here:

10 Living Philosophers and Why You Should Know Them - Big Think

Andrew Winters Morning After the Storm

Art in the Twentieth Century opens at the Wiscasset Bay Gallery in Wiscasset on Saturday, July 8 and will continue through Friday, Aug. 4. The exhibition explores the pluralistic nature of the art world in the 20th century, with developing styles that include cubism, expressionism, realism, and abstraction.

Of particular note is a work by late German-American artist George Grosz executed in New York in 1936. Grosz was born in Berlin in 1893. He became an important member of the Dada movement and openly rejected the rising German nationalism during the second decade of the 1900s. The Dadaists sought to escape the rationalism and logic that they believed led to World War I. Bringing an experimental, playful, and even irrational approach to art, Grosz and the Dadaists sought a return to humans child-like nature.

After Grosz emigrated with his family to New York in 1933 because of his strong anti-Nazi sentiments, he became a teacher at The Art Students League of New York. A few years later, Grosz painted New York Skyline in his loose, ethereal style with calligraphic marks accenting the tugboat and Manhattan skyline.

Contrasting Groszs abstracted, spirited work is Andrew Winters Morning After the Storm. Rooted in a clear, realistic style and drawing on a dramatic event, the artist depicts four sailors on a cliff viewing the remains of their ship off the coast of Monhegan Island. Other significant 20th century paintings and sculpture include a large modernist oil, Woolwich Ferry Slip, by John Folinsbee, and a major bronze by William Zorach, of his daughter Dahlov Ipcar, titled Innocence.

The show also features drawings, watercolors, and oils by important international artists such as Paul Guiragossian, Andre Derain, Marc Sterling, Victor Vasarely, and Ossip Zadkine.

Wiscasset Bay Gallery is located at 67 Main St. in Wiscasset. For further information, call 882-7682 or go to wiscassetbaygallery.com. The gallery is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

More here:

New Wiscasset Bay Gallery Exhibition Opens July 8 - The Lincoln County News (subscription)

BRITANNIA: WE WHO ARE ABOUT TO DIE #3 by Peter Milligan and Juan Jose Ryp Plot Art Characterization

Summary

BRITANNIA: WE WHO ARE ABOUT TO DIE #3 splits its time equally between savage gladiator battles and an engaging mystery. The Ancient Roman detective, Antonius, gets to stretch his deductive legs. As the mysteries begin to unwind, BRITANNIA #3 picks up momentum and ends on a fantastic cliffhanger. However, the issue suffers from a lack of focus on the female character, Achillia. So far, this series has relegated her to the sidelines. BRITANNIA #3, written by Peter Milligan with art by Juan Jose Ryp, is no exception.

This issue begins with the evil Emperor Nero forcing Antonius and Achillia into the gladiator arena. Despite being outnumbered, the two warriors triumph. Achillia utilizes her blind ferocity while Antonius, in contrast, uses his deductive abilities to do away with his opponents. The scene reminded me of the bar brawl in Robert Downey Juniors SHERLOCK HOLMES. Antonius meticulously finds the details necessary to win. We get a real feel for how good a detective Antonius is, seeing him in a realm we have not seen him in before. The scene is not integral to the story, but it does flesh out Antoniuss character toward a new direction.

READ: Take a look at BLACK PANTHERTeaser: Why You Should Believe The Hype!

After the riveting fight scene, the issue continues with the ongoing mystery. The sons of Romes high society members are being killed by gods come to life. Antonius traces the clues back to Achillia. Their interaction, however, is brief as she sends him on an adventure. This is Achillias last appearance in BRITANNIA #3. It feels like the writer is pulling the rug out from under us. Hopefully, Achillia will have more time to shine in later issues.

Antonius and his partner/servant, Bran, travel deep into the catacombs to decipher what is really going on in the temples. The dynamic between the two characters is great. Bran is far more than just a bland, Watson-type figure to bounce ideas off of. He offers a different perspective that Antonius requires. The two complement each other well and the dialogue absolutely reflects this.

Antonius has always been a strict realist and pragmatic thinker. He believes that the supernatural always has an explanation, and superstitions are harmful. In previous issues, this rationalism gave Antonius an edge over his opponents. However, as the mystery becomes increasingly complex, Antonius begins to reject everything he knows to be true. Further, he learns his sons life is on the line and time is running out. Writer Peter Milligan does a great job of pushing this character to his limits.

READ: Here is KILL THE MINOTAUR #1 Review: Greek Mythology Revisited!

BRITANNIAs art has always excelled at portraying violence, but BRITANNIA #3 is a new high. The opening scene is a vicious gladiator battle with piles and piles of bodies cascading onto our hero. The renderings are so complex and detailed that the picture almost seems to be in motion. These arrangements give the impression of a detailed Renaissance painting, where multiple figures spiral into the center. Every page is a complex mosaic of blood and gore.

The most memorable aspect of this issue is Antonius trek into the haunted temples. The depictions of statues of gods coming to life are trippy and violent.The gods rip, tear, and scatter body parts like kids playing with silly putty. The more grounded ultra-violence found earlier in the book is expertly juxtaposed with these exaggerated dismemberments. Not only is this violence disgustingly beautiful, but it raises the stakes for our heroes. I would not want to see Antonius go out like that.

READ: Take a look at RETURN OF THE CAPED CRUSADERS The Deconstruction Of The Dark Knight!

Overall, BRITANNIA #3 is a well-crafted issue that perfectly balances the detective, action, and horror aspects readers love about BRITANNIA. However, the sparse interactions with Achillia are slightly disappointing. Hopefully, the creators are just trying to make us wait for her more involved role in the story.

Read more here:

BRITANNIA: WE WHO ARE ABOUT TO DIE #3 Review: Massacre in the Arena - ComicsVerse

So youve worked closely with Americas most famous atheist for two decades and decide to write a play. What would you choose to dramatize?

Well, how about imagining three other equally famous men a deist, a Christian anarchist and a skeptic who leaned strongly towards Unitarianism who are locked in a room thats not Hell but is definitely on the Other Side and have them try to figure out why theyre there? Oh, and make the title really long so people will remember it!

After a life-threatening illness, Scott Carter (longtime producer and writer for the acerbic Bill Maher) started working on a play about spirituality and chose these men: Declaration of Independence author and former President Thomas Jefferson, Victorian literary superstar Charles Dickens and the passionate, irascible author of War and Peace Leo Tolstoy. In The Gospel According to Thomas Jefferson, Charles Dickens and Count Leo Tolstoy: Discord (hereafter referred to as The Gospel) we are treated to a delightful character study of three extraordinary men thinly disguised as a philosophical debate about faith.

The play begins as the three men are thrust into a white walled room with a door that locks behind them, a table, three chairs and a mirror (the audience) as the fourth wall, a room that could easily be in the same neighborhood as the purgatorial bus stop C.S. Lewis created in his novel The Great Divorce. In Lewis book the recently deceased jostle and snarl at each other waiting for a celestial bus to take them to Heaven.

But in this room, where Leo (Dont call me Count) Tolstoy says the free thinkers are trapped like three Jonahs in a whales belly the disputes are mostly intellectual. Naturally, they dont like being locked up and want to find a way out and on. As the three captives exchange their stories it becomes clear they all were drawn to the original teachings of Jesus, to the point where each man developed his own version of the Gospel.

In the table drawer they find blank journals and pens Someone obviously wants them to use. So they get to work creating a new Gospel and quickly discover that they cant agree on much of anything.

Jefferson was the rational deist who famously wrote, it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg reason and free enquiry are the only effectual agents against error. He believed in a Supreme Being but not in the Trinity. Dickens was a publicly devout skeptic who often criticized what he saw as religious extremism in Britain. Tolstoy in his later years became an unorthodox Christian who based his beliefs in Christs message of nonviolence.

Can the three geniuses work together to get out of their impasse? Remember that they are all writers. Carter ensures its great fun to watch them try by having each man reveal contradictions in his spirituality. Jefferson was the defender of rationalism and moral sense who couldnt give up the six hundred slaves that ran his beloved home Monticello, even after death. Dickens and Tolstoys ambivalence about the class system in their countries was reflected in their own shaky marriages.

Gregory Isaacs cool veneer of self-confidence and unquestioned leadership as Jefferson keeps the more emotional outbursts of Dickens (Brian McCann) and Tolstoy (Andrew Criss) in check (at least for a while). McCann, who was the conniving Roman tribune Menenius in Lanterns splendid production of Coriolanus this season pushes hard on Carters view of Dickens as a clever, conceited self-promoter. Hes the spark of the production and fun to watch but Dickens was surely a more complex character than this preening egomaniac who spends much of his time trying to get a reaction from the tightly wound and self-righteous Tolstoy.

Director James Ljames, ubiquitous on the local theater scene as playwright, director and actor has the latters appreciation for giving each character a chance for big and small moments that resonate. Despite the seemingly cramped conditions of this small room packed with so much self-regard, Ljames has choreographed the actors well and they parade around and onto the table and chairs in a small but boisterous ballet of braggadocio and big ideas.

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'The Gospel According to Thomas Jefferson, Charles Dickens and Count Leo Tolstoy: Discord' now at Lantern Theater - Montgomery Newspapers

After Warsaw and Tehran, art collective Slavs and Tatars' "Mouth to Mouth" will be on show at Istanbul's SALT Galata until 10 p.m. tonight.

Taking place across three floors of the building, the exhibition will offer a tour in English earlier in the evening at 6 p.m.

"Mouth to Mouth" is Berlin-based collective Slavs and Tatars' first mid-career survey. It brings together the collective's works addressing cultural translation, shared linguistic heritage, and mysticism in contemporary societies.

Slavs and Tatars will have a lecture-performance titled "Al-Isnad or Chains We Can Believe In," where they trace complex genealogies of cultural slippages, religious traditions, and linguistic affinities. In Al-Isnad or Chains We Can Believe In, the Berlin-based collective invites the audience to look beyond the world order shaped by what priest and translator Charles de Foucauld called "secular rage."

A Franco-American oil dynasty in Houston, the Catholic Renewal, a Sufi mosque in Manhattan, and the Russian literary avantgarde all figure in the Slavs and Tatars' dense narrative around modernity, mysticism and the rise of site-specific art in the United States. Unexpected connections among them suggest that an alternative understanding of modernism is possible - one that can overthrow established institutional accounts and dare to operate beyond the framework of rationalism. The program will be held in English.

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Slavs and Tatars come to SALT Galata - Daily Sabah