coming soon…
In 1976 Lieutenant General Sir John Glubb published an essay called “The Fate of Empires”. In it Glubb suggests at least two ideas that are influential today. The first is that all empires have a lifespan of 250 years, which corresponds to about 10 human generations. The second is that empires have six stages. The…
Arabian Sands is a classic c20th account of physical endurance by Wilfred Thesiger, one of the great adventurers. The book describes Thesiger’s travels across the Empty Quarter on the Arabian Peninsula. It was published more than 60 years ago but the writing is understated, with short sentences. This simultaneously makes it feel modern, and is…
Adventure is inconsistent with liberalism today, according to the Portuguese writer and political thinker Bruno Maçães. In conversation with Tyler Cowen in 2018, he discusses how modern Liberalism implies too much control, that it includes the idea of a life plan. Modern Liberalism presumes that we know all the answers so we can spend lots…
“Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise; seek what they sought” Matsuo Bashō Reading books about other people forces us to think about our relationship with those people and their actions. When people seek adventure, what are they actually searching for? And when we read their books, how should we respond?…