Recent Beyond Intractability Posts
Including Hyper-Polarization Posts
Posts by BI Section
Lists of recent posts are also available separately for each BI Section:
Hyper-Polarization Discussion Posts | Earlier Constructive Conflict Initiative Blog
Things You Can Do To Help | Conflict Frontiers | Conflict Fundamentals
Beyond Intractability in Context | Colleague Activities
- The Terrorism Warning Lights Are Blinking Red Again -- News that the US counterterrorism establishment is growing increasingly alarmed about the possibility that tensions swirling around Gaza will lead to renewed terrorist attacks in the West. -- Jun 22
- Can the Constitution Reconcile America? -- A first rate, must-read article defending the U.S. Constitution and its many mechanisms for forcing citizens to compromise and work together. -- Jun 22
- Massively Parallel Peace and Democracy Building Links for the Week of June 23, 2024 -- More useful and interesting reading from colleagues and others in allied fields. -- Jun 22
- Democratic Subversion - Part 2 -- Part 2 of 2 newsletters looking at an old, but eerily accurate, description of political events in the United States over the last ten-twenty years, explaining why we are well on our way to a destroyed democracy and what we can do about it. -- Jun 19
- Democratic Subversion - Part 1 -- Part 1 of 2 newsletters looking at an old, but eerily accurate, way of looking at the chain of political events that have done so much to undermine democratic societies in recent decades. -- Jun 17
- Massively Parallel Peace and Democracy Building Links for the Week of June 9, 2024 -- More links to interesting things we -- and our readers -- are reading. -- Jun 12
- Courage, the most important virtue -- An inspiring TED talk explaining the critical role courageous individual action plays in resisting tyranny and authoritarianism. -- Jun 11
- Change the System -- Many Americans agree, our political system is broken. Join forces with those working towards a more perfect American democratic system. -- Jun 11
- Talking with Friends and Family about the Election -- How should we deal with summer family visits when some of our relatives are "on the other side?" Like so many other things, "it depends." -- Jun 09
- Ayaan Hirsi Ali: We Have Been Subverted -- A look at how Russia's four-step subversion and destabilization strategy applies to the ongoing Israeli/Hamas crisis (and deteriorating support for Western values and democracy). -- Jun 09
- Boredom at the End of History, Part I -- From Francis Fukuyama, his thoughts about how well his "end of history" thesis has survived the test of time. -- Jun 09
- The Sins of the Educated Class -- A must read article that explains how the actions of today's highly educated, "knowledge" workers continue to inflame the populist right in ways that genuinely threaten the viability of modern society. -- Jun 08
- The Great Reset -- Peter Coleman suggests 8 steps that Columbia could follow to better understand what caused the chaos of last year, and how such conflicts can be conducted more constructively in the future. -- Jun 05
- Never Bet Against Democracy in the Long Run -- An important and timely reminder that, despite its many problems, democracy has enormous advantages over other systems of social organization. -- Jun 03
- Massively Parallel Peace and Democracy Building Links for the Week of June 2, 2024 -- Interesting readings from readers, colleagues, and journalists we are following. -- Jun 02
- Calling People Forward Instead of Out: Ten Essential Steps -- Excerpted from a book, "How We Ended Racism," this article explains that calling out leads to a cancel culture which is ineffective and further divides, while calling in is much more effective at addressing racism. -- Jun 02
- A New Centrism Is Rising in Washington -- A persuasive argument that the conventional wisdom is wrong. Rather than being divided and dysfunctional, the US government has quietly and successfully been able to address a wide range of issues. -- Jun 01
- Guy and Heidi Burgess's Thoughts on Memorial Day and Louis Kriesberg on Seeing a Way Out of The Gaza War -- A reflection of the meaning of Memorial Day to veterans and their loved ones, and to peacebuilders, and some thoughts on how the Gaza war might be ended. -- May 26
- How to Create a Society That Prizes Decency -- From David Brooks, an essay exploring practical things that we can do to cultivate basic decency -- a precondition for a democracy that works. -- May 24
- Massively Parallel Peace and Democracy Building Roles - Part 4 -- The last in a four-part series of MPP roles looking at those who help balance power so that everyone in society is treated fairly, and those who try to defend democracy from those who would destroy it. -- May 23
- MWEG's Media Literacy Toolkit -- A collection of materials from MWEG (Mormon Women for Ethical Government) on news consumption, misinformation, bias, conspiracy theories, propaganda, and more. -- May 19
- Massively Parallel Peace and Democracy Building Links for the Week of May 19, 2024 -- Another in our weekly set of links from readers, our colleagues, and others with important ideas for our field. -- May 19
- The Authoritarians Have the Momentum -- A must-read analysis explaining why authoritarians are enjoying so much success in their struggle against liberal democracies (and what might be done about it). -- May 18
- Massively Parallel Peacebuilding Roles - Part 3 -- Part 3 of a 4 part series examining the many roles played by participants in Massively Parallel Peace and Democracy Building. This newsletter focuses on those who help us analyze complex problems and develop collaborative solutions. -- May 17
- Crisis, Contradiction, Certainty, and Contempt -- Columbia Professor Peter Coleman, an expert on intractable conflict, reflects on the intractable conflict occurring on his own campus, suggesting "ways out" that would be better for everyone. -- May 13
