Writer and philosopher

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Politics, Trust

How Brexit Was Scuppered By a Lack of Trust

In an extract from my forthcoming book Blockchain Politics, I describe how social and political trust are essential for cross-party, multi-electoral projects which chart a nation’s …

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Computing/Internet, Politics, Trust

Trustworthy Supply of Information

In an extract from my forthcoming book Blockchain Politics, I describe the characteristics of a trustworthy supplier of information or news. These characteristics don’t seem …

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Politics, Uncategorized

The MAGA Philosophy in 5 Minutes

For anyone confused by the MAGA philosophy, its foundations were neatly encapsulated over 50 years ago in 5 minutes, 7 seconds of music by the …

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Politics, Trust

Norms, the Elites and the Defence of the Realm

In my forthcoming book Blockchain Politics, I try to debunk the excessive pessimism of a recent book review by The Economist’s Free Exchange columnist. The …

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Politics

Why Am I Reminded of the Hitler-Stalin Pact?

I’m not sure any country, however troubled, has fallen from democracy to gangster state in such a short period of time. It’s too early to …

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Literature

The Rediscovery of Cledwyn Hughes

I am thrilled that the mercurial Anglo-Welsh writer Cledwyn Hughes is being rediscovered; particularly happy as I am his son-in-law. Partly thanks to the efforts …

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Politics

Guns Before Butter?

The left is keen to sever connections with the gangsterish new American administration, de Gaulle-style. Indeed – at a minimum, Europe must be able to …

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Politics

Peace and Betrayal

The outlines for peace in Ukraine have been clear for a couple of years now – unsatisfactory, but the only sustainable solution. It needed muscle …

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Politics, Trust

The Puritans and the Peasants

The opening of my forthcoming book with Edward Elgar, Blockchain Politics, setting the scene for its analysis of trust in the context of the zealotry …

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Politics

Lessons From Vance’s Watershed Speech

J.D. Vance’s Munich speech seems to have shocked everyone, but it shouldn’t have. His attack on Europe, presumably cleared with his boss (or at least …

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AI, Politics

5 AIMS Become Visible at Paris AI Summit

In recent weeks, Wendy Hall and I have begun to adapt our ideological/geopolitical view of Internet governance, which we expressed in our book Four Internets, …

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Politics, Trust

Blockchain Politics

I’m very excited to see my forthcoming new book, Blockchain Politics: Ideology and the Crisis of Social Trust, appearing on the website of the publishers, …

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