Paris – The Poet Economist

January 14, 2015

Charlie Hebdo Tragedy Turns into Global Commitment to Human Liberty

The three days of attacks that began with the massacre at the headquarters of the satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo have made clear the limits of violence as a weapon of social change. We often treat the threat of terrorism as if our liberty were in the balance, as if the rule of law were vulnerable to the whims and hatred of lunatic extremists. But the people of France are demonstrating forcefully that civil society, open democracy, and freedom of personal and interpersonal expression, will not yield to hate and murder.

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January 11, 2015January 18, 2015

Charlie Hebdo Tragedy Turns into Global Call for Solidarity

The three days of attacks that began with the massacre at the headquarters of the satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo have made clear the limits of violence as a weapon of social change. We often treat the threat of terrorism as if our liberty were in the balance, as if the rule of law were vulnerable to the whims and hatred of lunatic extremists. But the people of France are demonstrating forcefully that civil society, open democracy, and freedom of personal and interpersonal expression, will not yield to hate and murder.

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December 28, 2014

Respect is a Catalyst for Success

[ The Note for December 2014 ]

Politics is hard. Making policy that appeals to a wide range of political actors, stakeholders, and related interests, is by some people’s estimation functionally impossible. But at the heart of every legitimate political endeavor, there is the core insight that in its most expansive sense, what is of real interest to humanity anywhere is of real interest to humanity everywhere. We are connected by certain shared truths. We require certain sustenance to facilitate our survival, and we are all vulnerable to the forces of nature and of human violence. We have a transcendent, reciprocal interest in humane policy processes that protect life-giving systems. Working with people of all views and from around the world, on something as complex as climate, I have witnessed firsthand to what degree respect is the most effective strategy for building up the possibility of effective outcomes.

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June 3, 2008

Exposición SUPERDOME en Le Palais de Tokyo, París, Explora la ‘Doctrina del Shock’

Recién inaugurada en el Palais de Tokyo, en París, Francia, ‘Superdome’ explora el sufrimiento humano vinculado con situaciones donde el desastre se sigue con transformaciones socio-económicas de escala casi incomprensible. La exposición concentra su atención temática en la situación que encontraron los habitantes de Nueva Orleans, cuando el huracán “Katrina” y su consecuente desintegración cívica los desplazaron hacia un caos tormentoso, su entorno físico devastado, forzados a llevar el peso extraño de ver cómo se borró la geografía económica de su ciudad para ser reemplazada por algo desconocido.

El tema de conversación que se escuchaba con frecuencia en la boca de los invitados en la noche del estreno era si se pudiera averiguar cualquier hilo unificador entre los 5 distintos espacios que formaban parte de la exposición. Un elefante equilibrándose sobre su trompa, un cañón de aire que tira botellas de cerveza a 600 km/hora, una sala llena de los escombros de un desastre, relojes antiguos de péndulo, una exploración del “Lado Oscuro”, un puzzle gris de alfombra que significa o inclusión o exclusión, la familiaridad o la diferencia.

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