Essays by Larry Barnett
What is self, and how will you know if you know it? are unanswered questions that have been the subject of endless discussion, from esoteric religious thought to reductionist scientific rationalism. Who is looking, and who is found? Even asking such paradoxical questions seems to require multiple… Read the rest
If you’re wondering why modern life seems dominated by discussion of fiscal cliffs, taxes and money, look no further than the origins of Western civilization. For roughly 10,000 years, civilization … Read the rest
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” So reads the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights, one complete sentence expressing a complete thought. Despite grammar and punctuation which clearly… Read the rest
Time can be visualized as a branched structure of causes and outcomes, beginning with interactions between the simplest subatomic particles all the way up to the current composition of the cosmos. All that exists and has ever existed is interconnected by this vast array of branched history. A limited… Read the rest
Because we are imaginative and creative, people naturally idealize situations, others and ideas. When we idealize, we elevate something and imbue it with a sense of perfection. When we idealize love, virtue, compassion, truth, beauty… Read the rest
Buddhists believe that within the circle of Samsara into which we are born there are six realms, one of which is the god realm. Classically, the god realm is one in which bodiless beings experience total satisfaction for 1,000 years, only then to run out of merit and find themselves… Read the rest
When a natural event like Superstorm Sandy wreaks havoc and destruction it provides an opportunity to reflect on our preoccupations and priorities and how out of whack they so often are. Disaster strikes and suddenly we realize what’s truly precious; it’s not American Idol, the latest iPad … Read the rest
All objects are devoid of inherent meaning, which is to say for example, a chair is not a chair except in the mind of the perceiver. To a squirrel, a chair is simply something namelessly convenient upon which to settle while cracking a black walnut; it has… Read the rest
As income inequality continues to grow in America, with millionaires and billionaires increasing their record-setting ownership of the nation’s wealth, the sharp divide between haves and have-nots played-out in the reelection of Barack Obama. Despite record-setting expenditures, the haves… Read the rest
Charles Darwin introduced the concept of natural selection to describe the mechanism of evolution and the ways in which life on earth reflects a continuum of time and change. His theory challenged generations of belief in an absolute, immutable order of existence, and in his own way,… Read the rest
Sitting in the hot tub watching the afternoon wind whip a flag flying atop a 40-foot bamboo pole in my garden, I thought about waves. Flags wave in the wind, a convergence of weight, length, wind speed, and air turbulence. If the right… Read the rest
Roughly 500 years ago, Johannes Gutenberg introduced moveable type and the modern book was born. Gutenberg hoped that his invention would make the Bible more available and help sustain and enlarge the Catholic faith, but ironically… Read the rest
Acre for acre, natural rainforests contain more biological diversity than any other place on earth, both plants and animals. The rainforest is the likely mother of us all.
Only a small fraction of the many rainforest species are identified, yet modern civilization is systematically destroying the… Read the rest
Both Presidential candidates are convinced that getting people back to work is the most essential ingredient in improving the American economy. This is, of course, true; more people working means more money consumption, more taxes to be collected, and more profits to be earned. The folly in this, … Read the rest
I recently accompanied my wife as she traveled to Minnesota for her 50th high school reunion. It’s not easy being a reunion “spouse” while a group of 68-year-olds reexamine their senior year neuroses.
Being a reunion spouse is a lot like being nobody.
I opted out … Read the rest
Industrialization is grinding the planet to dust, pollution radically changing our climate, population increasing to unsustainable levels, disease and poverty continue to spread and politicians worldwide bicker foolishly over non-issues; … Read the rest
While on vacation recently my wife and I were in no mood to search high and low for the best restaurant in Chicago and decided to eat as close to our hotel as possible. The day had been long and the temperature hot…one sign I read said 102 degrees. We’d spent the day visiting a 160-year-old farm that … Read the rest
Package labeling has become the art of deception, the intentional use of language to confuse and deceive the consumer. This is particularly obvious as food companies seek to exploit the organic food movement, currently the fastest-growing segment of the food industry, but the cosmetic and pharmaceutical… Read the rest
I remember sitting in our family living room as my father turned and folded pages, snapping and creasing the newsprint as he made his way through every section. Meanwhile, my mother would work across and down, completing the crossword puzzle with a pen. Growing up with … Read the rest
I was sitting on the couch with granddaughter Isabelle listening to her talk about numbers the other day – how ten is a bigger number than one, that one-hundred is even bigger, and that a million is even bigger than that. Suddenly she blurted out “infinity!” My mind stopped for an instant;… Read the rest