Ashok Karra - Encouragement

james baldwin

On James Baldwin's Letter to Angela Davis

When it comes to moral truth, the fundamental question is whether one has the perspective to understand what is said.

education

Remarks for OC Oraciones' 3rd Issue Launch Party

We are here to remind ourselves that nothing has to be the way it is.

american politics

The Spirit of "We the People"

In this age of unchecked hubris, "We the People" suffers not only from neglect but apostasy.

poetry

Matsuo Bashō, "A caterpillar / this deep in fall"

Our online presence destroyed "for sale: baby shoes, never worn" and William Carlos Williams' "This Is Just To Say."

poetry

Kobayashi Issa, "Yellow Autumn Moon"

The fullness of life stretches toward night.

american politics

On Ignorance

...I mean bullshit in the technical, Harry Frankfurt sense. It is not merely lies we can disprove. It aims to distract, to overwhelm, to delegitimize.

poetry

Paul Hoover, "To the Choirmaster"

What is the relation between belief and knowledge?

american politics

On Policing in America

The key statistic you need about cops is this: cops solve 2% of all major crimes.

poetry

Tomas Tranströmer, "Kyrie"

What is it like when everyone yearns for a taste of the miraculous, abandoning anyone not part of the throng?

blogging

Encouragement 2025 Year in Review

This was a long year. I had less than ideal health in January – I was briefly unable to swallow water – and I lost my father in early February.

poetry

Sappho, "And I said" (tr. Mary Barnard)

I imagine Sappho's sacrifice of a goat messy in more than one way, as she wants a god to cure her inner turmoil.

poetry

Sappho, "I asked myself" (tr. Mary Barnard)

Our age shuns unfocused activities: we tell 14 year olds they must promptly choose a career and stick to it.

poetry

Sappho, "Standing by my bed" (tr. Mary Barnard)

I am certain if Emily Dickinson were alive today, she would be an extremely horny Tumblr power user.

Sappho, "We shall enjoy it" (tr. Mary Barnard)

So here's Sappho declaring "We shall enjoy it." A command, a wish, a pledge to and of the audience.

philosophy

Lesson Plan for Beginning Heidegger's Introduction to Metaphysics

Our concern is with Heidegger and political philosophy. To that end, we want to know what is at stake in questions of being.

poetry

Sappho, "Tell everyone" (tr. Mary Barnard)

"I shall / sing beautifully for / my friends' pleasure."

american politics

To love your neighbor is to love America

The freedom to hurt others is not true freedom.

poetry

Kay Ryan, "All Your Horses"

We are brought into the thick of a crisis, one with nearly imperceptible beginnings but severe consequences.

american politics

You should read Tatiana Schlossberg's "A Battle with My Blood"

American history is full of remarkable documents, ones with a sacred aura compelling reverence from readers.

american politics

Hunger in the Permian Basin

In order to love your neighbor, you have to know you have neighbors.

education

After the Conference

You do lots, it's all productive, everyone gains, there's so much to celebrate. Time slows down.

education

Democratic Erosion and Ungrading at the 2025 Northeastern Political Science Association Meeting

Education is a responsibility to your community.

heidegger

2025 NPSA Paper Presentation: Heidegger, Antigone, and Authenticity

Like many of you, I'm thinking and teaching about what comes next.

american politics

On Federalism

Federalism is an old solution to a perennial problem.

education

Remarks for Introducing Sigma Kappa Delta, Psi Alpha Chapter's "Falloween" Event

Gathering in today's day and age is an activity which can receive mild disapproval, if not outright hostility.