The European Union in Search of Itself: An Interview with Amb. Dr. Wolfgang Petritsch
When I entered the renowned Viennese café Prückl to interview Austrian retired diplomat Wolfgang Petritsch, he was already sitting at a small table. Hidden...
Dragon Stones of the Highlands: How Armenia’s Forgotten Vishapakars Are Rewriting Bronze Age History
Across the high ridges of the Armenian Highlands, where the wind cuts sharply through the grasslands and the sky feels impossibly close, enormous basalt...
Borrowed Words: The Everyday Violence of an Imposed Language
“I speak only one language, and it is not my own.”
This paradox, articulated by Jacques Derrida, serves as a poignant entry point into the...
Would Karl Marx Buy a Labubu? Brain Rot and the 21st Century
The phenomenon of “Brain Rot” is one of great intrigue for an analysis of the larger psycho-social movements of the 21st century. Amidst the...
Laicus: People, Religion, State
Laicus is a Latin word that means “of the people”, meaning common people and not of the clergy. This is where the French term...
The Poetics of Suffering: “ —Hypocrite lecteur, —mon semblable, —mon frère !”
It is “Au lecteur”, to his reader, that Baudelaire dedicated his 1857 anthology Les Fleurs du mal. The corrupt and shadowy corners of Parisian...
The High Cost of Looking Away: How Motivated Ignorance Fuels Authoritarianism
In times of crises—whether personal or societal—we as humans tend to avoid information in order to protect our self-beliefs and identity, consciously or subconsciously....
The Height Of Madness: The Tale of the World’s Highest Battlefield
Nestled between the world’s largest mountain range at 21,000 feet is “the Land of Abundant Roses”, or “Siachen”, a glacier in the Kashmir region...
Dangerous Connections: Social Media, Tourism and the Taliban’s Efforts to Rebrand Afghanistan
In an effort to reshape global perception of their rule, the Taliban use social media and tourism to present a sanitised image of Afghanistan....
More Than Faith: Christianity as the Cultural Bedrock of Europe
In November 2024, the Finnish Baroque Orchestra and the Helsinki Chamber Choir were confronted with a shocking decision by a school principal. Their performance...
