Our Time:
1950 to current issues.
Between ancient wisdom and tomorrow’s light, we walk the path of truth, testing our ideas against reality.
Wisdom Mix.
Here are 10 random key ideas and takeaways.
1.
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The Founding Fathers inherited a morally charged colonial world, but their political genius was in trying to build a framework wide enough to hold deep differences without letting one religious mold rule them all.
Subject: Politics.
The Founding generation lived in a complicated time. Older Protestant moral instincts were still in the air, but they also pulled from Enlightenment reason, political realism, and growing pluralism. Their great achievement was not perfection. It was building a republic broad enough to soften older extremes and hold disagreement together.
2.
Quote.
- Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
- 1755.
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Five Thought Tools < TST Framework < Critical Thinking
Subject: Social Constructs.
A Social Construct is a shared non-natural belief; created and maintained by groups; and they shape reality.
3.
From History: 6 Dec 1865.
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After the Civil War, the 13th Amendment ended slavery as a legal institution in the United States.
Subject: Constitution.
The 13th Amendment abolished slavery, but it left one major exception: forced labor could still be used as punishment for a crime after conviction. That exception mattered. It ended chattel slavery, yet it also left a legal opening that shaped prison labor and later systems of coercion. Today we sill have forced prison labor including chain gangs.
4.
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Critical thinkers should judge the Republican Party under Trump by its behavior under pressure: does it protect cardinal virtues and is it bending toward authoritarian power.
Subject: Group Ethics.
Think well by judging movements by their actions, not their slogans. A party can hold legitimate conservative views and still fail ethically if it excuses lies, intimidation, election denial, or authoritarian methods. Under pressure, personal morality surfaces; with power, group ethics surfaces. That is the test.
5.
From History: 1903 to 1950, aged 46..
Orwellian Thought.
George Orwell wrote about how corruption starts when language is twisted, facts are manipulated, and authority demands loyalty over reality.
Subject: Orwellian Thought.
Born Eric Arthur Blair in British India, George Orwell wrote in English about how corruption starts when language is twisted, facts are manipulated, and authority demands loyalty over reality.
6.
Article summary.
.
Religions and belief systems are part of humanity’s attempt to explain life, meaning, morality, suffering, and the unknown. Always respect the believer, test the belief for yourself, and separate shared reality from personal worldview.
Subject: Bible.
Studying world religions should not make you arrogant or dismissive. It should make all of us more careful. Every person inherits a worldview, and every worldview carries a mix of insight, tradition, identity, speculation, and error. The open mind does not believe everything. It learns to sort claims with humility, evidence, and respect.
7.
Article summary.
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Impeachment is not a normal criminal trial. It is a constitutional political process designed to protect the public trust when federal officials abuse power, show corrupt character, or become unfit for office.
Subject: Impeachment.
Think well by slowing down before choosing sides. Impeachment was designed as a serious civic tool, not a partisan weapon or a team sport. The Federalist Papers remind us that public trust, character, corruption, and abuse of power matter—but so does caution against party passion replacing honest judgment.
8.
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Time entropy is the arrow of time seen through irreversibility: causes leave traces, energy spreads, and the past becomes written while the future remains open.
Subject: Time Entropy.
Time entropy reminds us that time is not a universal metronome ticking over reality. It is tied to change, causation, and irreversible traces. A glass shatters, heat spreads, memories form, and yesterday becomes evidence. The universe tells its story one page at a time, and the pages do not naturally unwrite themselves.
9.
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Historians and political scientists rank presidents for the history books, and they already rank Trump as the worst president.
Subject: Trump Administration.
It’s historians with the skill and knowledge that decide the rankings of presidential terms for all eternity. And they have already spoken with regard to Trump.
10.
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The Williams parable is about government. A response to the colonies in New England inacted the same restrictions they escaped.
Subject: Separation of Church and State.
Government should act like we all do on a ship. When on a ship out at sea, the captain is in charge and primarily concerned with a safe trip across the ocean. On any given ship will be a mix of religions, races, and worldviews. The captain must be concerned about safety and should allow all to practice whatever traditions they want so long as they don’t hurt others.
Done. Refresh for another set.
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(c) 2025-2026 TouchstoneTruth.
Writing and coding by Michael Alan Prestwood.
(c) 2025-2026 TouchstoneTruth.
Writing and coding by Michael Alan Prestwood.
