Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Hari Kondabolu Brings Humor and Hope to the Trump Era

    Hari Kondabolu Brings Humor and Hope to the Trump Era

    Photo Credit: Yoon Kim During the days of the Trump presidency, stand up comedy has, in many ways, become a  tool to comprehend our political frustrations as much as it has been an escape from them — and one comedian we can thank is Hari Kondabolu. It’s business as usual for the Queens, New York,…

  • Clean and Sober: Recovery After Suboxone

    The opioid trail is a long difficult road. I appreciated Felice Freyer’s article in the Aug. 19 edition of the Boston Globe, which was about getting help for opioid addiction in Massachusetts. I am a person with a Substance Use Disorder in “remission.”   It took me a long time to get where I am. I’m 72…

  • Ayanna Pressley Urges People to Vote and Pine Street Inn Registration Drive

    Ayanna Pressley Urges People to Vote and Pine Street Inn Registration Drive

    Ayanna Pressley. File Photo Boston City Councilor and Democratic Congressional Candidate Ayanna Pressley spoke at a Pine Street Inn voter registration forum on Oct. 10, to encourage homeless people to vote. Pine Street Inn, an organization which provides housing, food and job training for people experiencing homelessness, addressed misconceptions about voting rights and helped  people…

  • Letter From Utuado, Puerto Rico

    You once said “My reward for this life will be a thousand pounds of dirt shoveled in my face.” You were wrong.   You are seven pounds of ashes in a box; a Puerto Rican flag wrapped around you next to a red brick from the house in Utuado where you were born, all crammed…

  • A Back Bay memorial honors the founder of Rosie’s Place

    On the sunny fall Saturday afternoon of Oct. 6, hundreds of people gathered in Back Bay to view the unveiling of an art sculpture that honored Kip Tiernan, founder of the women’s shelter Rosie’s Place. The sculpture consists of three arches that stand about 12 feet tall, with Tiernan’s quotes engraved into the piece for…

  • Guitarist Billy Martin of Good Charlotte discusses band’s new album, Generation Rx

    Guitarist Billy Martin of Good Charlotte discusses band’s new album, Generation Rx

    Good Charlotte hits Worcester on Tuesday, Oct. 23. SCN spoke with Billy Martin, far left, about their newest album. Photo: Ville Juurikkala. For nearly 20 years, Pop-Punk quintet Good Charlotte has used their talents to focus on the little things. Now in 2018, inspired by the death of an artist on the rise, they’re shifting…

  • Brett Kavanaugh and Why Consequences Matter

    Brett Kavanaugh and Why Consequences Matter

    The idea that we are held accountable for our actions is not a new concept. It’s been grafted into children and teenagers by their parents, teachers, mentors and leaders. While it is not a new or radical idea, it certainly does not stop young people, or even older people for that matter, from making mistakes.…

  • Different perspectives: “Repicturing Homeless” photo project shows homeless people in a new light

    Different perspectives: “Repicturing Homeless” photo project shows homeless people in a new light

    Karl Heinz on the streets. Photos by Frank Schemmann, Getty/Havas Clothes make the man, and the vendors over at fiftyfifty, a fellow street paper, had the chance to experience this principle first-hand as the subjects of an unusual photo shoot. Advertising agency Havas collaborated with the world’s leading photo agency Getty Images to create a completely…

  • With Kavanaugh confirmation, the Senate fails women again

    With Kavanaugh confirmation, the Senate fails women again

    I’ve gone through a lot of emotions while coming to grips with what went down in Washington last week, with the Supreme Court confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh. First, I know what it feels like to have something brought up  from the past when you were a stupid kid. It happens to me everytime I go…

  • Texas Woman Faces Prison For Voting

    Texas Woman Faces Prison For Voting

    Crystal Mason. Illustration by Gary Myrick Voting has more power than you’d think. Crystal Mason will never forget the ballot she cast in the 2016 presidential election. But the Texan shouldn’t have been anywhere near a polling station, even though she was hearing different. “My mom was like, ‘Go vote. Go vote. Go vote,’” she said.…

Got any book recommendations?