Hi and welcome! If you're on this page, you're looking at a high level, incomplete, work in progress view of who I think I am as well as some context on that.
At my core, I am driven by a few simple values:
- Empathy
- Humanism
- A desire for a just world
- An understanding of oppression and intersectionality
- Determinism
I grew up in an incredibly lucky and privileged situation where I was able to be exposed to many different perspectives. I was raised see many sides of many coins, and that has strongly influenced the values above. I grew up with two moms (later divorced, one later transitioned): one Jewish, one Palestinian. I attended a rich, high quality independent private school but grew up with little money beyond that which provided my essentials. I was raised around strong activism in support of oppressed minorities but presented as a straight, white, cis, male. I was always taught was to care about and stand up in the face of injustice, and I was given the tools to understand what justice is.
From these values, I have always been drawn to philosophy, despite its flaws. I want to help to bring about a world that can take the value from the field and use it practically to empower and aid in real change and justice.
I create software sometimes. I believe technology is a tool and it is much more important how you use it than optimizing your skill level with said tool.
I'm a huge city lover. I try to see as many as I can and enjoy looking at the ins and outs. Mildly keep up with urban planning and the like. A NUMTOT before it was mainstream :)
I love media in all forms and mediums and think its effect on culture cannot be overstated. My favorite mediums tend to be:
- Television
- Movies
- Art, Books, and Music
I catalog my influences in many ways linked above, but here are some of my favorites from various categories:
- Philosophers: John Rawls, Simone De Beauvoir, Jean Paul Sartre, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Aristotle, Iris Young, Hannah Arendt
- Books: Kurt Vonnegut (Slaughterhouse Five, Player Piano, and Sirens of Titan among others), The Power, At The Existentialist Cafe, A People's Future Of The United States, Brave New World, Alice Isn't Dead, 1Q84
- TV: Watchmen, Tuca and Bertie, Bojack Horseman, Fleabag, The Good Place, Devs, The OA, Hacks, Steven Universe, The Politician, Ted Lasso, The Pitt
- Movies: Everything Everywhere All At Once, Sorry To Bother You, Grand Budapest Hotel, Sinners, Parasite, Poor Things, The Boy and the Heron, The Matrix, Triangle of Sadness
- Music: Lorde, Lucy Dacus, Foxing, boygenius, Chappel Roan, Maggie Rogers, Hippo Campus, Bleachers, Mitski, Manchester Orchestra, The Hotelier, The Wonder Years
- Comedians: Hannah Gadsby, Chris Fleming, Caleb Hearon, Bo Burnham