East of Eden - John Steinbeck

Is it possible to throw off the weight of generational trauma? Are the lives of Cain and Abel a forced responsibility of the generations that came before?

Lee Kuan Yew - Graham Allison

What is the analogous skill set of a politician and a chess grandmaster? How can the moderate members of a community rein in their more extreme peers? Why make an ideology that has no problem with mutual destruction? Does the fly stinging the bull justify the ruined china plates?

Boredom - Alberto Moriava

Is someone who is existentially bored cursed by familial wealth? Is interrogation a form of aggression — on what side? — is it for the asker or the answerer’s satisfaction? If cruelty wasn’t an effective cure to boredom, would we still do engage in it?

Existential Counseling - Emmy Van Duerzen

Anxiety is guaranteed, security is not. How must we proceed? As we get closer to others, why do they become a mirror instead of a painting? What are you willing to give up security for? — and when will you realize you gave nothing up?