One of my favourite human beings who I never met passed away on the 21st of November. What I loved about him was not only his art itself, but the extraordinary vision behind it. He’s also interesting, because his combination of talents
Hi, I’m Paul Snyders. Welcome to Large Ess Small Press. I have worked as a technician, educator, writer and art model, and now I write about friendship, love, work, art, heart and striving – and the sort of crazy pratfalls and misadventures
I am a strange pacifist – a throwback, really. The characters most like me in thinking, are now mostly in their eighties. It has always seemed obvious to me that to effectively oppose war, you have to study and understand it. This
Maybe it’s the coffee you’re drinking (top photo) Just a little less than five years ago now, I wrote that we would soon face a moment when one could be formally charged with committing a hate-crime, for objecting to a war crime.
Hi folks! Something a little bit different today (for a change – ha!) I have been drawing, making music and writing ever since I was a kid. There are years of my life when I did a lot more of one than
It has never been quite so hard to be understood. As an obsessive weirdo who has been deliberately trying to understand and reach more and more kinds of people for decades (which also means endlessly confronting my own foolishness and vanities) I
Bourgeois Gentleman-Pigeon (top photo) Hi folks, this is another one of those insights which is wonky, largely unwelcome, but very important all the same – which is to say – I’m sorry and you’re welcome in advance! Before I go any further
The image of a naked fat guy running through the streets of ancient (250? BC) Syracuse (Greece) may well stand forever as the punchline to the greatest science lesson in history. Part of it absolutely is the memorable silliness, but even more
I know a lot of other people who are sure that we will need much more than our present focus on indignation, to get through this angry and chaotic period of history, so I want to review a few things which are
Hi folks – here’s another big piece of anti tribalism and once again, I had to throw out a dozen versions before I found the angle needed. Here’s what makes this one especially tricky, the basic idea is so surprising that it
I really did not like Lindsay, nor was he in any way impressed with me – both for fair reason. He was an older man, the very model of restraint discipline and propriety – straight as straight could be. I was a
Human knowledge is all about making distinctions. In a funny way, we can look at most of our intellectual efforts (and by we I mean all humans through history) as a splitting of one bunch into two, after which each of those
I liked this one both for the stillness and peace in the composition – and also for the way that all the fast growing buds everywhere prove with certainty that it won’t look that peaceful for long. In fact, a wild colourful
I have had a lot of strange jobs. I’ve written about some of the important true things I learned working as a technician, which are still widely ignored (and in some quarters outright despised – like thermodynamics). I’ve also mentioned some curious
For a few decades now, many in the west have asserted that our feelings are of incredible importance. As an especially weird example, we have tried to teach self-esteem in the abstract, without also imparting competence and confidence – or delivering the
I am almost sixty now, and I have been obsessed with history ever since I was a kid. There has always been a lot of lying going on – especially from liars who are already very powerful, who want us to be
I have mentioned many times that I love a lot of people who would really hate each other. Because of this, I understand very clearly that no team on earth is being completely fair, honest or truthful about their description of whoever
I know I’m not the only one who finds it outright painful to watch the news, nowadays. So much obedience, conformity, foolishness, proud ignorance and hatred – and this creepy stuff can be found on every side of every subject you can
Hello friends! I had several ideas about how to approach an introduction for this podcast, but since I have compiled an unusually deep and rich trove of references this time, I will keep it shorter than my usual. My subject today is
I have several large projects about history, spirit, art and understanding underway right now. I am learning a great deal as I work on them, and try to resolve the many contradictions raised, and it feels as if I am making some
Message – as distinct from presentation (top photo) Over the last few years, I have spent a good bit of time and energy objecting to some of our most popular dehumanizing narratives. Some have been offended, and loudly insist that their own