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BLOG: ADAM LEHODEY

  • Adam Lehodey
  • February 2024
  • Medium

Andy Warhol and the Masterpiece of Consumption

Capturing an epoch

In a world where Andy Warhol is synonymous with contemporary art and a single one of his paintings sells for hundreds of millions of dollars, it is hard not to have an opinion on his work. My goal: to make the case that Warhol’s works are indeed masterpieces of art...

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2024
  • Medium

Government, tech, and the outsourcing of virtue

Virtue cannot be abdicated to the state

In response to social media addiction, substance abuse and obscene online content, we increasingly look to government and big-tech to regulate excess. Yet this abdication of virtue to government cannot continue and will have very dangerous consequences if it does.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • October 2023
  • Medium

The Case for Virtue

Striving for excellence and balance

In choosing virtue, one opens the door to a fuller, more complete and fulfilling life. This essay is an unapologetic defence of Aristotelian virtue.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • September 2023
  • Medium

Decoding the Self

An exploration through Paul Auster's City of Glass

What does it mean to be yourself? The answer is more than just the physical - the self is a narrative that one creates around their life, constantly shifting and evolving over time. Below I explore this theme through the lens of Paul Auster's City of Glass.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • April 2023
  • Medium

Voyage to another country: L.P Hartley's The Go Between

Analysis and notes

If the past is 'a foreign country,' L.P. Hartley's The Go-Between is a first class ticket on that voyage. Read my notes and analysis on Hartley's acclaimed novel.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • April 2023
  • Medium

Morocco and notes as a global citizen

Memories from an amazing trip

I wanted a reminder of the endless possibilities of life; an adventure and a radically different experience. In Morocco, I found all of these things.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • March 2023
  • Medium

Into the complex world of Mrs Dalloway

Critical analysis of Woolf’s masterpiece

'What Virginia Woolf created, in Mrs Dalloway, is not so much a novel but a rich canvas of life in post-World War I London.' Explore the context, ideas and impacts of Woolf's seminal work.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • October 2022
  • Medium

Lessons from the twentieth century for the twenty-first

A re-examination of events.

It may be almost a quarter of a century since the twentieth century drew to a close and we crossed over into the then unknown frontier of the twenty first, though a careful examination of history reveals that many of the origins of today’s problems can be found in the twentieth century.

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  • Adam Lehodey et al.
  • October 2022
  • Storymaps

Towards the metaverse

The next frontier?

The metaverse has been hyped. A lot. This long-read essay collection, a collaboration with other students for a class project, explores the nature, potential, and opportunities that the metaverse presents.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • October 2022
  • Medium

A world where only money matters

Comparative analysis of Ellis’ American Psycho and Amis’ Money

We live in a world of hyper-consumption, constantly defining ourselves by our position relative to others and the extent to which we consume. An analysis of these two important works of literature gives us a gimpse of the implications of this.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • August 2022
  • Friedmanomics

The troubled foundations of Rishinomics

Sunak's leadersip plan contains many flaws

A successful political campaign has two ingredients: (1) a message that is coherent, and (2) a message that is sound. Unfortunately for Rishi Sunak, ‘Rishinomics’ delivers on neither of these...

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • July 2022
  • Medium

On the road: stories from an American adventure

Memories from the summer

Travelling, including 2000 miles of hitchhiking, across the United States for the past few weeks has been an incredibly eye-opening experience. I have had so many adventures, heard so many stories, and met so many great people, that I decided to document it all in writing.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • June 2022
  • Medium

Politics: when it works and when it doesn't

On the merits and demerits of political decision making

Political decision making appeals to activists, politicians and voters because it is quick and visible. Yet if we are to continue living in a free and open society, it is essential that we examine the merits and demerits of political decision making.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2022
  • Medium

Critique of Debt: the first 5000 years

This popular book has many flaws

I was previously unacquainted with the field of ‘economic anthropology,’ and it was therefore with interest that I picked up David Graeber’s ‘Debt: the first 5000 years.’ Read my thoughts and critiques below.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2022
  • Adam Smith Institute

Billionaires have the right to exist

Claudia Webbe's attack on billionaires is baseless

Claudia Webbe, the Member of Parliament for Leicester East, recently restated her dislike for billioniares in a series of tweets. Her comments are underpinned by a number of fallacies.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2022
  • Medium

Tender is the Night

Analysis, thoughts and ideas

The sprawling and complex novel explores mental illness, the ephemerality of our experiences, but also the metamorphosis of individual relationships. For me, it is Fitzgerald's best work.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2022
  • Adam Smith Institute

Fracking can play an important role in lowering energy costs

The Government should revisit its policy on hydraulic fracturing

When energy costs rise, people feel the hit directly. Not only do their own energy bills go up, but so too does the price of food, electronics, and almost all other goods. Hydraulic fracturing could be the answer.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • November 2021
  • Medium

A Letter to Great Britain

An incredible place.

There is no greater pleasure than returning home to a place you love. For me, that is Great Britain, the place of dreams and opportunity...

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • October 2021
  • 1828

Levelling up risks becoming Levelling Down

There are flaws to the Government's current policy

We are at risk of ‘levelling up’ becoming a proxy for one set of vested interests grabbing resources at the expense of everyone else.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • September 2021
  • Medium

Veblen's Theory of the Leisure Class

Summary, Notes and Critiques

Consumption is driven by a desire to illustrate power and status. This is the important takeaway of Veblen’s Theory of the Leisure Class which completely transforms how one views human decisions. Along with this summary of Veblen's work, I analyse how society has changed and in what ways these ideas apply.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • August 2021
  • Medium

History and Identity

Exploring the complex links between them

The trouble with history is, of course, that we can’t study everything. What we choose to study or not to study matters immensely - it one of the foundations for our identities.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • July 2021
  • Medium

American Psycho

Bret Easton Ellis on the American Dream

Forceful and raw, Bret Easton Ellis’ American Psycho certainly left its mark upon society. To call this work of literature violent would be an understatement. Yet to some extent, it's as if this was not a fictional story but a mirror held up to the societies in which we live.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • June 2021
  • Medium

Rights, Freedom, and the Welfare State

All rights are based on a social contract

Does a gazelle have a 'right' not to be eaten by a lion? No - because rights are things we have created, based on a social contract. Here, I explore the relationship between rights, freedom, and the welfare state.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • May 2021
  • Medium

On the creation of wealth

Wealth and money are often conflated, but very different

The origins of wealth are often misunderstood. Many believe the only way to become wealthy is to exploit or take that wealth from somebody else. Yet this premise is deeply flawed.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • May 2021
  • 1828

The Conservatives' worrying move away from economic liberalism

The way forward: markets and trade

To truly deliver on the ‘levelling-up’ agenda and create opportunities for all, the choice is clear: we must embrace trade, markets, and the freedom to choose.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • May 2021
  • Medium

Tyranny can't stop climate change

The troubling rise of neo-luddism

Building a better, greener and cleaner world to enable us to live meaninfully and enjoy our lives will require co-operation and depend on technology. It can't be solved by coercion.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • April 2021
  • Medium

American Dream

How to live the good life

What is the American Dream? The embodiment of hope and opportunity, or a failed idea swallowed up by Corporate America?

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • February 2021
  • Medium

Postcard from Mexico City

La vida está buena.

México, mi amor. It’s a city full of life, of spirit, of joy. Se puede vivir, no sólo existir. Here, one feels the richness, the wholeness, of our existence, in all its splendour.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2021
  • Medium

We must wake up to Britain’s disastrous policy on cannabis

Prohibition has always done more harm than good.

The clash between reality and the ideal is not a new one. It is present throughout history, and in all aspects of life and culture. In contemporary Britain, nowhere has this done more harm than in the current policy on the prohibition of marijuana...

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • November 2020
  • 1828

US Elections: There’s a Lot to be Optimistic About

A turning point in US politics

It's official: Biden has won the US election and is set to become the 46th President of the USA. Although America remains divided, there are many reasons to be optimistic, and his Presidency could mark the start of a new era in US and international politics.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • October 2020
  • Medium

Long Live Liberalism!

Despite its flaws, it's still the best system we've got.

When a wave of populism swept through the world in the mid-2010s, some considered liberalism to be dead. Whilst not all the predictions made about liberalism’s fate came true, the Coronavirus is undoubtedly the greatest challenge it has faced since World War II.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • August 2020
  • 1828

Education reform is the key to social mobility

Social mobility in the 21st Century

Such a large part of social mobility and equality of opportunity lies in education, that we need to ask ourselves how best to improve the system to tap into the full potential of the thousands of children going through it each year.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • August 2020
  • 1828

How to reinvigorate our cities

Build back better.

With with thousands of city workers being ordered to work from home when the coronavirus pandemic hit, our use of land has changed drastically. In light of this, it is worth assessing why we live in cities in the first place, and what the future challenges will be.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • June 2020
  • 1828

Why vaping could be a silver bullet

The evidence looks promising.

If we are serious about improving our health outcomes after coronavirus, it is essential that we take action to combat nicotine-related deaths. Fortunately, we already have the answer: e-cigarettes.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2020
  • Medium

The History and Future of Smoking

LONG READ: Examining the roots and next steps.

It’s the largest preventable cause of death, amounts to millions of hours of lost productivity, and costs our health systems billions. Where did it start, why is it actually bad for you, and how can we end nicotine related deaths for good?

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • January 2020
  • Medium

Inequality in a Meritocratic World

How to reconcile the two?

Inequality poses numerous problems: social unrest, the rise of extremist parties, and some would say, moral issues. How to deal with the problem of inequality in an increasingly meritocratic world? What does meritocracy even mean?

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • December 2019
  • Medium

Inside Amazon

Taking a look inside one of the tech world's largest giants.

In November 2019, I toured Amazon's second largest Fulfilment Centre (FC). Upon arrival, it felt like I had teleported to the year 2100...

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • December 2019
  • Medium

On Minimalism, Part Two

Digital Minimalism

How can appyling the philosophy of minimalism to our digital lives improve our productivity and make us happer and better people? explore the ideas of 'Digital Minimalism' in this article.

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  • Adam Lehodey
  • December 2019
  • Medium

On Minimalism, Part One

There's a better alternative to the way we live.

Minimalism is not about owning a set number of items. It is about mindfulness, focussing on what truly matters, and not being constrained by material possessions....

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