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Pornsick police: what they mean for the public
Should we be shocked that New Zealand's deputy police commissioner consumed child pornography — and what do we do about the pattern of sexual misconduct…
Nov 7, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
19
3
7
On porn, desire and the root of suffering
Buddhists teach that the greatest obstacle to freedom and happiness is selfish desire. Porn is the quintessential selfish desire. The most powerful new…
Dec 30, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
89
27
19
What is the Brief Complete Herstory?
The BCH is a digestible, illustrated overview of history from the birth of life to neoliberalism. It's written for women who want to understand the…
Mar 6, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
12
6
4
Rape: humanity’s problems condensed
Rape is the quintessential violation, connected to mass shootings, militarism, environmental destruction and hunger worldwide. To imagine our problems…
Nov 29, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
12
4
BCH #045: The emergence and capturing of ‘second-wave’ feminism
The late twentieth century saw the emergence of a new wave of feminism, as well as the co-optation of this movement.
Dec 21, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
19
7
2
BCH #044: Surveillance capitalism
One impact of 9/11 was unprecedented prioritisation of surveillance over privacy (in the name of national security). So began the age of "surveillance…
Dec 13, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
BCH #043: “War on terror”
The Vietnam war generated antiwar sentiment in the American public and a healthy mistrust of political leaders — but the US government reversed both…
Dec 11, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
BCH #042: Neoliberalism globalises
Worldwide, neoliberalism has hit women and children hard. That’s why one of the industries that has profited most from neoliberalisation is…
Dec 8, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
BCH #041: Defining neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is not just an economic policy. It's how multinational corporations fought back against progress made by the political left and it's a…
Dec 2, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
4
BCH #040: Independence and consciousness-raising
During the twentieth century, women in independence movements around the world found that while men wanted to gain freedom from oppressive regimes, they…
Nov 16, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
4
4
1
BCH #039: Civil rights and counterintelligence
Counterintelligence was once a government strategy to break activist groups. Did the strategy become self-perpetuating?
Nov 11, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
3
1
2
BCH #038: Cold War
A short summary of the twentieth century Cold War between two world superpowers, Russia and the United States
Nov 9, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
BCH #037: The Chipko movement
"A turning point came in 1977, when a local village headman obtained a contract to fell the forest, and his wife, Bachni Devi, led a resistance against…
Nov 6, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
3
A World Without Rape
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Pornsick police: what they mean for the public
Should we be shocked that New Zealand's deputy police commissioner consumed child pornography — and what do we do about the pattern of sexual misconduct…
Nov 7, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
19
3
7
The most romantic thing I've heard
I'm not typically a Valentine's person, but this year I want to share one of the most romantic things I've heard.
Feb 14, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
13
6
4
Three Hero's Journeys: III: The courage of Ann Burden
This is the last in a series of three hero's journeys: one matriarchal, one patriarchal, and one contemporary. Today's hero is Ann Burden, from the 1974…
Jan 13, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
4
2
2
On porn, desire and the root of suffering
Buddhists teach that the greatest obstacle to freedom and happiness is selfish desire. Porn is the quintessential selfish desire. The most powerful new…
Dec 30, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
89
27
19
Consider the lilies: spiritual arguments for a gift economy
One message common to all sacred texts is that hoarding, calculating and transacting is no way to live. If we want liberation from suffering, we should…
Dec 22, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
4
1
Remembering Lee Lakeman
Today I heard that legendary feminist Lee Lakeman has passed. I wanted to share how I came to know her work, and how it felt to be in her presence.
Dec 21, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
10
3
4
Homo donans: do human beings live to give?
It's Christmas! The perfect time to consider the current resurgence of interest in gift economies, and the contribution of feminist scholar Genevieve…
Dec 18, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
1
2
1
Rape: humanity’s problems condensed
Rape is the quintessential violation, connected to mass shootings, militarism, environmental destruction and hunger worldwide. To imagine our problems…
Nov 29, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
12
4
On identification
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Pornsick police: what they mean for the public
Should we be shocked that New Zealand's deputy police commissioner consumed child pornography — and what do we do about the pattern of sexual misconduct…
Nov 7, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
19
3
7
What really defines the major political traditions?
It's a misconception that politics is an argument about values — politics is about identifications, not values.
Apr 12, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
7
2
On love, truth, distortion — and how we become fools
When the language of belonging, altruism, love and kindness is used to advertise and exploit, what is taking place is called distortion. Distortion has…
Mar 31, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
13
7
8
On the demise of natural intelligence during the rise of AI
Transgenderism and its fudging of facts about nature and human sexuality represents a dismantling of natural intelligence dangerous in tandem with the…
Mar 3, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
17
9
Self-reliance amidst violence: an expert's advice
Violence is not as unpredictable as we are led to believe. In 'The Gift of Fear', Gavin De Becker shows that violence is patterned, and we are better…
Feb 21, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
10
3
5
The Milgram experiments: Findings on dissent
What makes people choose conscience over compliance? Milgram explored the question in his 1960s shock generator tests. We previously explored his…
Feb 11, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
14
8
6
The Milgram experiments: Findings on obedience
The 1960s Milgram experiments are well-known, but not often thoroughly explored. Milgram did 18 variations of his famous shock generator tests, and the…
Feb 7, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
9
2
3
On rape as a tool of social control
Rape, and the threat of rape, instils a basic belief inside a woman’s mind: “for me to be okay, he has to be okay first.”
Feb 4, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
6
2
Brief Complete Herstory
View all
BCH #045: The emergence and capturing of ‘second-wave’ feminism
The late twentieth century saw the emergence of a new wave of feminism, as well as the co-optation of this movement.
Dec 21, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
19
7
2
BCH #044: Surveillance capitalism
One impact of 9/11 was unprecedented prioritisation of surveillance over privacy (in the name of national security). So began the age of "surveillance…
Dec 13, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
BCH #043: “War on terror”
The Vietnam war generated antiwar sentiment in the American public and a healthy mistrust of political leaders — but the US government reversed both…
Dec 11, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
BCH #042: Neoliberalism globalises
Worldwide, neoliberalism has hit women and children hard. That’s why one of the industries that has profited most from neoliberalisation is…
Dec 8, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
BCH #041: Defining neoliberalism
Neoliberalism is not just an economic policy. It's how multinational corporations fought back against progress made by the political left and it's a…
Dec 2, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
4
BCH #040: Independence and consciousness-raising
During the twentieth century, women in independence movements around the world found that while men wanted to gain freedom from oppressive regimes, they…
Nov 16, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
4
4
1
BCH #039: Civil rights and counterintelligence
Counterintelligence was once a government strategy to break activist groups. Did the strategy become self-perpetuating?
Nov 11, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
3
1
2
BCH #038: Cold War
A short summary of the twentieth century Cold War between two world superpowers, Russia and the United States
Nov 9, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
On my bookshelf
View all
Self-reliance amidst violence: an expert's advice
Violence is not as unpredictable as we are led to believe. In 'The Gift of Fear', Gavin De Becker shows that violence is patterned, and we are better…
Feb 21, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
10
3
5
The Milgram experiments: Findings on dissent
What makes people choose conscience over compliance? Milgram explored the question in his 1960s shock generator tests. We previously explored his…
Feb 11, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
14
8
6
The Milgram experiments: Findings on obedience
The 1960s Milgram experiments are well-known, but not often thoroughly explored. Milgram did 18 variations of his famous shock generator tests, and the…
Feb 7, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
9
2
3
BCH #012: 'Woman, Church and State'
In the nineteenth century, feminist Matilda Joslyn Gage lived with the Haudenosaunee. Their respect for women opened Gage's eyes and led her to…
Jan 18, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
3
1
Three Hero's Journeys: III: The courage of Ann Burden
This is the last in a series of three hero's journeys: one matriarchal, one patriarchal, and one contemporary. Today's hero is Ann Burden, from the 1974…
Jan 13, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
4
2
2
Three Hero's Journeys: II: The Epic of Gilgamesh
This series offers three hero's journeys to inspire transformation and action: one matriarchal, one patriarchal, and one contemporary. This is the…
Jan 5, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
1
1
Three Hero's Journeys: I: Gum Lin and the the key to Wild Swan Lake
This mini-series offers three hero's journeys to inspire transformation and creative action: one matriarchal, one patriarchal, and one contemporary. We…
Jan 1, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
1
Homo donans: do human beings live to give?
It's Christmas! The perfect time to consider the current resurgence of interest in gift economies, and the contribution of feminist scholar Genevieve…
Dec 18, 2024
•
Renee Gerlich
1
2
1
BCH #036: Palestine
"There is no ‘magic’ square yard, or hilltop, or valley, that if ceded by one side to the other will bring about peace in the Middle East.”
Oct 30, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
BCH #035: World War Two
Was it really a “people’s war"?
Oct 29, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
1
BCH #034: Etty Hillesum and European resistance to Nazism
We learn about organised and individual resistance to Nazi occupation in Europe, and the diaries of Etty Hillesum, which record the remarkable unfolding…
Sep 26, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
1
1
BCH #033: Eugenics and the Nazi era
Eugenics combines racism, sexism and medical experimentation. It is also characterised by fundamentalism, pseudoscience, romanticism (dreams of an…
Sep 19, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
1
BCH #032: Rosa Luxemburg and WWI
Luxemburg believed workers around the world shared more common interests with each other than with capitalists and imperialists of their own nations…
Sep 5, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
2
BCH #031: The lead up to WWI
By the late 1800s, imperial pride became part of popular culture. “Great Power rivalries” featured in a jingoistic press, militaristic education in…
Aug 29, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
3
1
BCH #030: Eurasian borders and the Crimean War
Before discussing WWI, it will help to briefly look at some maps showing Europe and the Near East from the decline of the Roman Empire.
Aug 22, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
1
BCH #029: Scramble for Africa
In 1884, European nations met at a Conference in Berlin to divide the African continent among themselves. Women resisted the Scramble for Africa.
Aug 15, 2025
•
Renee Gerlich
1
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