Tim Brinkhof

Amsterdam, New York

Journalist at Freelance

General Assignment Reporter at Big Think

Writes about art and history for @bigthink. Also seen in @vulture, @jacobin, @JSTOR_Daily, @newlinesmag + more.

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Articles

Buddhism and the Politics of Desire

6 days ago | tricycle.org | Tim Brinkhof

Slavoj Žižek doesn’t like how Buddhism is practiced in the West. For over two decades the Slovenian philosopher has accused Buddhist teachings of enabling complacency in capitalist societies. In his latest book, Against Progress, he takes it further, claiming that Buddhist ideas also undermine the possibility of radical political change. But is that a fair reading?
Fisher Liberty Gold Sets New Standard in Precious Metals Investing with Trusted, Client-First Approach

1 week ago | villagevoice.com | Jon Stojan |Tim Brinkhof |R.C. Baker |Mary Lyn Maiscott

Founded on the belief that “Trust Is the New Gold,” Fisher Liberty Gold has cultivated a reputation for integrity, transparency, and white-glove service. With a team of seasoned specialists and account executives, the company serves thousands of Americans seeking a reliable path to financial stability through gold and silver ownership. “We believe in educating first, selling second,” said a spokesperson for Fisher Liberty Gold.
Memories of ‘Phantom Utopias’ Are Paving the Way for Fascism Around the Globe - The Village Voice

1 week ago | villagevoice.com | Michael Atkinson |R.C. Baker |Tim Brinkhof

When Benito Mussolini learned that the Nazis had begun negotiating Italy’s surrender to the Allies, in the spring of 1945, the fascist dictator jumped into his Alfa Romeo and did not look back. Leaving Milan, he caught up with a group of soldiers heading toward neutral Switzerland.
What’s the Difference Between a Bull and a Bear Market?

2 weeks ago | mentalfloss.com | Tim Brinkhof

No one knows the exact origins of ‘bull market’ and ‘bear market,’ but the economic terms get tossed around a lot these days. Here’s an explainer. Outside of the New York Stock Exchange in downtown Manhattan stands an 11-foot-tall, 7100-pound bronze form of a charging bull. For tourists, this sculpture is top photo op for their Instagram feeds, but for the brokers inside the exchange, the bull has a significant meaning.
The Gustav Söderström interview: Spotify and the psychology of taste

2 weeks ago | bigthink.com | Tim Brinkhof

Learn from the world’s biggest business thinkers Gustav Söderström joined Spotify at a seminal moment in the company’s history, coordinating the 2009 launch of its mobile app, which currently has over 675 million active users. Now, he’s venturing into uncharted territory once again, overseeing a series of redesigns intended to help his Stockholm-based team navigate a changing digital media landscape shaped by TikTok and generative AI.
I Never Travel With a Camera-but I Have an Even Better Way to Capture Memories on Trips

2 weeks ago | travelandleisure.com | Tim Brinkhof

A traveler sketching an italian scene in Via del Laghetto, Italy. Photo: Gary Yeowell/Getty Images My fingers were going numb by the time I finished sketching the hills overlooking Cuenca, a charming colonial town in southern Ecuador. Fortunately, there was an elderly lady nearby selling hot coffee and empanadas. Unfortunately, she told me that—because it was Sunday—there were no busses going back into town. My heart sank. The walk over here had taken me three hours, trudging uphill on a gravel road.
Mike Duncan chronicles the history of the future Martian Revolution

3 weeks ago | bigthink.com | Tim Brinkhof

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people Ominous strings of Austrian composer Joseph Haydn’s “Oxford” Symphony (No. 92) announce the beginning and end of each episode of Revolutions. The podcast, hosted by author Mike Duncan, walks listeners through history’s most significant turning points, from the French Revolution to the Bolshevik insurrection. Its new season shakes up the formula. This time, Duncan isn’t talking about a terrestrial dustup.
It’s Liberation Day! Let’s Party Down

3 weeks ago | thedailybeast.com | Michael Black |David Rothkopf |Tim Brinkhof

I write on Liberation Day, just hours before our president unveils new tariffs which will either unleash a new Golden Age or splat the United States against the global economy’s windshield. While I cannot say with total certainty which of the two scenarios is likelier, I’m inclined to believe actual economists over Stephen Miller—but that’s just because I tend to value the opinions of people who know what they’re talking about.
10 Suspicious Facts about McCarthyism

3 weeks ago | mentalfloss.com | Tim Brinkhof

McCarthyism was bigger than Joseph McCarthy—and it continued even after his personal disgrace. “Have you no sense of decency?” Joseph Welch, special counsel for the U.S. Army, asked Senator Joseph McCarthy on live TV during the Army-McCarthy hearings in 1954. In his efforts to root out alleged communist sympathies in the military, McCarthy had finally bitten off more than he could chew. The hearings ushered in the end of his career, and with it, his campaign now known as McCarthyism.
"Pantheon" creator Craig Silverstein on uploading our brains to the internet

3 weeks ago | bigthink.com | Tim Brinkhof

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people Be sure to check out "The Gods Will Not Be Chained," the first in the series of Ken Liu short stories on which Pantheon is based, right here on Big Think.