Our Philosophy

‘Ipsa scientia potestas est’ didn’t mean the usual idea that knowledge and education are good in themselves. It meant something much more radical. Knowledge empowers us to change the world. By studying the world empirically and rigorously, we discover its principles and patterns. Then, we influence and shape them according to our own goals.

Despite the melioristic qualities of our realism, there is no inherent tendency to progress. There is no Geist underpinning the dynamics of history towards its own self-expression. There is no telos, except that which we manufacture ourselves. Our meliorism is not anthropocentric either. There are limits of what individuals, societies, and humanity as a whole through 'will' can shape reality.

A basic tenant of The MacroLab is that our analysis of the world needn't conform to moral standards, but our actions should. Our analysis will frequently arrive at inconvenient conclusions for any ideologue who simply wants the world to confirm to how they envision it. Our allies will become enemies, because they are unable to distinguish is from ought. Nevertheless, however unpleasant our conclusions are, there is always a strong moral imperative when it comes to acting. It is our actions that define who we are, not our analysis of the world. Analysis serves merely as means of informing us on possible ways we can act. We call this the new realism.

Our Mission

The MacroLab is an independent, non-partisan left-wing publication. Our core objective is embodying the spirit of the new realism. We pursue a politics grounded in empirical clarity, philosophical rigour, and moral seriousness. Only through practising our philosophy can we show a better way for the left. But for what purpose?

Our next core objective revolutionising the left itself. Anthropogenic climate change is destroying the Earth's ecosystem and undermining the foundations that make civilisation possible. Unless the left revolutionises itself so itself is capable of revolutionising our economies and societies, then a deadly civilisational collapse is on the horizon. Unless the left revolutionises itself, it will contribute to the collapse of public reason and the rise of authoritarianism.

Our ultimate objective is showcasing how we should revolutionise our economies and societies peacefully so we can all equally experience liberty and prosperity, while being ecologically sustainable.

Today, much of the left is steering blindly between Scylla and Charybdis—caught between technocratic compromise and populist spectacle, between stale orthodoxy and reckless novelty, between moralism and expediency. The New Realist seeks to chart a different course through the Strait of Messina; towards a left that can think clearly, act strategically, and speak credibly to the world.

We signed the Pro-Truth Pledge: please hold us accountable.