October 10, 2025

Civics

"Parties are a public service, you’re doing people a favor by throwing them."

Uri Bram is a writer, publisher, and entrepreneur. He is the Editor-at-Large of The Browser, the author of Thinking Statistically, and the creator of the social word game, Person Do Thing, which challenges players to use simple vocabulary to communicate complex ideas.

Uri Bram has apparently spent a lot of time thinking about how people interact at gatherings. Building on personal experience, social observation, and thoughtful experimentation, he summarizes what he's learned about hosting great parties. I like how he draws from real-life lessons about group dynamics.

"Prioritize your ease of being over any other consideration: parties are like babies, if you’re stressed while holding them they’ll get stressed too. Every other decision is downstream of your serenity: e.g. it's better to have mediocre pizza from a happy host than fabulous hors d'oeuvres from a frazzled one."

"Most people will only go to a party where they expect to know 3+ others already."

"Put the food in one part of the room and the drinks in another, or spread the food and drinks out around the space, so that people have lots of excuses to move around the room."

ARTICLE: 21 Facts About Throwing Good Parties

Civics

"Parties are a public service, you’re doing people a favor by throwing them."

‍ARTICLE: 21 Facts About Throwing Good Parties

Civics

“We can change the world if we start listening to one another again.”

BOOK: TURNING TO ONE ANOTHER. Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future

Civics

"Couldn’t we devise an education that, rather than teaching citizens not to talk to strangers, instead teaches them how to interact with them self-confidently?”

BOOK: Talking to Strangers. Anxieties of Citizenship since Brown v. Board of Education

Civics

Danielle Allen says ordinary citizens need to step up.

ARTICLE: Democracy Teetering on Brink