by Mark English “Could fear of Trump rattle Stoics, while fear of death finds no purchase?” Dwayne Holmes was alluding to self-styled Stoic Massimo Pigliucci’s readiness – in the face of the possibility of a Trump presidency – to endorse over-the-top, emotion-driven political analysis. [1] Panic levels are certainly high in liberal and progressive circles, and if current trends continue […]
by Daniel A. Kaufman Reflection on the explicitly moral commandments in the Decalogue raises a number of interesting considerations, in the area of Ethics. I am thinking, specifically, of the following (translation is the 1985, Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh): You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. One thing to note is that when translated […]
by Daniel A. Kaufman My discussion with David Ottlinger on selected topics from Kant’s “Critique of Pure Reason.” Originally aired on MeaningofLife.TV, part of the BloggingHeads.TV network, August 28, 2016.
By Dan Tippens In Roger William’s The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect, a quantum super computer, Prime Intellect, operating on an essentially utilitarian calculus, decides that it would be best for mankind if he were to upload everyone to cyberspace, so that he could protect them from every manner of harm, give them as many possessions and as much land as they […]
by Dwayne Holmes With Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump placed as front runners to be the next president of the United States (POTUS), voters are being warned against voting for third party candidates. Exploiting fear of “third party spoilers” is routine in any close election and is meant largely to keep party members from straying. That both major parties chose divisive […]
by Daniel A. Kaufman Well, school is back and session and that means that it’s time to resume publishing Course Notes! My courses have undergone a significant transformation this year, and I am looking forward to sharing some of the more interesting developments with the Electric Agora audience. Most importantly, I have completely revamped my Introduction to Philosophy course, after […]
by Mark English I once watched a nature documentary about a group of lions in the wild. At one stage a lioness and her cubs found themselves separated from the group. After a period of time during which she almost starved and her cubs were killed, she finally managed to rejoin the group. The other lions certainly recognized her and […]
by David Ottlinger Everyone is saying it — from senior politicians, to top military brass, to hoary political commentators, to editors of The Electric Agora: “I can’t vote for Hillary and I can’t vote for Donald Trump.” I can understand why so many have been moved to make this statement and God knows I empathize with the sentiment behind it. […]
E. John Winner Every now and then, I’ll be walking down a street and come upon a box of books being set out for trash, and if they’re in good condition, I’ll look through them for anything of interest. Some time ago, I found a massive High School English text-book, which I took to be an anthology of literature, and […]
By Daniel A. Kaufman Philosophy is largely a normative discipline, which means that philosophers expend a good amount of energy telling you what you ought to believe, say, and do. Just look at the concepts with which philosophy is most preoccupied: ‘truth’ – something you should believe – ‘justification’ – a reason you should accept – ‘good’ – something you […]
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