Continuing from part one on "What Is Man" (1905). We work through Twain's metaphors for human nature: We're like engines made out of various materials, and these materials can be refined (through education, which acts to root out prejudice), though the type of material will limit its maximum capabilities even with refinement. We also get Twain's concept of instinct: Continue Reading …
Ep. 284: Mark Twain’s Philosophy of Human Nature (Part One for Supporters)
On "What Is Man" (1905) by Samuel Clemens aka Mark Twain, featuring Mark, Wes, Dylan and Seth. This rare bit of philosophy wasn't published until after Twain's death (maybe because it was too bleak?), but apparently reflects the mechanistic, cynical take on humanity that informed his literary works. Twain was a tech guy; he was interested in the machines of his age, and he Continue Reading …
Philosophy vs. Improv #19: Broken Atomic Dogs
Let's all lose our jobs and talk instead about fundamental ontology and social dynamics. Image by I don't remember. Audio editing by Tyler Hislop. Hear more PvI. Support the podcast to get bonus stuff and good karma! Sponsors: Visit betterhelp.com/improv to be matched with a licensed, professional therapist. Learn about St. John's College at sjc.edu/improv. Continue Reading …
(sub)Text: Attachments “Die Hard” at Nakatomi Tower
It’s a Christmas movie, some say, and in the end the holiday classic “Let it Snow” plays over the credits. But what counts as snow in the final scenes is a confetti of smoke, debris, and millions of dollars of bearer bonds, not to mention the Euro-villain who tried to steal them. These descend from the blasted-out upper floor of a skyscraper onto a scene of total destruction. Continue Reading …
PREVIEW-Ep. 283: Alain Badiou on Love (Part Two)
Subscribe to get Part 2 of this episode in its entirety. Citizens can get it here. Continuing from part one on "What Is Love?" (1992). We go through Badiou's account of love as the resolution of the paradox that on the one hand, Truth is trans-positional, which means there's no separate "man's truth" and "woman's truth" (or any other division like that), yet the positions Continue Reading …
PEL Nightcap Mid December 2021
Recorded 11/19/21. Mark, Wes, and Dylan discuss the effort by our previous guest, the now-former president of St. John's College, Pano Kanelos, to create a "free speech" college in Austin. This includes discussion of the literary canon as a concept. Also, future Kant episodes? Watch a video interview with Pano. Here's the pugilistic article about this by Niall Continue Reading …
NEM#161: Chuck Prophet Is On the Couch
Chuck joined Green on Red as guitarist in 1985 and has released 15 solo albums of tuneful guitar rock since 1990, touring constantly and doing a lot of co-writing. We discuss "Womankind" from The Land That Time Forgot (2020), "Your Skin" from Bobby Fuller Died for Your Sins (2017), "Castro Halloween" from Temple Beautiful (2012, the extended single version). We conclude by Continue Reading …
Pretty Much Pop #111: Our Beatles Love-Fest
Mark is joined by musician David Brookings, Gig Gab host Dave Hamilton, and OpenCulture writer Colin Marshall to discuss Peter Jackson’s documentary Get Back and the enduring popularity of The Beatles. This was recorded on 12/8, the anniversary of John Lennon’s death. We consider the arc of their career, the various post-mortem Continue Reading …
Ep. 283: Alain Badiou on Love (Part One)
Subscribe to get Part 2 of this episode. Listen to a preview. Hear this part ad-free. On "What Is Love," which is ch. 11 of Conditions (1992), supplemented by In Praise of Love (2009 with Nicolas Truong), with Mark, Wes, Dylan and Seth. In our episode introducing Badiou, we said that love is a "truth procedure," and here we see (sort of) what this means. Love is about Continue Reading …
Ep. 283: Alain Badiou on Love (Part Two for Supporters)
Continuing from part one on "What Is Love?" (1992). We go through Badiou's account of love as the resolution of the paradox that on the one hand, Truth is trans-positional, which means there's no separate "man's truth" and "woman's truth" (or any other division like that), yet the positions of man and woman are "entirely disjunct." Badiou puts this in terms of a "humanity Continue Reading …
Ep. 283: Alain Badiou on Love (Part One for Supporters)
On "What Is Love," which is ch. 11 of Conditions (1992), supplemented by In Praise of Love (2009 with Nicolas Truong), with Mark, Wes, Dylan and Seth. In our episode introducing Badiou, we said that love is a "truth procedure," and here we see (sort of) what this means. Love is about gaining a new vantagepoint the world: seeing it through the eyes of the Two. It is not a Continue Reading …
PREVIEW-Ep. 282: Alain Badiou: What Is Philosophy? (Part Two)
Subscribe to get Part 2 of this episode in its entirety. Citizens can get it here. Continuing from part one on Conditions (1992), Ch. 1 "The (Re)turn of Philosophy Itself." What makes philosophy possible? Well, there are truths, and these come out of the four "conditions," i.e. mathematics (and science more generally), politics, art, and love. This precludes skepticism Continue Reading …
PEL Nightcap Late November 2021
Recorded 11/5/21. Between our Badiou episodes, we talk about potential future philosophy of science episodes (Polanyi? Hempel? Maxwell? Pickering's Constructing Quarks? Hawking?) and philosophy of mathematics episodes. A bit on Badiou's "On Subtraction," that was suggested for our coverage but isn't going in either of our episodes. Then we talk sobriety, things our sponsors Continue Reading …
NEM#160: John McCutcheon Learns the Lessons of Folk
John has released 45 albums since 1975 of original folk, traditional folk, children's music (garnering six Grammy nominations for those), and instrumentals: He is fluent on guitar, banjo, violin, dulcimer, and more. His songs very often tell stories, and we discuss several of those: "Atonement" from Bucket List (2021), "Soup" from John McCutcheon’s Four Seasons: Wintersongs Continue Reading …
Pretty Much Pop #110: The Dune Franchise Tries Again
Yes, we have another Dune film, and this time Warner Bros. is serious about a franchise, with at least one sequel planned and a prequel TV series in the works. With thousands of years worth of world building, the books by Frank Herbert and the world now being fleshed out by his son Brian Herbert with Kevin J. Anderson offer more source material than Star Wars for potential Continue Reading …
Philosophy vs. Improv #18: Utopias w/ Jill Bernard and Michelle Gilliam
Hell is NOT other people, and the more the merrier, with our second episode with guests being with TWO guest improvisers, Jill, co-founder of HUGE Theater and her friend Michelle, owner of Improv MKE. Bill and our guests each start a scene to explore something of what utopia might amount to, and of course how it will inevitably go bad. Then we discuss whether there is some Continue Reading …
(sub)Text: Mad as Hell in “Network” (1976)
Diana Christensen is a television executive in search of an angry show—something that articulates the rage of the average viewer. In Howard Beale, failed newscaster turned mad-as-hell prophet, she seems to get exactly what she’s looking for. Yet in doing so, she reduces political and social discontent to a form of entertainment focused on generating audience excitement and Continue Reading …
Ep. 282: Alain Badiou: What Is Philosophy? (Part One)
Subscribe to get Part 2 of this episode. Listen to a preview. Hear this part ad-free. On Conditions (1992), Ch. 1 "The (Re)turn of Philosophy Itself," featuring Mark, Wes, Dylan, and Seth. Sponsors: Get connected with a licensed therapist at betterhelp.com/partially. Get 20% off your first box off cool stuff from at boxofawesome.com (code pel). Learn about St. John's Continue Reading …
Ep. 282: Alain Badiou: What Is Philosophy? (Part Two for Supporters)
Continuing from part one on Conditions (1992), Ch. 1 "The (Re)turn of Philosophy Itself." What makes philosophy possible? Well, there are truths, and these come out of the four "conditions," i.e. mathematics (and science more generally), politics, art, and love. This precludes skepticism about truth. Because there are many truths, Badiou's philosophy is pluralistic, but these Continue Reading …
Ep. 282: Alain Badiou: What Is Philosophy? (Part One for Supporters)
On Conditions (1992), Ch. 1 "The (Re)turn of Philosophy Itself," featuring Mark, Wes, Dylan, and Seth. Badiou is arguing against contemporary post-structuralist French philosophers like Derrida and Foucault whom he characterizes as denying the existence of truth. Philosophy as a profession has consequently devolved into just being a history of philosophy. Continue Reading …