The Stoics regarded each person as a microcosmos in whom the macrocosmos of the universal Logos is reflected.
What to Do About Behaving Badly
This is an obvious cross-reference for this group—indeed, many of you likely already read it. Peter Singer and Agata Sagan have an column in NYTimes’ “The Stone” today called “Are We Ready for a Morality Pill?” They present the conundrum of the how to factor in our growing understanding of the effect of brain chemistry not just on our mood and Continue Reading …
More Fun Debating Free Will (and Bashing Dan Dennett)
Pop science journalists / authors Bob Wright and John Horgan have an interesting debate on free will from a, well, pop science point of view. Nothing gets resolved, as always, but I like hearing well-informed middle-aged guys argue the same debate we’ve been hearing since the university dorm room. Highlights include Wright’s assessment of Daniel Dennett’s Freedom Evolves:The book is stupid, Continue Reading …
It’s in: most philosophers accept or lean towards compatibilism
From a poll of 438 “professional” philosophers. (The idea of philosophy as a profession still amuses me). Of course, that leaves the question of whether one can “lean towards” freely.