Facebook UserNov 10
Thanks Colan! I am about to start reading "The Parallax View" for a paper I am writing.
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Newest Quote
It is always dangerous to draw too precise parallels between one historical period and another; and among the more misleading of such parallels are those which have been drawn between our own age . . . and the epoch in which the Roman Empire declined into the Dark Ages. Nonetheless certain parallels there are. . . . What they set themselves to achieve—often not recognizing fully what they were doing—was the construction of new forms of community within which the moral life could be sustained so that both morality and civility might survive the coming ages of barbarism and darkness. If my account of our moral condition is correct, we ought also to conclude that for some time now we too have reached that turning point. . . . This time, however, the barbarians are not waiting beyond the frontiers, they have already been governing us for quite some time. And it is our lack of consciousness of this that constitutes part of our predicament. We are not waiting for Godot, but for another—and doubtless very different—St. Benedict.
—Alasdair MacIntyre, After Virtue
Added by Facebook User | More quotes
Philosophy Polls
Answer and Comment
25. Evolutionary Aesthetics (open since 3-Nov-2009)
Poll 25: Preamble
Evolutionary aesthetics applies evolutionary psychology to the task of explaining the origin, nature and content of human aesthetic responses and judgements. It is founded on the assumption that aesthetic response is a fitness-enhancing adaptation from human evolutionary history, engineered to better guide our behaviour toward ends conducive to survival.
Q. A foundational hypothesis of evolutionary aesthetics states, "Beauty is a promise of function in the environments in which humans evolved i.e., of high likelihood of survival and reproductive success in the environments of human evolutionary history. Ugliness is the promise of low survival and reproductive failure." (Randy Thornhill, "Darwinian Aesthetics Informs Traditional Aesthetics").
Do you agree or disagree with the proposition that beauty is tied to the promise of survival and reproductive success?
24. A Better Place (open since 26-Oct-2009)
Poll 24: Preamble
No preamble.
Q. Please complete the following sentence:
The world would be a better place without...
23. Sacred and Secular (open since 2-Oct-2009)
Poll 23: Preamble
"In 1961, Gabriel Vahanian's book The Death of God was published. Vahanian argued that modern secular culture had lost all sense of the sacred, lacking any sacramental meaning, no transcendental purpose or sense of providence. He concluded that for the modern mind "God is dead", but he did not mean that God did not exist. In Vahanian's vision a transformed post-Christian and post-modern culture was needed to create a renewed experience of deity." (Wikipedia: Transcendence)
Q. a) Do you agree that modern secular culture has lost all sense of the sacred? b) Is a renewed experience of deity needed?
22. Unity of Science (open since 27-Aug-2009)
Poll 22: Preamble
Should the social sciences try to achieve the same degree of precision, predictive power and generality of truth as the physical sciences? Is this goal appropriate to the data and phenomena of most concern to the social and human sciences?
Q. Do you agree or disagree with the statement, "The human sciences (psychology, anthropology, history, etc.) should model themselves on the physical sciences (physics & chemistry)?"
21. Belief and Justification (closed)
Show preamble | Comment (2)
Poll 21: Preamble
No preable.
Q. Please indicate whether you agree or disagree with the following statement:
"One can be completely justified in believing something even if the statement the belief depends on is false."
Final Results: 400 user(s) polled
1. Strongly Agree
17.5%
2. Agree
28.2%
3. Disagree
26%
4. Strongly Disagree
28.2%
100%
20. Philosophy of Science I: Visible and Invisible (closed)
Show preamble | Comment (2)
Poll 20: Preamble
Epistemology (from Greek "episteme": knowledge, science + "logos") is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature and limits of knowledge. To say of a thing that it carries "epistemic weight" means that it bears the potential to contribute to knowledge.
Q. a) Do phenomena visible with the naked eye carry more epistemic weight than things seen only with the aid of scientific instruments? b) Should a distinction be drawn between the two?
Final Results: 400 user(s) polled
1. Yes to both
19%
2. No to (a); Yes to (b)
41%
3. No to both
36.8%
4. Can't say
3.3%
100%
19. Bonus Question (closed)
Poll 19: Preamble
No preamble.
Q. The law of non-contradiction is...
Final Results: 400 user(s) polled
1. True
45.5%
2. False
7.8%
3. Both true and false
30.8%
4. Can't say
16%
100%
18. Reading Philosophy (closed)
Poll 18: Preamble
For the purposes of this poll, a "work of philosophy" is any non-fiction work in, or related to, philosophy, or a discipline closely related to philosophy (as you see it).
Q. How often do you pick up a work of philosophy to read, whether a book, journal or essay?
Final Results: 400 user(s) polled
1. Daily
40.5%
2. Weekly
33.3%
3. Monthly
19.3%
4. Once or twice a year, or less often
7%
100%
17. Values I (closed)
Poll 17: Preamble
How do we come to sense right from wrong, good from evil? Is morality grounded in religion and God? Did our values evolve out of natural needs related to survival? Do parents and culture play the greatest part in establishing our moral sensibility? Or is there some other source of morality in humans?
Q. What is the ultimate origin of moral value?
Final Results: 400 user(s) polled
1. God
16.5%
2. Nature
23.8%
3. Culture
36.8%
4. Other
23%
100%
16. Truth II (closed)
Poll 16: Preamble
"We must call truth not a property of statements, or any result whatsoever, but the very movement that breaks closure as it is each time established and that seeks, in an effort of coherency and of logon didonai, to have an encounter with what is." ~ Cornelius Castoriadis, Anthropology, Philosophy, Politics
"One who puzzles over the adjective 'true' should puzzle rather over the sentences to which he ascribes it." ~ W.V.O Quine, Pursuit of Truth
Some philosophers, like W.V.O Quine and many other analytic philosophers, tell us that the only way to productively speak about truth in philosophical terms is by considering it a property of statements or propositions. Only propositions can be true or false, it is said, and it is a mistake to look beyond them in search of "truth itself." Heidegger, on the other hand, saw truth illuminated in poetry; Badiou speaks about truth as an "event in the real", as something new that ruptures the established order of things; for Lacan, the "habitual incarnation of the truth", is error. All explicitly rejected as insufficient the notion that truth is a property of statements.
Q. Does it make sense philosophically to speak about truth outside the form of the proposition?
Final Results: 400 user(s) polled
1. Always
24.5%
2. Sometimes
45.8%
3. Never
23.3%
4. Can't Say
6.5%
100%
Poll Forum
Displaying 8 of 10 discussion topics.
Is mankind losing touch with the natural world?
19 posts by 9 people.
Updated on November 2, 2009 at 1:43am.
Notices
Find a quote you like? Publish it to your network!
14-Oct-2009
14-Oct-2009
A new "Feed" link now appears with each entry on the Quotes pages. Click on this link to open up the feed publishing dialog box, add a comment, and publish the quote to your profile and stream.
You can now quickly ping your P+P friends from the Friends page and include a short message.
Banner ads removed
5-Oct-2009
5-Oct-2009
All banner advertising has just been removed from P+P indefinitely. The good news is that this means no more ads at the top and bottom of our canvas pages*, and perhaps faster page loading. The ads were being served to us by a popular social networks advertising supplier that was sending ads of inconsistent quality, some of which violated Facebook's advertising policies (e.g. imitating the blue Facebook buttons to disguise ads as Facebook content, and engaging in other deceptive practices). The bad news is that we have lost a small source of revenue until another monetization option is found. In the meantime, we are almost totally reliant on user donations to make up the shortfall on our hosting bill. I'll do the sums and put up a figure shortly.*The ads that appear on the right-hand side of canvas pages are placed there by Facebook; apps have no control over that part of the screen.
Welcome to our new regular users
5-Oct-2009
5-Oct-2009
P+P has grown an extra 1500 monthly active users during the past six weeks and now stands at nearly 7500. Welcome to you all. Regular use of the app is rewarded with "deep user" status, which earns you more tiles for your montage and other privileges. A large round of promotions has just passed—congratulations to all our new deep users! Another round is coming up soon.
Application Settings
Wednesday 30-Sep-2009
Wednesday 30-Sep-2009
Tip: Visit your Application Settings page and find P+P on the list of apps. From there you can tweak certain settings and restore your P+P profile box if it disappears for any reason.
New Enhancements
Tuesday 29-Sep-2009
Tuesday 29-Sep-2009
Update: I am aware that the new ppoke! feature is really quite inane in its current form. I'm working on it.
Philosophy-poke! Beta: a new feature, active but still in development. Give your friends a gentle nudge. Why would you want to do that? I don't know; let's find out. You can "Ppoke" people from the FRIENDS page, where you can also peek at what your friends have been up to and when they last visited a P+P canvas page. You can now also select individual friends to view, instead of paging through screens to find one person.
Comments on Quotes: I've re-written some of the code to iron-out weird behaviour and shorten load times on the QUOTES pages.
Quote Enhancements
Sunday 13-Sep-2009
Sunday 13-Sep-2009
It is now possible to edit quotes from the Quotes page. An "Edit" link will appear under the quote if the person viewing it is the quote's owner (the person who added it to the database).
To help users follow discussions happening around particular quotes, the "Essential Links" section of this page contains a new Quote Discussions link that will display all quotes with comments attached to them in order of newest to oldest.
References for quotes should be added to the separate "Quote Source" field, newly provided, instead of the main body of the quote. This should ensure more consistent formatting of quotes over time.
Four Principles of Quotation by Martin Porter
Sunday 6-Sep-2009
Sunday 6-Sep-2009
-
For readers
- Whenever you see a quotation given with an author but no source assume that it is probably bogus.
- Whenever you see a quotation given with a full source assume that it is probably being misused, unless you find good evidence that the quoter has read it in the source. For quoters
- Whenever you make a quotation, give the exact source.
- Only quote from works that you have read.
Reply link gone missing (update)
Sunday 6-Sep-2009
Sunday 6-Sep-2009
Update 6-Sep-09: The reply links attached to posts in the discussion board have been removed, and this is a deliberate and permanent move by Facebook. The current situation in which every contributor to a thread receives a reply notification with each new message posted is, however, clearly untenable, and we are in dialogue with Facebook to come up with a sensible solution. Ideally, both developers and users would prefer it if the links were restored, and we are still trying to convince Facebook of this. Interested people may follow our progress on Bugzilla, the Facebook bug reporting site: http://bugs.developers.facebook.com/show_bug.cgi?id=6579
Facebook has removed the "Reply" link from discussion boards. This is already creating havoc across the platform, as now there is no way to direct messages to individual posters, and every contributor to a thread is receiving a notification whenever someone posts a new message. I am unsure at the moment whether this change is a deliberate new policy or a bug.
New feature: comment on the polls
Monday 31-Aug-2009
Monday 31-Aug-2009
Our polls seem to inevitably arouse questions and controversy. In response to repeated requests, a comment link is now available for each poll. The link opens a dialog box where comments may be read and posted. We're also trialling a poll-dedicated forum to facilitate longer posts and more involved discussion. This is available to registered P+P users and can be found above the main Poll area.
Wednesday 11-Aug-2009
I have temporarily resolved this problem by turning off Facebook's "Quick Transitions" feature for applications, which is a beta feature that improves page load times at the cost of occasional problems like the present one. I'll monitor things over the day and turn QT back on if the Facebook engineers manage restabilize it enough for general usage.
Friday 7-Aug-2009
Facebook is experiencing a network problem that is affecting some applications and users by preventing some P+P pages from loading. Please bear with us while we wait for the Facebook engineers to find a solution. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Melbourne Philosophy Under Threat
Thursday 6-Aug-2009
Thursday 6-Aug-2009
The department of philosophy at the University of Melbourne is in a time of need and seeks letters of support. Read the story and get the details here.
Bug fix for users of Safari and Chrome web browsers
Monday 13-July-2009
Monday 13-July-2009
An odd bug was limiting the Quote Editor color options for users of Chrome and Safari. A succesful work-around has been implemented.
Oops! We may have accidentally replaced your montage with a welcome message!
Tuesday 7-July-2009
Tuesday 7-July-2009
First of all, don't panic! Your montage is not lost—click here to restore it to exactly the way it was before, or use the montage editor.
A bug crept into the code during some routine maintenence. The bug will have affected any authorized user with a P+P profile box who visited this page during the 12 hours leading up to 09:49 GMT, on Wed. July 8. Please check your profile and use the link above if required. Sincere apologies for the inconvenience.
The Requests page has been improved so as to allow voting without reloading the page each time. It also now displays fewer philosophers per page, making the pages load much more quickly.
Comment on Quotes
Sunday 4-July-2009
Sunday 4-July-2009
Many of the quotes that users contribute to the application are provocative. Sometimes the "Like" link is perfect to register your agreement, but at other times "like" doesn't quite square with your honest opinion of the quote. To address this deficiency we've added a "Comment" link to every quote. Now you're free to express the full extent of your love for each quote, in your own inimitable words. Be effusive, be effulgent.
The latest quote always appears at the top of this page; the entire database can be viewed here.
The latest quote always appears at the top of this page; the entire database can be viewed here.
Get Lost in the Bookstore
Mon 29-Jun-2009
Mon 29-Jun-2009
A new category, The Developer's Bookshelf: Recent and recommended titles from the developer of P+P, is now available to browse in our online bookstore.
You can preview books, read editorial and user reviews, and add items to your shopping cart all from within the app. As an Amazon affiliate the application receives 4% of the cost of titles purchased through the store, which helps to keep us online (or it would if more people used our bookstore!).
Wed 24-Jun-2009
Images have stopped appearing in feed stories. Facebook engineers are aware of the problem. In other news, a new philosophy poll is up and running.
Tuesday 8-Jun-2009
Klooger on Castoriadis
Monday 18-May-2009
Monday 18-May-2009
Castoriadis: Psyche, Society, Autonomy by Jeff Klooger is the first monograph in English on the philosophy of Cornelius Castoriadis. It is now available to pre-order from the P+P bookstore or you can click on the image (left) to go directly to Amazon.com. Jeff is a regular guest of the application. We congratulate him on his momentous achievement.
New Social Feature: Like! (update)
Thursday 21-May-2009
Thursday 21-May-2009
Update: This feature now incorporates the ability to "unlike" previously liked quotes, and there is a new link (My Likes) that displays all of the quotes you have liked so far.
You can now express your like for individual quotes on the Quotes pages. Doing so will send a short message to the user who added the quote, whether friend or stranger, notifying them of your appreciation. As quotes begin to emerge with high likeability, we will display the results here. Please give this feature a try. It is a lot of fun.p.s. Stay tuned for a new philosophy poll. Coming soon...
See older items...
Birthdays A random selection of recent and upcoming philosophers’ birthdays
Interested in this? Click here to receive free philosopher birthday updates.
dHolbach
Dec 08, 1723
Dec 08, 1723
Langer
Dec 20, 1895
Dec 20, 1895
Blondel
Nov 02, 1861
Nov 02, 1861
Kripke
Nov 13, 1940
Nov 13, 1940
Bakhtin
Nov 17, 1895
Nov 17, 1895
Bayle
Nov 18, 1647
Nov 18, 1647
Maritain
Nov 18, 1882
Nov 18, 1882
Phil Inspector View philosopher ratings and user opinions
Latest Additions The last 10 philosophers added to the Library
The Good and the Bad Philosopher rating highlights
Philosophers with the best overall rating (rated by 10 or more people)
Aristotle
4.31 (164)
4.31 (164)
1
Socrates
4.26 (128)
4.26 (128)
2
Wittgenstein
4.24 (141)
4.24 (141)
3
Kierkegaard
4.21 (87)
4.21 (87)
4
Heraclitus
4.2 (51)
4.2 (51)
5
Spinoza
4.16 (70)
4.16 (70)
6
Dostoevsky
4.15 (23)
4.15 (23)
7
Deleuze
4.14 (53)
4.14 (53)
8
Aquinas
4.14 (63)
4.14 (63)
9
Plato
4.13 (104)
4.13 (104)
10
Buddha
4.13 (89)
4.13 (89)
11
Schopenhauer
4.12 (67)
4.12 (67)
12
Kripke
4.1 (20)
4.1 (20)
13
Camus
4.09 (53)
4.09 (53)
14
Husserl
4.09 (32)
4.09 (32)
15
MacIntyre
4.09 (22)
4.09 (22)
16
Darwin
4.08 (66)
4.08 (66)
17
Laozi
4.08 (41)
4.08 (41)
18
Peirce
4.06 (23)
4.06 (23)
19
Russell
4.06 (61)
4.06 (61)
20
Mevlana
4.05 (25)
4.05 (25)
21
Einstein
4.05 (44)
4.05 (44)
22
Hegel
4.05 (96)
4.05 (96)
23
Fromm
4.04 (11)
4.04 (11)
24
David Hume
4.04 (109)
4.04 (109)
25
Worst overall rating
Ayn Rand
2.8 (285)
2.8 (285)
The Sheep
2.83 (80)
2.83 (80)
Spencer
2.85 (25)
2.85 (25)
Dawkins
2.88 (230)
2.88 (230)
Paglia
2.89 (28)
2.89 (28)
Said Nursî
2.97 (23)
2.97 (23)
Mao Zedong
2.98 (43)
2.98 (43)
A. J. Ayer
3.1 (37)
3.1 (37)
Onfray
3.2 (15)
3.2 (15)
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Main Forum
Displaying 15 of 474 discussion topics.
Do women lives on preconcieved ideas of man?
11 posts by 7 people.
Updated on November 9, 2009 at 5:17pm.
Is mankind losing touch with the natural world?
47 posts by 10 people.
Updated on November 5, 2009 at 7:21pm.
Do you agree Solipsism brings you to a dead end in philosophy?
34 posts by 12 people.
Updated on October 27, 2009 at 3:58am.
LOGICOMIX the graphic novel narrated by Bertrand Russell
8 posts by 3 people.
Updated on October 22, 2009 at 2:41am.
Comment Boards Recent posts...
Jump to board: Karl Marx, Slavoj Žižek, bell hooks, G.W.F. Hegel, Guy Debord, Critchley, Aquinas, Bonaventure. More Boards...
Discuss Karl Marx
Discuss Slavoj Žižek
Facebook UserNov 10
Zizek has written so much that it is hard to point anyone toward a specific work of his without knowing their interest first. Most of my knowledge concerning Zizek's views are drawn from articles by him, videos of his lectures or speeches (like that which I posted), the movie "ZIZEK!", and the book "The Parallax View".
Regarding ideology's pervasive nature, Zizek's "The Sublime Object of Ideology" might also be interesting. It has been added to my reading list.
You might look at the wikipedia article on Zizek, following that with a viewing of the "ZIZEK!" movie, and finally selecting a book from the wikipedia article "Works of Slavoj Zizek".
Knowing Zizek's views in entirety is daunting... I hope this helps others interested in his thought. Please post if you have a method of studying Zizek that might work for others!
Regarding ideology's pervasive nature, Zizek's "The Sublime Object of Ideology" might also be interesting. It has been added to my reading list.
You might look at the wikipedia article on Zizek, following that with a viewing of the "ZIZEK!" movie, and finally selecting a book from the wikipedia article "Works of Slavoj Zizek".
Knowing Zizek's views in entirety is daunting... I hope this helps others interested in his thought. Please post if you have a method of studying Zizek that might work for others!
Facebook UserNov 5
What's a good introduction to Žižek's overall thought?
Displaying 5 of 156 posts.
Discuss bell hooks
Facebook UserNov 10
Where We Stand/Class Matters is her original, most recent, and most relevant work. She makes the fine distinctions between race and class as clear as they might be presented.
Facebook UserNov 4
I did not realize bell hooks was on this application! I'm certainly a fan, "The Will To Change: Men and Masculinity" being one of my favorite books, yet I'm hesitant to call her a philosopher. She seems to have much to say as far as far as practical advice, but most of what I've read from her is based on premises developed by other theorists. Maybe her practicality is a strong point though...
Displaying all 2 posts.
Discuss G.W.F. Hegel
Nikolas ParasNov 10
According to William James, it took inhalation of nitrous oxide for him to understand Hegel's philosophy.
Vincent CasilAug 22
hey,, sir,? is Hegel have a concept of free will? because l think by reason of his Grand narrative concluding that the whole history as the continuous unfolding of the Absolute towards the realization of his freedom. If we gonna stick to this, i believe there is no room for free will, because all of us are just fulfilling the Absolute's realization.
Kevin MurrayJul 21
Its essential to be apprehensive of non-dualism to some extent in order for Hegel to be pleasant in ones readings. He is actually quite simple and most stylistic once you "know" what it is he speaks of, which in fact is himself only (hence he is 'left' out by many without themselves only). His work gives us a 'way' for which is not needed for those in recognition of the "itself", rather it may be needed for those who first found truth natural in the philosophical task. It is evident by his subdivisions in the "attitudes" towards philosophy and by his Philosophy of Nature` that he my be acknowledged as a reflection of philosophical reconciliation and religious unification. I have no troubles of submitting all my thoughts to his for Hegel is one in truth but not "as" truth itself. If one is to come to completely understand the indifferent changelessness then Hegel's rated characteristics become the very opposite of what they are now.
Hegel is easiest to discuss when he is nonexistent!
Hegel is easiest to discuss when he is nonexistent!
Facebook UserFeb 15
Thank you Shane (I'm still watching the Dawkins Lennox debate). We still have a reality that is objective, with our reasoning still providing evidence of that, but we apparently are easy to presume that our reasoning is entirely subjective (e.g., subjectivism, confused as empiricism, which is really an isolation of rationality tending toward mutual subjectivity, but not subjectivism) and that a metaphysics of dialectical materialism (Hegel's contribution to what Nietzsche would correctly identify as part of moral genealogy, albeit vanquished by anti-rationalist existentialism) is an attempt to subjugate epistemology, a sort of wannabe metaphysics for all of metaphysics. I think the labor to critique Hegel is lost to Nietzsche, with the consequence that such intellectual turmoil still had to wait for the Internet.
Displaying 5 of 39 posts.
Discuss Guy Debord
John AbbateNov 7
I wouldn't call Debord a postmodern thinker. His call for total social transformation and the collapse of the distinction between art and everyday life situates him as a high modernist seeking to take the grand avant garde project to its logical, self-annihilating conclusion. Peter Bürger's Theory of the Avant-Garde (1974) is illuminating in this respect. Postmodernism, on the other hand, announces the end of all such avant garde pretensions and the transition to an age of pluralism.
Facebook UserNov 5
The only post-modernist I enjoy, although I must admit that I utilize his observations within a grander, modernist framework.
Jan 20
facebook's success in our society, being the largest network which mediates life by an interactive spectacle, corroborates Debord's thesis
Displaying all 4 posts.
Discuss Simon Critchley
Jeff KloogerNov 6
Thanks for your posts, Colan. They offer an interesting insight into the anarchist movement as you have encountered it. I found it interesting that you remark that anarchism can be treated by some as a kind of religion. Crtichley's article in the issue of Critical Horizon's dedicated to responses to his book is entitled 'Mystical Anarchism'. I haven't yet read it, but it is suggestive, isn't it?
Facebook UserNov 5
(continuing...)
First, in focusing on how one interacts with the state now, accepting capitalist, liberal democracy, the theory undermines focus on what it is the Left wishes to accomplish (state or no state).
This creates a disconnect in Praxis. It hampers the ability of a movement to make gains relevant to building towards any goal it might have.
Second, and most frighteningly, Critchley's proposition can, and likely would, undermine the Left's ability to develop a historical consciousness. Zizek holds that such consciousness as incredibly important to encouraging participation in Left movements. To have a "revolutionary consciousness," one has to recognize that he or she exists within a changing history, not outside of it. This requires that participants in a movement can, with certainty, recognize some action they have taken is responsible for creating a new policy or practice that not only effects them in the present, but will be relevant to the future.
First, in focusing on how one interacts with the state now, accepting capitalist, liberal democracy, the theory undermines focus on what it is the Left wishes to accomplish (state or no state).
This creates a disconnect in Praxis. It hampers the ability of a movement to make gains relevant to building towards any goal it might have.
Second, and most frighteningly, Critchley's proposition can, and likely would, undermine the Left's ability to develop a historical consciousness. Zizek holds that such consciousness as incredibly important to encouraging participation in Left movements. To have a "revolutionary consciousness," one has to recognize that he or she exists within a changing history, not outside of it. This requires that participants in a movement can, with certainty, recognize some action they have taken is responsible for creating a new policy or practice that not only effects them in the present, but will be relevant to the future.
Facebook UserNov 5
Finally, regarding the labeling of Critchley's theory as defeatist:
Critchley's theory is not only defeatist in what it advocates Leftists do, but it is terribly damaging to what I will call "revolutionary consciousness," which is, as it's name suggests, required for revolutionary action.
(continued...)
Critchley's theory is not only defeatist in what it advocates Leftists do, but it is terribly damaging to what I will call "revolutionary consciousness," which is, as it's name suggests, required for revolutionary action.
(continued...)
Facebook UserNov 5
John - You are right in observing that this is one of the most defining issues in the Left today.
In fact, the issue of state power, and how to interact with its current manifestation, is (in my view) the origin of much the Left's divisions. Many groups might unite if this issue were not so pronounced.
In fact, the issue of state power, and how to interact with its current manifestation, is (in my view) the origin of much the Left's divisions. Many groups might unite if this issue were not so pronounced.
Facebook UserNov 5
(continuing...)
Regarding Zizek's view that the state and such anti-state protestors are engaged in a mutually parasitic relationship:
From my own experience, the Anarchist movement in the United States sheds incredible amounts of adherants when there is nothing substantial to protest. Such a phenomena is yet another reason I left that movement -- I realized that, while many Anarchists desire a better world, they would not be the ones to create it. The reactive nature of their political practice conditions them to focus on the destruction of the old more than the creation of anything new. Given a power vacuum, they would be wholly unprepared to make use of it.
(continued...)
Regarding Zizek's view that the state and such anti-state protestors are engaged in a mutually parasitic relationship:
From my own experience, the Anarchist movement in the United States sheds incredible amounts of adherants when there is nothing substantial to protest. Such a phenomena is yet another reason I left that movement -- I realized that, while many Anarchists desire a better world, they would not be the ones to create it. The reactive nature of their political practice conditions them to focus on the destruction of the old more than the creation of anything new. Given a power vacuum, they would be wholly unprepared to make use of it.
(continued...)
Displaying 5 of 22 posts.
Discuss Aquinas
Facebook UserSep 8
Issue: a negative understanding of any conceptualisation of the supernatural or transcendent, and the use of reason regarding such conceptualisation.
We should consider the following if we consider that any proposition can only ever be derived from a rational process, which utilises sensory data as a primary foundation in terms of content:
We should consider the following if we consider that any proposition can only ever be derived from a rational process, which utilises sensory data as a primary foundation in terms of content:
Facebook UserSep 8
If we consider reason as the collection of those functions and forms that allow for the unification of ideas or concepts, we should consider reason as necessary for every idea or concept.
If we consider the use of the term more strictly speaking in terms of what we have found to be valid use of reason, then our focus is narrowed to particular applications of reason, such that particular ends are required to clarify the matter: reason as oriented towards the formulation of a wff is different in application from reason as used to consider diatonic function in musical composition - though this does not exclude the possibility of areas of intersection between the two applications, which stem from the same general set of functions and forms that the mind is capable of utilising.
If we consider the use of the term more strictly speaking in terms of what we have found to be valid use of reason, then our focus is narrowed to particular applications of reason, such that particular ends are required to clarify the matter: reason as oriented towards the formulation of a wff is different in application from reason as used to consider diatonic function in musical composition - though this does not exclude the possibility of areas of intersection between the two applications, which stem from the same general set of functions and forms that the mind is capable of utilising.
Facebook UserSep 8
In terms of the sort of reason expected in a rigorous line of academic reasoning, in terms of some proof, etc., it is not impossible to reason about the supernatural, in that the rational entailment derived from various propositions and their combinations in lines of reasoning may be considered at any rate. To be sure, this reasoning does not function in terms of scientific falsification - though practically speaking, neither does the consideration of one's mother as anything more than a p-zombie, which currently may only be considered in terms of what is emotionally felt in practice.
James Robert Foster IISep 8
Sorry for the confusion. It's not the ST, it's "On the Power of God" q.vi a.viii -- Can An Angel Or Demon by Means of An Assumed Body Exercise the Functions of A Living Body?
I have an old paper copy (no cover), combined with the ST and some other writings. I copied the text from there. I was searching the ST online, but couldn't find what I was looking for, though I KNEW I had read it before, from Aquinas, and so I dug out the book. I know I have read similar thoughts about demons from Augustine, but I was sure I wasn't confusing the two. I just now found an online version here [http://www.op-stjoseph.org/Students/study/thomas/QDdePotentia.htm] that made me realize they are separate works (Stupid mistake, I know).
Anyway, thanks for demanding a correct documentation of the source. If not for that, I would still be referring to that book as the ST, only.
I have an old paper copy (no cover), combined with the ST and some other writings. I copied the text from there. I was searching the ST online, but couldn't find what I was looking for, though I KNEW I had read it before, from Aquinas, and so I dug out the book. I know I have read similar thoughts about demons from Augustine, but I was sure I wasn't confusing the two. I just now found an online version here [http://www.op-stjoseph.org/Students/study/thomas/QDdePotentia.htm] that made me realize they are separate works (Stupid mistake, I know).
Anyway, thanks for demanding a correct documentation of the source. If not for that, I would still be referring to that book as the ST, only.
Facebook UserSep 8
ST Prima Pars Q. 6 concerns "The Goodness of God," in 4 articles (a.1. whether God is good? a.2 whether God is the Supreme God? a.3 whether to be essentially good belongs to God alone? a.4 whether all things are good by the Divine Goodness?). So - there is no ST Ia q.6 a.8 (not to mention the subject-matter is completely off).
That Aquinas wrote on topics concerning angels and demons and what not, this is of course true; I'm just having a hard time trying to locate your reference(s) exactly. So, once again, (because it seems clear that you neither have a copy of the ST in front of you, nor did you consult an online version ST Ia q. 6 - else you would have not found any such article 8 - and therefore are using some other reference) what is your source/where did you find this quotation attributed to ST Ia? I'm not really trying to challenge your reasonable opinion such notions concerning angels and what not was speculative non-sense; I'm just really curious to know your source.
That Aquinas wrote on topics concerning angels and demons and what not, this is of course true; I'm just having a hard time trying to locate your reference(s) exactly. So, once again, (because it seems clear that you neither have a copy of the ST in front of you, nor did you consult an online version ST Ia q. 6 - else you would have not found any such article 8 - and therefore are using some other reference) what is your source/where did you find this quotation attributed to ST Ia? I'm not really trying to challenge your reasonable opinion such notions concerning angels and what not was speculative non-sense; I'm just really curious to know your source.
Displaying 5 of 48 posts.
Discuss Bonaventure
Facebook UserNov 5
Article on the evolution of Theology as an academic discipline, with some mention of Bonaventure: http://insidecatholic.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7168&Itemid=48
Facebook UserSep 8
Papal Address at Bonaventure's Birthplace: http://www.zenit.org/article-26793?l=english
Displaying all 2 posts.