My page devoted to posts and essays in Intellectual History has been updated to include recent posts: * Unamuno on Kant on God in the first two Critiques. * Heine versus Nietzsche on obscurantism in philosophy. * Should We Thank Coffee for Modern Civilization? * Burckhardt quotation on the birth of individualism in the Italian […]
Intellectual History page updated, February 2014 Read More »
The opening of my latest column at EveryJoe: “Intelligence is a human being’s most important asset. “One sign of this is the amount of time we spend educating our young. For some species, such as squirrels and hawks, the learning necessary to become a full adult is acquired in a matter of months. For more
Esquizofrênico, adjetivo: de, relacionado a, ou caracterizado pela coexistência de elementos incompatíveis ou antagônicos. Vamos falar sobre uma razão pela qual a política nos torna um pouco loucos — sua mistura incoerente de leis e regulamentações. (Aviso: metáfora exagerada à frente) Não somente a mão esquerda com frequência não sabe o que a direita está fazendo:
A política esquizofrênica — sexo, saúde, religião, dinheiro e outras coisas importantes Read More »
The opening of my latest column at EveryJoe: “Honestly now: Do you have what it takes? We all like to think we’re smarter than average, but the math is cruel. Half of us are below median intelligence, and some of us are considerably lower. So why should we think that freedom is a good policy for everyone?
Are You Smart Enough to Live in a Free Society? [new The Good Life column] Read More »
To accompany my Philosophy of Education course lectures on video, here are readings from key philosophers. Idealism: Plato (the Allegory of the Cave from Republic) and Immanuel Kant (from On Education). Realism: Aristotle (from Politics) and John Locke (from Some Thoughts concerning Education). Pragmatism: John Dewey (from Democracy and Education). Behaviorism: B. F. Skinner (from
Updated: Classic Readings in Philosophy of Education Read More »
Outra eleição se aproxima e a questão na mente de todos é a seguinte: os grandes doadores terão o retorno esperado? O cinismo sobre o financiamento de campanhas é uma resposta saudável a nossa longa história de capitalismo de compadrio. Quando os US$ 700 bilhões do pacote de resgate foram distribuídos durante a crise de
O dinheiro compra as eleições? Quando os bilionários cortejam os eleitores Read More »
For the video’s Portuguese subtitles, click the “cc” transcription icon along the bottom of the video frame: Here is the original English transcription, and here is the text of the Portuguese translation. More of my work in Portuguese translation here.
13 arguments for liberal capitalism — with Portuguese subtitles Read More »
The opening of my latest column at EveryJoe: “Irrational and unjust discrimination in the workplace deserves exposure and condemnation. But what about rational discrimination? Consider the following cases. “You are the chair of the hiring committee for a new president of a historically-black college. So you discriminate in favor of black candidates and against non-black
How to Discriminate Properly [new The Good Life column] Read More »