How some political ideologies depend on the self-induced selflessness of their members. Here is Arendt in The Origins of Totalitarianism speaking of both Nazism and Communism: “How little the masses were driven by the famous instinct for self-preservation … . The fanaticism of members of totalitarian movements, so clearly different in quality from the greatest […]
Is everyone selfish? Hannah Arendt quotation Read More »
I re-read Eric Mack’s “Blind Injustice” [updated link], an excellent overview and critique of John Rawls’s A Theory of Justice. Rawls’s book is the most influential work of academic political philosophy in the last half-century, and Mack’s essay is the best short analysis I know of. By contrast: The moral basis for Rand’s liberalism, in
Philosopher Eric Mack on John Rawls Read More »
An analogy of books to money. As an exercise of imagination, let us suppose that the following were a true description of our publishing industry: * Only the government may print books.* The government decides how many books may be in circulation at any given time.* The government determines the initial price at which books
Money and Books: monopoly and censorship analogy Read More »
Re-reading E. G. West’s classic Education and the State, which plunges into the current and historical debates over private and government education. Suppose, for the sake of argument, that we grant that the government has obligation to protect children and that growing up ignorant is one of the things the government should protect children against.
Driver’s education and the government-schooling debates Read More »
Quotations on Nazi socialism and fascism. Excerpt from Nietzsche and the Nazis.
Appendix 2: Quotations on Nazi socialism and fascism [Nietzsche and the Nazis] Read More »
Professor Kimberly Baxter’s article summarizes Hegel’s argument that the state’s higher ethical purposes necessitate war as a means. According to Hegel, war is a “positive moment” wherein the state asserts itself as an individual and establishing its rights and interests. Sacrifice on behalf of the the state is the “substantial tie between the state and
Hegel on war’s purifying powers — Baxter article Read More »
The line is from Martin Heidegger’s resigned and despairing Der Speigel interview, shortly before his death in 1976. At Rockford University we hosted a showing of Jeffrey Van Davis’s film on Martin Heidegger’s philosophy and his disturbing relationship with National Socialism. After the showing, we had a panel discussion featuring director Van Davis, professors David
“Only a God Can Save Us” documentary Read More »
Let’s Save the Economy in 7 Easy Steps (and Have Fun While Doing It!) When I was young, I believed in freedom and self-responsibility. Yet my colleagues have regularly told me that my attitude is out of touch with contemporary public policy, which requires the use of any and all legislative tools to solve society’s
How drunken sex can save the economy Read More »