The biographer of Nobel Peace prize-winning (and Rockford University graduate) Jane Addams recounts this incident, in which Addams invokes Kantian duty-ethic in response to a friend’s desire for some gratitude in response to her charitable works: “Her wealthy friends like Louise deKoven Bowen [1859-1953] viewed gratitude for their good work as the only payment they […]
Jane Addams and Ellsworth Toohey Read More »
From an account of the famous meeting of the two giants in 1812: Beethoven’s manners were described as rough, like “an unlicked bear,” while “Goethe’s social attitudes were shaped in a more formal age. For Beethoven, 21 years his junior, the only true aristocrats were artists. In the mythology, his disillusionment was clinched by Goethe’s
Goethe versus Beethoven on deference to aristocrats Read More »
In a letter to Karl Löwith, Leo Strauss wrote: “Nietzsche so dominated and charmed me between my 22nd and 30th years that I literally believed everything I understood of him.” My question about Strauss is whether (a) he later really abandoned Nietzsche or (b) his professed rejection of Nietzsche is a Platonic noble lie. I
The young Leo Strauss on Nietzsche Read More »
Excerpt from Reflections on the Failure of Socialism (1955) By Max Forrester Eastman (1883-1969) People who read these reflections may wonder how I arrived at the understanding that socialism has failed. I am describing the whole experience in another book, but here a brief glance at the intellectual road I traveled may be helpful. It has
Max Eastman on abandoning socialism [text] Read More »
Pope Alexander VI knew how to throw a party. Rodrigo Borgia became Alexander VI in 1492 and livened things up at the Vatican. As reported in William Manchester’s A World Lit Only by Fire, p. 79: ‘Once he became Pope Alexander VI, Vatican parties, already wild, grew wilder. They were costly, but he could afford
The good/bad old days, Pope Alexander VI version Read More »
Tom Tropp, Vice-president for Ethics and Culture at the Arthur J. Gallagher Corporation is a guest speaker in my business ethics class today. Gallagher is a $5.6 billion company with almost 25,000 employees worldwide. Gallagher was named a most ethical company for the fifth time, in large part due to Mr. Tropp’s work. Mr. Tropp’s
Tom Tropp, CEE guest speaker Read More »
When Nazi Germany and fascist Italy were defeated, the great historical question was: Will liberalism or socialism prevail in the world? The ensuing mix of cold and hot wars and ideological battles reached their climax in our generation — with the fallout from the Soviet Union’s collapse, the enduring sadness of Cuba, the ongoing mess
Our generation’s question: Liberalism or Fascism or Socialism? Read More »
Matt Zwolinski and I have a friendly debate about several technical, foundational issues in Rand’s theory of rights: Can rights be based on egoism? What’s the connection between property rights and value creation? What counts as an improper initiation of force? Several other sub-issues about content and method arise along the way. In about 750 words each,
Zwolinski and Hicks on Rand and rights theory Read More »