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Are all concrete objects contingent objects and all abstract objects noncontingent objects? Thank you!
I'm inclined to say that all
Stephen Maitzen
May 10, 2018
(changed May 10, 2018)
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I'm inclined to say that all concrete objects are contingent. But those who believe that God exists noncontingently would likely disagree, because according to standard versions of theism God is a concrete object, since God has causal power.
But I'm inclined to sa... Read more
Do omnipotence and omniscience imply one another?
I recommend that you read
Stephen Maitzen
May 10, 2018
(changed May 10, 2018)
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I recommend that you read this and this and see if you think they imply each other.
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Hi; please, I would like a philosophy professor to answer this question for me: is religion an ideology? And if it's not, then what is the difference? Thank you
An ideology or politically
Jonathan Westphal
May 3, 2018
(changed May 3, 2018)
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An ideology or politically organizing world view doesn't have to be about God, so ideology and religion are not the same thing. Is religion a false view that organizes society? (This is Mannheim's "particular" conception of ideology.) Well, you might think so, but you wo... Read more
Dear philosophers: In my reading of Descartes's Discourse on Method, I am fascinated by his project of universal doubt and the promise it seems to give to eliminate the many presuppositions we have. However, it seems that Descartes meant whatever belief one has is not justified if it can be subjected to any doubt, including skepticism. Therefore it would seem that answering skepticism should be among the priority in philosophical research. But this is a very strict requirement - is it the case in current philosophy research? If not, how do philosophers justify not making it the priority?
Three points:
Stephen Maitzen
April 19, 2018
(changed April 20, 2018)
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Three points:
1. It's not clear that the project of eliminating all of our presuppositions even makes sense. For instance: Could we coherently try to eliminate our presupposition that eliminating a given presupposition is inconsistent with keeping that presupposition? I can't se... Read more
It's been said that the lottery is a "stupidity tax," and that people only buy tickets who fundamentally misunderstand the odds against them. However, I've seen people reply that, although they understand full well the infinitesimally small chance of winning, they view the lottery as a form of entertainment, and buy tickets with this in mind. Is this a sound rationalization for playing the lottery? Or is it just a way of laundering the same old irrationality?
Well, either it's not a way
Allen Stairs
April 19, 2018
(changed April 19, 2018)
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Well, either it's not a way of laundering the same old irrationality or I'm irrational in this respect. I don't buy lottery tickets often, and even when I do, I don't spend much, but I do occasionally buy them, and it's for exactly the reason you suggest: it has a... Read more
Hello! I have a question about a particular line of reasoning in a debate that, to me, only leads to a "do I care" conclusion. I have now encountered this reasoning in several debates and can't think of a better conclusion. There must be a name for this that I am not aware of. Most recently this happened in a debate about cults. We were chugging along on the topic of cults and what gets something labeled as a cult vs say a religion or a tribe or, more universally, just humanity. The conclusion, again to me, was that when you expand the definition of "cult" so far out, yes, the entire human race can be labeled a cult. That is to say that under that definition of the word "cult" everything can be labeled a cult and the only conclusion is "do I care". This did not help my friend who wishes to avoid all cults but seemingly proved they were in a cult called the human race. Is there a name for this type of semantic bloating? Is this perhaps a long established logical fallacy I'm not aware of?? Regards.
I don't know the name, though
Allen Stairs
April 16, 2018
(changed April 16, 2018)
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I don't know the name, though I like "semantic bloating." In any case, a couple of observations.
First, words mean what people use them to mean. Words in English mean what competent speakers use them to mean—or, at least, that's close enough for our purposes. Co... Read more
Is consequentialism utilitarianism?
The usual way of
Michael Cholbi
April 12, 2018
(changed April 12, 2018)
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The usual way of understanding their relation is that utilitarianism is a version of consequentialism. Consequentialism holds that the only facts about an action that matter to whether the act is morally permissible, etc., are facts about the acts' consequences — roughly, how g... Read more
Is there any point in listening to sad music?
The best answer, surely, is
Allen Stairs
April 12, 2018
(changed May 3, 2018)
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The best answer, surely, is yes. Whether we can say why the answer is yes may be another matter.
Here's an external reason: untold millions of sane, healthy people listen to sad music and find it rewarding. It's possible, I suppose, that this is a kind of pathology, but... Read more
What is the purpose of a college degree? If I teach myself a subject from reading books about it, how is it any different from paying expensive tuition to learn the exact same information?
There's not just one answer
Allen Stairs
April 5, 2018
(changed April 5, 2018)
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There's not just one answer and others may add their own. But your question equates getting an education with acquiring information, and that's not a good way to think of it. I'll use philosophy as an example, but some version of what I'm about to say would apply t... Read more
Hi, wanted to know if Order & Reason are a part of Nature. or if this is simply how humans view things and try to make sense of things. Cheers
For myself, I think the
Peter S. Fosl
April 5, 2018
(changed April 5, 2018)
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For myself, I think the traditions of philosophical skepticism have raised serious doubts about whether or not this question can be finally answered. It seems, given the apparent lessons of those traditions, that it wisest to suspend judgment on the question but nevertheles... Read more