As everyone proclaims the value of education, why do we do such a sorry job in general of educating our youth? Even the best and brightest seem lacking somehow. I acknowledge that there are many individual teachers who perform the impossible of teaching the unwilling every day but they stand out because in general the uninspired are mouthing lessons to the disinterested, and it just seems such a waste for all involved. Does philosophy offer any hope? Thank you. -- L Pullin

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Is striving after self-improvement inherently valuable, and if so, how? Otherwise, is it merely a means to a mundane end such as money, prestige, or such? If the latter is the case, is there some reason not to be content with only moderate success and/or exertion and how would this not lead to a slippery-slope of laziness?

Why do humans continually put a higher value on material goods (such as diamonds and gold) than life. Is it some sort of adaptation through evolution for survival to obtain these goods at any cost? Were greed and jealously formed through some sort of hardwired drive in the human mind as population control? If so would there ever be a way to end this cycle? Nick

Could the pursuit of happiness be considered the purpose of all life? Is it not what all life strives for?

Hi, My roommate claims that it is impossible for an omnipotent being to exist. His logic is that if a being can create a rock so big it cannot lift it, then that being is not omnipotent because its lifting power is not infinite. But also, if it cannot create the rock so big it cannot lift, then it's creation power is not infinite. And because of this paradox, an omnipotent being cannot possibly exist. My boss was a philosophy major in school. He claims that this explanation is completely wrong. However, I do not understand his explanation as he said it very quickly and with many names of old philosophers and theorems and such that I cannot remember. So who is right? Regardless of whether or not an omnipotent being does exist or not, can one exist? Thanks.

If you don't have any reasons whatsoever to believe that a certain thing exists, should you deny that it exists, or simply withhold judgment on the question?

Why is beauty important to humans? We seem to seek out beautiful things, whether visually beautiful such as a location or a painting, or beautiful music. Why does beauty tend to calm and soothe?

Say I'm in a romantic relationship and I'm trying to decide whether I'd be happier remaining in it, or leaving it to philander. Of course, experimenting with both options isn't an option, since I would lose the initial romantic relationship for good. Also, suppose I really love the person I'm with, and they really love me. Do we have an obligation to each other to stay together, since one person choosing to leave would cause extreme emotional pain to the other? I'm not referring to an ethical obligation since I'm aware that there are different moral theories, but an obligation derived purely from the fact that I love someone. Finally, do I violate either an ethical or other obligation if I cheat on my romantic partner in order to get a comparison?

Was it ethical for Jews to evade taxes in Nazi Germany? Professor Robert McGee asked this question in a recent survey of international business professors and they seem to think that it was unethical. The abstract of the study is posted at http://ssrn.com/abstract=803964. The full study may be downloaded by hitting the DOWNLOAD button.