Philosophy Now Forum

Bill, if we follow your "instruction" ("I want you to focus upon this red ball...") we are not then, I think, doing philosophy at all. Yes, if we follow your instruction the background -- and possibly larger, possibly more important -- information can disappear. For me, however, ...

So read Plato, Plato on Socrates, Aristotle, the Romans(if you are interested in applied Philosophy of Politics), the Scholastics(if you are interested in thought and 'God'), Spinoza, Leibniz, Locke, Hume, Berkeley, Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, Sartre, Heidegger, Husserl, Marx, Russell, Wi...

If I were to use every observation mechanism available to me, I could still observe only the most minute part of what you call reality. Right. Good, bear that in mind as we proceed… So little, in fact, that nothing could make any sense. So forget about it making sense. By "making sense" I...

Ah, you respect observation, good. So do it! No, I don't mean observe my post, or Nikolai's post, or what somebody else said. Forget about us. Forget about everybody. Observe reality instead, the real authority. And no, not your theories or conclusions ABOUT reality either. Forget about you too. Re...

Welcome to the thread EH. Whatever your perspective, I think you'll agree Nikolai offers a quite articulate addition to this topic. Well, I'm not yet sure I'll agree to that. Articulate, yes, but I'm questioning the perspective, which seems driven by something outside of what observation will attes...

The life that is thus examined, it holds, will be happier, more satisfying, more fruitful. First, is this true? I'm just asking the question, not making an assertion. I'm new to this thread (led here by a PM from Typist -- I always forget to look at PMs), and I'm not even close to up-to-date on the...

"All the world is a stage and we, merely actors. " I think often we forget what 'actors' implies. We are merely 'acting' the script and saying the lines we were given. Two little quibbles, Lance. I did not mean the word "actor" in the sense you are using it. I meant it in it's m...

We are priceless morons! We have no value! :lol: Typist, I appreciate the comment in the context in which I find it. The preceding dialogue was very much unworthy of a forum with pretensions to "philosophy." But I don't think it necessary to paint all with the same brush. That I may strug...

Indeed, "in the beginning.." (..god created..) As english transcribed from the original hebrew or greek or whatever is supposed to mean something different than a set point called 'the beginning'. I can't speak for Biblical hermeneutics, but the world "nonsense" may not be so cl...

Your partner is alive. The photo is dead. If there is no big difference between the two, wouldn't it be cost efficient to get rid of the partner? Think of the savings! :lol: Ever had a fight with your loved one? I regret to say that I have -- more than one (or two or three) actually. And there have...

aPhilosophy is an exploration of experience outside of thought. ... It's no more complicated than shifting your gaze from a photograph of your partner, to your real partner. ... Reading books about sex is not sex. Talking about aphilosophy isn't aphilosophy. Well you are persistent (as I am, I gues...

Philosophy is a process of carefully analyzing the points you've presented and attempting to come to some conclusion about them. The philosopher makes a carefully organized pile of ideas on the ground. aPhilosophy is a process of setting all the ideas aside. Just letting them go. The aphilosopher t...

I've already explained this many times and it has no effect on you whatsoever. It may surprise you to learn that my memory is not perfect, that I engage in many dialogues throughout my day (and over weeks or months that becomes huge) and that the "search" feature on PHPBB bulletin boards ...

I know you sincerely believe this about yourself. And I will believe it too, once you stop randomly tossing ignorant hate at billions of theists you've never met. Please show me that "ignorant hate" I've tossed. Is it ignorant hate to not believe something that someone else believes? Is i...

And an even better question, Typist, is why we couldn't all just talk to one another, rather than at one another. We've discussed this before. I'm doubtful whether another visit will accomplish anything, but ok, I'll play along. There are two levels to most ideological discussions on forums. On the...