Philosophy Now Forum

Intellectuals “We've no use for intellectuals in this outfit. What we need is chimpanzees. Let me give you a word of advice: never say a word to us about being intelligent. We will think for you, my friend. Don't forget it.” Louis-Ferdinand Céline Just one more reminder as it were. “The man of acti...

Hypocrisy “We live in a world where the funeral matters more than the dead, the wedding more than love and the physical rather than the intellect. We live in the container culture, which despises the content.” Eduardo Galeano Tell me about it! “In the days when hyenas of hate suckle the babes of me...

Free Will “If I know better than you know what I am up to, it is only because I spend more time with myself than you do.” Daniel C. Dennett Go figure? “Our minds are information vacuums. Either we fill them with thoughts of our choosing or someone else will.” Ray A. Davis Sounds about right. “Free-...

Artificial Intelligence “It may sound preposterous to digital chimps, who cannot even walk in a straight line without asking AI, but those of us humans still have a functional brain, heart and spine.” Abhijit Naskar Here? If the shoe fits? “Alien intelligence,” I mumbled, only to jump up immediatel...

Stupidity “The problem with catering to the lowest common denominator, is that when society goes and lowers the bar, some idiot turns it into a limbo contest.” Kyu Wolf Let's run this by the idiots here. How low can they go? “I'm not afraid of you," he said irritably. "Then you're as stup...

Suicide “I used to think it utterly normal that I suffered from “suicidal ideation” on an almost daily basis. In other words, for as long as I can remember, the thought of ending my life came to me frequently and obsessively.” Stephen Fry Define utterly? “There is a certain right by which we may de...

Death “To escape death, she'd become death.” Sarah J. Maas I tried that once. Or twice. “The death of a beloved is an amputation.” C.S. Lewis Amen? “The fact that life has no meaning is a reason to live --moreover, the only one.” E. M. Cioran Let's run that by these... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki...

Theodicy “Job says what he thinks and feels, and how every person would likely feel in his position. His friends, on the other hand, talk as if they were secretly being watched by the powerful Ruler whose case is open to their verdict, and as if, in making their verdict, they cared more about winni...

Intellectuals “An intellectual? Yes. And never deny it. An intellectual is someone whose mind watches itself. I like this, because I am happy to be both halves, the watcher and the watched. "Can they be brought together?" This is a practical question. We must get down to it. "I despi...

It doesn't really look like much philosophy was happening in that thread tbh. It seldom does when it's just iambignose going on about Donald Rumsfeld though Just for the record, there are those here who insist they -- and only they -- are qualified to judge what either is or is not...serious philos...

I think there are some things that don't have a specific definition. Paganism is one of these, as are questions about the meaning of life. With Paganism, all we can do is give a few general ideas, while always bearing in mind that these won't fit every branch of Paganism. And with regard to questio...

Chaos Theory “Chaos has become not just theory but also method, not just a canon of beliefs but also a way of doing science.” James Gleick On the other hand, in wholly determined universe, might not chaos itself be no less an illusion? “In science as in life, it is well known that a chain of events...

Free Will “Are we just radio sets? Tuned to a particular frequency? Are our brains simply tapping their potential from an invisible but universal thought cloud? Seriously, what is the source of our thoughts? How do artists create art? How do writers write? What is it that is doing the creating?” Ab...

Artificial Intelligence “The most profound change is not just that AI replaces the mind. It is that it introduces a new form of labor into the world with a completely different physical basis. This is the Metabolic Rift.” Emad Mostaque You tell me. “Asking ChatGPT for life advice is like asking Goo...

It doesn't really look like much philosophy was happening in that thread tbh. It seldom does when it's just iambignose going on about Donald Rumsfeld though Just for the record, there are those here who insist they -- and only they -- are qualified to judge what either is or is not...serious philos...