Can you judge somebody's intelligence by their beliefs? The polite answer is "No! Of course not!" But my own experiences make me think otherwise.
Coming to you from London, England. Was the Brexit a good idea? As a libertarian, the situation is mixed. On the one hand, decentralizing power is a good thing. On the other hand, a Brexit might lead towards higher tariffs and protectionism.
On the whole, I think the pro's outweigh the con's. The principle of self-governance is more important than short-term economic gains.
I used to be a conservative, and then I was introduced to the libertarian political philosophy, which slowly turned me into an anarchist.
It sounds like a radical conclusion, but it comes from basic principles in economics and ethics. This article covers my personal intellectual journey.
This week is another breakdown episode, where I focus primarily on the interview about logical contradictions at Columbia. Dr. Justin Clarke-Doane was arguing that logical contradictions can be understood and incorporated into our worldview. I couldn't more strongly disagree, and I wasn't too impressed with his argument. This is why.
When people talk about nothing, what are they really talking about? How can you talk about nothing - unless nothing is actually something?
Many Eastern philosophies (Buddhism, in particular) believe that nothing is something, and a few Western philosophies do as well. But they are mistaken.
If we value a rational and logically consistent worldview, we have to understand exactly what nothing is - or more precisely, what it isn't.
Religion is too quickly dismissed by modern intellectuals. Religious or spiritual experience is a relatively universal phenomenon, and it deserves the same level of rational analysis as the rest of our worldview.
My guest today is Dr. Bob Murphy, who is a professional economist, author, and a self-described "born-again Christian". We talk about his beliefs, justification, and personal experiences with the faith.
Everybody is wrong about everything all the time. That's my life motto.
You can't simply believe something because somebody told you so. You have to doubt. The deeper you dive into philosophy, the more you realize how important the fundamentals are, and the more you realize how few people understand the fundamentals.
Therefore, it's better to simply assume people are wrong about everything from the start.
Can something be true at false at the same time? Some philosophers think so. I don't, but my guest does. Questions of logic and epistemology are at the foundation for everyone's philosophy, and the stakes couldn't be higher.
If contradictions are possible, that's a big deal.
If contradictions aren't possible, that's also a big deal.
You have to decide for yourself.
Do our minds have access to objective reality, or are we stuck inside our own heads? Do we need to "get outside our minds" to verify whether our claims about the world are true?
These questions have enormous implications for our entire philosophy. They are about the fundamental relationship between the mind and the world.