The Hegemony of Psychopathy (Excerpt)
This is an edited collection of excerpts from my book/pamphlet The Hegemony of Psychopathy that was just published. (It can be purchased in paperback or downloaded for free in PDF format at the publisher’s website.) * * * The Holocaust has received surprisingly little attention from social and political philosophers. This is surprising because the scale and extent of the atrocities involved in the Holocaust should be impossible to ignore. If we humans can do that, then that makes a difference ā or should make a difference ā for our beliefs about the ideal society, for example. At the very...
On Free Trade Ideology
According to conventional āwisdomā free trade leads to prosperity. Usually the idea is based on a version of David Ricardoās (1817) theory of ācomparative advantageā which is taught in most high-school economics classes. There is, however, a fundamental problem with that theory, as was shown by Frank Graham in 1923, and unfortunately that problem tends to be ignored. In the following, I will briefly summarize Ricardoās theory and Grahamās correction thereof, and discuss why the latter is ignored and the effects and implications of that neglect. A revised version of this article is part of chapter 15 of A Buddha...
Fascism, Anti-fascism, and Violence
Surprisingly many people seem to think that anti-fascists are just as bad as the fascists they oppose. (According to one rather unreliable source even Chomsky recently made critical comments about āAntifaā.) One would think that even a little bit of historical knowledge would prevent such strange ideas, but apparently this isnāt the case. Criticism of the anti-fascists and their tactics comes in ā roughly ā two kinds. One kind argues that violent tactics are bad because of their bad consequences. The other kind of argument appeals to (implicit) principles rather than to consequences. This short essay discusses ā and rejects...
Whatās there to be proud of?
Pride plays an important role in most ā if not all ā ideologies on the right of the political spectrum. National pride and racial pride are the most obvious examples. The former is, of course, the core feature of nationalism or patriotism; the latter is the foundation of racism. The dominant kind of pride in contemporary right-wing thought seems to be civilizational pride, however. That is, one of the key aspects of the alt-right and right-wing populism as well as more mainstream contemporary conservatism is pride in Western civilization. This pride in Western civilization, letās call it āWestern prideā, is...
No, youāre not entitled to your opinion
Nearly everyone seems to believe that they are entitled to their opinion, but it is not exactly clear what that means. This commonly claimed entitlement is some kind of supposed right, but neither the action it is supposed to allow, nor the duties it entails are clear. All rights imply duties. Often these are negative duties ā that is, duties not to do something. For example, if you have a right to free speech, then the government has the negative duty not to arrest you for speaking your mind. And if you have a right to life, then everyone else...
A Note on the Psychology of Radicalization and Terrorism
The best explanation of the psychological roots of radicalization and terrorism is given by Terror Management Theory (even if the word āterrorā in that name has nothing to do with terrorism). Western governments appear to be completely ignorant of this explanation, however, and as a consequence, much of their actions promote terrorism more than counter it. * * * There is no uncontroversial definition of āterrorismā. To a large extent, calling something āterrorismā or someone a āterroristā is a political claim intended to de-legitimatize an opponent and to express disapproval of his or her actions and goals. Nevertheless, there are...
On Gender Chauvinism
abstract ā Male chauvinism is the belief that men are morally superior to women. Female chauvinism is the belief that women are morally superior to men. Both depend on the assumption of essential or natural gender differences between men and women with regards to thinking styles, most easily summarized as male principle-based thinking and female empathic thinking. There is no evidence for such a gender difference, however, but there is evidence that differences in experience and circumstances can lead to relevant differences. People who care (often women) become more caring, for example. By implication, gender chauvinism is based on false...
The Nature of Philosophy and its Relation with Empirical Science
In his Confessions, Saint Augustine (5th ct.) wrote: āWhat is time? If no one asks me, I know what it is. If someone asks me to explain it, I do not know.ā You can substitute āphilosophyā for ātimeā in this quote and it will remain true: āWhat is philosophy? If no one asks me, I know what it is. If someone asks me to explain it, I do not know.ā Perhaps I should refine this claim: the application of Augustineās quote to āphilosophyā is true at least for me. I donāt know what philosophy is. And that is a source...
Book Review of Jay Garfieldās Engaging Buddhism ā Extended Version
When the Australasian Journal of Philosophy (AJP) asked me to review Jay Garfieldās (2015) book Engaging Buddhism I didnāt realize that they have a 400-word limit for āBook Notesā. Thatās the book-review equivalent of a haiku, which posed an interesting challenge, but which also required cutting 90% of the things I have (or want) to say about Garfieldās book. This āextended versionā of my review includes both the pre-publication version of my āBook Noteā for AJP and a some additional, more detailed comments. pre-publication version of my āBook Noteā for AJP In the preface of his book Garfield observes that...
Greece, Europe, and the Hegemony of Psychopathy
Question: Why canāt Greece repay its debts? Answer: Because its economy is in shambles. Question: Why is its economy so bad? Answer: Because the EU destroyed it. Thatās the short answer. Itās not the answer youāll read in most newspapers or hear on the TV ā those will tell you that itās all the Greeksā own fault. Their incompetent politicians and low productivity are too blame, theyāll tell you, or something similar. While it is undoubtedly true that Greece ā like most other countries, by the way ā has had its share of incompetent politicians, the story the mainstream press...
Anarchism as Metaphilosophy
Near the end of the prologue of Platoās Republic, Socrates says to his opponent Thrasymachus that what they are discussing is āno ordinary/insignificant matter, but how we ought to liveā (1.352d). As in many of Platoās writings, Socrates here played the role of his mouthpiece: āHow we ought to liveā was indeed no insignificant matter for Plato, but the starting point and ultimate purpose of his philosophical investigations. Relegating the pre-Socratic philosophers to the disciplineās prehistory, it is sometimes suggested that Western philosophy started with Plato. Alfred North Whitehead even claimed that the history of Western philosophy āconsists of a...