The problem arises when one individual gains too much power over another. It can happen in politics, business or societal affairs. When there is too m...
This is a big problem. If some people don't share these intuitions, because they don't feel them, then what do we do? Physics is very hard. Society is...
Many thanks for your kind and thoughtful reply. I enjoy certain paradoxes a lot too, this one caught my attention, I'm not sure why. I guess it has to...
In mainstream debate the alternative given is "communism" as in the USSR. But it's a good question, what such an alternative could be like. Voluntary ...
Despite generally being able to come up with wonderful examples, it's not always too clear what he's saying, at least to me. What you interpret him to...
So let's just say he makes it to Thursday night, he's pretty confident he can't be killed Friday, because he would know about it. But actually he can ...
I mean sure. But it would be however a bit annoying to have many random laypeople saying "this is wrong", when the person in question has years of exp...
I can only quote from physicists or scientists who I think are reliable. And when such work is promulgated through popular works - which is perfectly ...
Why would Monday be a surprise? He can only consider any other day after if he lives through Monday. He starts with Friday and goes backward, but the ...
The tradition I'm sympathetic with Russell, Chomsky, Strawson, etc. Say that physics is simple in the following sense: the structures they study are s...
Goodness gracious I'm not the only one! I'm horrified of a logician coming here and saying, "pss, that's easy: take X to be the function of the prison...
But the prediction was true. If he were not surprised the day he was going to be killed or if he knew the day, then she would be wrong. But in general...
Sure. Except that in this case, we are led to believe weekends don't count. So it would be a 1/5 chance. So the problem starts out on Monday. He can o...
He can rule out Tuesday if he isn't killed by Monday night, because he would be expecting it. If he expects to be killed on any given day, he won't be...
Interesting perspective of focusing mostly on the judge. Yet, given what happens in the paradox, he is surprised and gets killed. So let me play devil...
:rofl: That's pretty good I must say. I'd only add one obscene word after "surprise". :wink: What you point out here is actually an interesting compon...
Sure. Any human language is infinite. One can write an infinite number of sentences in any language and never run out of things to say. One can write ...
Infinity can be applied in different domains. English is infinite, but English isn't French. Math is infinite, but math doesn't contain the letters of...
Evil is a high bar. Some people surely reach that. Intention is important as others have mentioned. Perhaps something like "causally cruel" would be a...
:cool: Sure. I have in mind those people who don't believe in hell. I don't know why they would not. But postulating heaven after this life, must be a...
Sure. Absolute proof when it comes to belief is not possible for us. Only probabilities, likelihoods and reasons can give us better or worse reason to...
Sure. Consciousness is extremely strange. However, I think we risk forgetting that back in the 17th century, there was a different "hard problem". As ...
What you say is true given a certain account of philosophy. One could make a distinction between "materialism" and "idealism" up until around the time...
I didn't have you in mind for my comment, I was just reacting to 180's comment. I don't understand what "beyond the material" means. Until someone can...
:lol: :up: I love it. Very much down Schopenhauer's alley, which has looked quite rational to me, if not sometimes a tad too pessimistic, but on a cor...
I think one can speak of being more or less aware, which must imply consciousness. Most people (myself included) are less aware right after waking up,...
:up: Davis is correct here too, if you like it then it's good. Simple as that. Perhaps, on the music theory part. In relation to metaphysics, I think ...
:100: :100: on the "advantage" angle, that's exactly right. Maybe the enjoyment of music is a kind of mutation or side effect in which, after certain ...
Sure, we have to use some words to communicate, but anything we use will be very inadequate to explain what's actually going on in the case of non-hum...
I'd have to guess certain animal cries refer to things in the world, such as "predator", "food", "danger", "mating", "territory" and so on. If this is...
Here I think Chomsky's idea makes a lot of sense. Naturalism is, whatever is achieved by naturalistic inquiry. By naturalistic inquiry, he has in mind...
Yes. I read a metaphysical project by one philosopher recently who speaks in similar terms. But she speaks about it in relation to fiction, not among ...
:up: I just get bored. Sometimes I get mad, but there's more to the world than brain-talk. Sounds something like the idea of "the great chain of Being...
Then there's a lot of stuff to argue about. But I don't think arguing with people who agree with Dennett or Churchland(s) to be fruitful in any way. O...
Which is not so bad. How we can cash out Platonic reality, is difficult. Well, to speak of God, I'd need to know what kind of entity you have in mind....
Ah, gatcha. Thanks. As thus stated, this leaves out a lot of stuff concerning the mental. Unless one takes the mental to be fundamental in interpretin...
This isn't intended to argue in favor of anything, just getting your perspective on similar topics: So these physical objects you have in mind, do the...
By things in themselves, I take to mean the ground of objects which are not a representation. I don't have in mind Kant, per se, just the general topi...
Absolutely! Civility and politeness and being nice to others is fundamental. Otherwise we get nowhere. I agree in part with what you say. I do think t...
Hah. Yeah, for sure. I call these the easy problems, just to highlight how easy they are. Utterly trivial really. :joke: So tell me, do you think that...
Belonging to a certain political orientation is tied with one thinks is correct or proper or on the right track so far as society and the world should...
Hmmm. :chin: Well there are the obvious things that come to mind, say, being happy with the use of a certain drug and maintaining that happiness with ...
Sure, but isn't that true of all words? That is at bottom, when we continue explaining what a word means, we can only go to other words, until we reac...
Given the two options you present as presented, then yes, I think "joy" is better than "happiness". I'd be satisfied with being "interested" in someth...
Hmmm. I have an idea of what it means to have a self. Granted, it's not much, but I make use of such a concept with relative frequency. Organization i...
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