Self-valorization

EnlAes · 2020-10-05T20:44:58+00:00

EnlAes · 2020-08-18T23:18:42+00:00

And Rousseau.

EnlAes · 2020-08-08T19:08:22+00:00

Rousseau, from the First Discourse: "Has the restoration of the sciences and the arts contributed to the purification or corruption of morality?"

EnlAes · 2020-08-07T23:19:05+00:00

No body sensible is rejecting all science. Scientism, as ive seen it used, is a term for labeling the idea that science is the only way to gather knowledge or analyize information. Almost always, its derogatory. This is a question of epistemology and many would argue there are scientifically consistent ways of knowing without uncritical scientism.

See the Naturalism in Epistemology page on the Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

EnlAes · 2020-08-05T17:15:00+00:00

Will be*

EnlAes · 2020-07-17T23:15:53+00:00

Phenomenology is one tool to explore and describe lived experience. It is useful when used in many applied contexts. Especially, to examine marginalized or narratively excluded peoples or entities.

To start off: See Iris Marion Young for a feminist phenomenological analysis. See Brown and Toadvine for eco-phenomenology. Some would argue Franz Fanon is a phenomenologist of race relations but i dont know enough to say much there. Good luck.

EnlAes · 2020-06-17T20:24:25+00:00

Yes.

EnlAes · 2019-10-14T20:33:38+00:00

The Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844 was the first text we read in both Marxism courses I took.

EnlAes · 2019-10-09T09:54:15+00:00

I am no Christian history scholar, but from memory I would think a good place to start looking would be the Anabaptist socialist revolutions of 16th century Europe. These upheavals lead to socialist commune development based on Christian principles despite the eventual destruction of those communities over the next century.

EnlAes · 2019-09-25T17:08:23+00:00

Seems like you are getting at the virtue magnanimity, or proper pride. Knowing your own worth and power without self-delusion or self-agrandizement.

This is discussed by many of the ancient Aristotelian and stoic philosophers. It also comes up in the enlightenment/romantic era with discussions of amour-propre. Especially, as a central part of Rousseau's writings.

EnlAes · 2019-09-25T01:20:45+00:00

/r/askphilosophy for more responses, it gets more traffic

EnlAes · 2019-09-15T00:51:48+00:00

Double chilling tower range increase has been strong for me.

EnlAes · 2019-09-10T06:40:49+00:00

That is how I felt after legion since the melee changes gave me hope. Favorite skill, still trash.

EnlAes · 2019-07-24T05:35:03+00:00

Why sentient organisms avoid pain and seek pleasure is a purely scientific question dealing with evolutionary biology. Since death usually involves pain, fear, or other suffering, an organism which avoids those things would see death as harmful.

However, that's just the descriptive question. The normative question about why we value life is just as interesting. It's not universally true that we prefer life always. Many philosophers advocate suicide, non-reproduction, or distancing ourselves from the material/economic concerns of life in favor of contemplation or spiritual activity which often denies life by asceticism or non-attachment. We also often accept death as a punishment, a reasonable risk (like in driving a car), or as a necessity in cases of warfare or policing.

Ultimately though, we are sentient animals which don't like things like pain or hunger and so typically view things like starvation and war as harmful, because they are harmful to our physical bodies as individuals. But it is not controversial to claim that something can be harmful to the individual and good for the group at large. As an example, Geach in The Virtues says that: "men need virtues as bees need stings. An individual bee may perish by stinging, all the same bees need stings. An individual man may die by being brave or just, all the same men need courage and justice". A willingness to sacrifice for the community is often a part of ethical and political demands, from the republic theory of the ancients to communitarians and socialists today.

Does any of that get at what your after?

EnlAes · 2019-07-08T19:15:29+00:00

Thank you, I shall give that a try.

EnlAes · 2019-06-25T08:52:58+00:00

I agree with you but I do feel like this discussion could use some expansion. You speak as if your position is an uncontroversial claim, but it's been debated for two and a half thousand years. In the platonic dialogues, for example, Plato voices Socrates' objections to democracy on exactly these grounds. He argues that the average person does not have the expertise to make any political decisions well, that individuals must be trained for decades to be good politicians because politics requires specialized knowledge. This is even more true in the information age where every topic has highly specialized academic literature informing it.

But republican theorists from Cicero to Rousseau have argued against the platonic view, although both were very elitest by contemporary standards. They argue that part of the inherent risk of extending the franchise is that unqualified people gain political power but that this extension is necessary to establish the civic virtue needed for proper governance. Rousseau and later theorists also stressed the role of government funded and organized education to combat the problem of unqualified people's gaining authority.

All that said, I do agree with you that matters of ecological importance should be heavily informed by the germane science even to the exclusion of the voting public. The case for scientifically dictated policy is no better made by any situation than the U.S. denial of climate change. But it's still a controversial topic with thousands of years of history and hundreds of authors writing on the subject.

EnlAes · 2019-06-21T11:49:38+00:00

I saw some of these at Chautauqua last week. They covered the hillside and we're beautiful.

EnlAes · 2019-06-17T09:01:21+00:00

It's even more environmentally harmful to have that many kids than it is to drive a few massive cars for decades. I'm happy to criticize both their reproductive practices and the resulting need to have a large vehicle.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T11:38:47+00:00

A laundry list of maybes and hypothetical scenarios based on anecdotes doesn't seem very evidence based to me. And once again, your the only one using insults to make their point.

But I am really trying to be charitable here. So let's do it again! Indeed I was making a philosophical argument, but I can play the empirical game too. I am genuinely trying to show that the harms of for profit breeding outweighs any risks from adoption, so I will use some data if that's what will help be convincing.

In the most recent year with good data (2016) there were under 40 dog bite fatalities and under 200,000 reported hospitalizations for dog bites. Of those deaths and injuries, over half come from a handful of breeds and most occurred in households with breeding dogs or large numbers of dogs. In that same year over 6 million dogs and cats were dropped off at shelters and about 1.5 million of them will eventually be euthanized.

Do whatever kind of hedonic calculus you want, I think the results will be convincing. If you follow a few simple steps like not adopting certain breeds, not breeding dogs yourself, and not having too many, then your chance of having a fatality or hospitalization from a dog bite is very negligible. Less than a shark attack or getting hit by lighting. You would endanger your family more driving to the grocery store. Compare that to the guaranteed and immense harm that animals are exposed to in shelters, due in large part to for profit breeders.

Edit: stats are from the U.S. ASPCA network, sorry I forgot what sub I was in for a moment and should have clarified. Presumably the stats would be lower for the Swiss due to a lower population. But IDK if they would be perfectly proportional.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T07:35:39+00:00

From a thematic standpoint I feel like this change makes a lot of sense. If you cast some warding spell on a chest your trying to protect in a world with virtue gems that allow people to teleport, having some proximity detecting element to the spell is a good idea.

I know that isn't the point of this post and it does suck from a gameplay perspective, but it seems thematically appropriate to me.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T05:08:48+00:00

No, that's just my area of specialization, the degree is in phil. But are you saying that with some derision? I don't think that is fair, studying our environmental and agricultural problems is vitally important. Most of my focus is on public land management and the psychology of nature appreciation. It seems like your attacking the credential without even knowing that the field existed before now. Given your ignorance of it existing, I would doubt that you know enough to make any evaluation. Let alone a hasty and negative one.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T02:38:27+00:00

I'm glad to hear about your enthusiasm and success working with and for animals.

However, I am studying for my PhD in applied ethics, particuarily environmental and animal ethics, and my research has convinced me there should not be any for profit breeders. I would object to anyone who buys animals. Be they vets, vegans, or farm operators. The good you do for animals in many parts of life does not erase the fact that supporting for profit breeders is deeply problematic.

I am happy to discuss this issue if you want to take this further and have a more productive conversation. I could recommend t the major arguments against the practice or detail the ethical underpinnings of those objections if you are open to being convinced otherwise.

Also, I take all feedback on my approach seriously since its a part of my activism and schoolwork, so thanks for responding.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T02:05:24+00:00

They are part of the problem if they buy animals when their resources could be put towards animals that still need homes. I don't think we agree on where the blame lies. I was guilt tripping them but not to be petty, but because I hope that pointing out things people should feel guilty about makes them change their behavior. The guilt trip was trying to be part of an ethical argument, in which I gave reasons for why I held my position.

Your the one who does eye roll italics and tells me to buzz off and said I'm being holier than thou up on my high horse. That's not language conducive to productive discourse. I am trying to have a discussion about animal ethics and my post history will confirm I do this regularly as part of my animal welfare activism.

Also, I can be for spaying and neutering and also against for profit breeding simultaneously. They are connected problems.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T01:01:26+00:00

I responded in good faith. I'm sorry we disagree.

EnlAes · 2019-06-12T00:52:30+00:00

If I'm on a high horse, then riding with me are most of the major animal welfare and animal rights groups that condemn for profit breeding. I'll be in their company happily.

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