Philosophy
Announcements, Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Philosophy
TOS-Con Video: “Intellectual Independence: Your Basic Means of Thriving”
Craig Biddle August 16, 2019
On the nature of intellectual independence, how it differs from independent thinking, and how to cultivate it so you can love your life to the fullest.
Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Philosophy
The Argument from Intimidation: A Confession of Intellectual Impotence
Craig Biddle June 20, 2019
People who use this method do so because “they have no arguments, no evidence, no proof, no reason, no ground to stand on.” —Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Philosophy
Scientific Morality and the Streetlight Effect
Craig Biddle June 10, 2019
Discovering a fact-based, reason-based morality requires shining the light of one’s own mind on the full scope of relevant facts and following the evidence wherever it leads.
Arts & Culture, History, Philosophy, Reviews
Socrates: Dramatizing the History of Western Thought
Robert Begley May 30, 2019
Tim Blake Nelson’s excellent play retells the story of one of the West’s first great philosophers—Socrates.
Good Living, Philosophy
Purpose Comes from Reason, Not Religion
Craig Biddle May 21, 2019
The moral question to ask yourself is not “How can I be a tool in the hands of God?”—but “How can I make my life the best, happiest life it can be?”
Philosophy, Politics & Rights
Liberating Public Lands
Jon Hersey May 21, 2019
Public lands are a drain on American citizens and a barrier to the production of life-serving values. If we want to stop wasting potential resources and, instead, use them to enrich our lives, we must privatize public lands.
History, Philosophy, Reviews, Science & Technology
John Locke and Natural Philosophy by Peter Anstey
Jon Hersey April 26, 2019
Peter Anstey reveals how John Locke’s pessimism about a science of nature began evaporating in light of Isaac Newton’s achievements.
Arts & Culture, History, Philosophy, Politics & Rights, Reviews
Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress by Steven Pinker
Timothy Sandefur April 17, 2019
Harvard professor Steven Pinker lays out a powerful case for cultural optimism in his book Enlightenment Now.
Arts & Culture, Philosophy
Poets of Spring and Appraisals of Man
Timothy Sandefur April 12, 2019
The poets E. E. Cummings and T. S. Eliot offer contrasting views of spring—and of mankind in general. Which captures the soul of the season?
Announcements, Ayn Rand & Objectivism, Philosophy, Politics & Rights
Craig Biddle to Speak in Bulgaria and UK on Self-Interest, Individualism, Government
Tim White March 28, 2019
Topics include the morality of self-interest, the importance of individualism, the proper role of government, and how to support and defend these truths.