Category: Philosophy

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The Cruelty of Our Times

  By Philosophy, Politics, Public Policy

The worst part of our times is that cruelty, which has always come too easily to human beings, has now become the accepted mode of too much of our lives. And for so many reasons. Because we are so divided politically and so threatened by the other side we want to obliterate them. Because we are so threatened by the other side that we can’t abide anyone on our side who doesn’t think and talk exactly as we do, or who fails to rise to the same level of indignation at some offense that we do. Because we talk to so many people at a mediated distance, which makes it impossible to see the immediate harm we do to others with our words. Because political conflict, economic struggles, and endless choices make us so uncertain of ourselves and our future that we seek the constant affirmation that comes with showing… Continue reading

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Championships and the Necessary Fictions of Life

  By Philosophy, Sports

As some of you have seen, Since Giannis’s post-game interview the other day, I’ve been looking at how we talk about sports in a new light. One of the necessary fictions of life is that success and failure in our lives are at least to some extent under our control. It’s a necessary fiction because if we don’t believe that to some extent, we will be discouraged, downhearted, despondent, and at the very least not put forward the effort we need to succeed. Or we wouldn’t be able to face the injustice of a world in which some people grow up in deep poverty and others grow up wealthy. Or we wouldn’t be able to deal with knowing that some of us are going to die young from an accident or disease, and others won’t. But it is a fiction because so much of our lives are not under our… Continue reading

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“James Harden Sucks”

  By Philosophy, Sports

“James Harden sucks.” We’ve heard a lot of that in the week after he scored a career-high 45 points in a playoff game. I have some thoughts on that accusation. Those who don’t do work that involves some kind of public performance—or who do it but are not honest with themselves—don’t realize how varied our performance can be from one day or even one moment to another. Bill Russell wrote about this in his wonderful (second) auto-biography, Second Wind, which I read in my early twenties and has influenced me in many ways since. Russell said that after every game he gave himself a grade based on how well he performed, and reviewed things he did well and did not do well. IIRC he said that he averaged about a B. When I started teaching, I did the same thing. My teaching was almost done in a seminar format. if… Continue reading

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Statement: PA Budget and Policy Center Lauds Passage of PA House Bills on Sexual Abuse

  By Feminism, PA Budget and Policy Center, Sexual and gender equality, Sexual harassment, Statements

Today the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center applauds the two bipartisan bills passed to allow those who have been past victims of sexual abuse in the state to sue their perpetrators and the institutions that protect them. Legislation creating a two-year window waiving the statute of limitations for these crimes is long overdue. And while we believe that there is no constitutional barrier to such legislation, we are also glad that a constitutional amendment allowing such legislation was passed today, as well, in case the Courts disagree with our analysis of the issue. We congratulate Speaker Mark Rozzi for his leadership on this important, deeply personal legislation. Continue reading

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Climate Change, COVID, and Y2K: Thinking About Time and Causality

  By Climate Change, Philosophy

Sometimes I wonder how the human race as a whole, especially those of us in the so-called advanced countries, can be so unimaginably slow in recognizing the danger of global warming. There are, of course, many examples in history of civilizations and societies that did themselves in by engaging in practices, such as over-farming in ways that leads to the death of or erosion of vital lands. But this has typically happened to civilizations and societies that had no technological capacity to look ahead and see the long-term consequences of what they were doing. We have that capacity. Yet we are moving slowly, and possibly far too slowly to deal with global warming. Obviously, the political interest of the wealthy fossil fuel industry is a major barrier. And so is the anti-government ideology of the far right. But it has occurred to me from time to time that human beings… Continue reading

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Chanukah and Hellenism

  By Philosophy, Uncategorized

Originally written during Chanukah 2014. Happy Chanukah, Hanukah, Hannukkah, Chanukka, Hanuka, Channukah, Hanukah, Chanukkah, Hannukah, Chanuka or Hanaka I’ve always loved this holiday–fighting for political and religious freedom chimed with so much I believed in. And then I learned that the Maccabees were not just fighting against the Seleucids but the Hellenistic Jews whose syncretic practices conflicted with what they took to be a more pure form of Jewish practice. That complicated things since I’m a Hellenistic Jew, myself, for whom syncretism (which is a fancy way of saying mash-ups) are deeply attractive. My work in political philosophy draws on and attempts to weave together ideas from Jewish (especially as they have influenced modern liberalism) and Greek sources. So I’m loathe to identify with a moment in Jewish history which attacked those Jews whose ideas prefigure my own. I’m not quite done figuring out how to reinterpret the holiday so… Continue reading

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Day Six

  By Biblical thought, Feminism, Philosophy

In Christian traditions, and most Jewish ones as well, the story of the Garden of Eden is the story of humankind’s estrangement from God. Jews and Christians differ about how we are to understand that estrangement. Many Christians see the fall as the source of original sin. Jews, on the other hand, typically reject the notion of original sin. Yet the dominant interpretation of Genesis 2 is that, in eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve are rejecting the authority of God. As a result God punishes them, and us. The most troubling circumstances of human life flow from the action of Adam and Eve. And only a return to God, in this world or the next, can free us from our predicament. Against this traditional interpretation of the text I want to pose another, radically different and feminist reading, one that draws on… Continue reading

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Why Do Artists and Intellectual Tend to be on the Left?

  By Philosophy, Politics

Why do artists and intellectuals tend to be liberals? Because artistic and intellectual goods are things we can all share. When you enjoy a piece of music, it doesn’t stop me from doing so. When you enjoy a good book, the same. In fact, the more people love the same music and books I do, the more people I have to share in the experience and from whom I can learn more about what I love. That doesn’t mean there are no conflicts in these spheres of life. Once upon a time, there was a conflict over owning these goods. But in the digital world the cost of reproducing music and books is now very close to zero. There are still limited resources for the creation of intellectual and artistic goods. But the more we focus our lives on the pursuit of these goods, the more we devote our resources… Continue reading

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The Cost of Banning Abortion in Pennsylvania

  By Abortion, Feminism

By Claire Kovach with Marc Stier Drawing on a few decades of research, this paper shows that banning abortion would severely harm women in the state, especially women of color and women with low incomes. The paper summarizes research showing that the inability to secure an abortion harms women’s physical and mental health, makes it harder for them to secure an education, reduces their prospects for employment and good wages, and is likely to leave them facing hardship and poverty. The paper concludes that the combined direct and indirect effects of a total ban on abortion in Pennsylvania would likely reduce wages in the state by $10 billion a year. <a href=”http:marcstier.com/blog2/wp-content/uplaods/22/09/CostOfAbortionBan-2.pdf” rel=”noopener” target=”_blank”>Click here to read full screen or print.</a> &nbsp; Continue reading

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We Need To Make Time for the Pain

  By Philosophy

Have you noticed how much pain there is among your friends in real life and and here on social as well? Most of the time I can shut a lot of it it out. I have to do that sometimes. Not always. This week alone I’ve talked to or interacted with people who: -Is watching a young mother die of cancer -Is dealing with a long course of chemotherapy -Just had to change to a new course of chemotherapy -Lost their husband from cancer not long ago -Lost their father from a sudden death not long ago -Is suffering from severe back problems And that’s just the physical suffering. There are also the people: -Struggling with dementia and taking care of those who are. -Hate the hard work they have to do to survive -Are single and worrying about how they are going to care for themselves when they get… Continue reading