Shows
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Imperialism 6; Civil Society, Imperialism, & MindIn Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Having examined the mechanisms of imperialism and “mind-changing” more closely in the last three episodes, we’ll pan out a bit to understand these ideas in a larger historical and philosophical context. First, we’ll seek to understand what exactly Imperialist thinkers, like Mill, intended to occur in the course of these processes. Next, we’ll discuss the relationships between Civil...2022-08-251h 08
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Imperialism 5; Cohn’s Unintended Echoes of ImperialismIn Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Today, we’ll finish our look at Bernard Cohn’s COLONIALISM AND ITS FORMS OF KNOWLEDGE: THE BRITISH IN INDIA Cohn uses the critical style of Michel Foucault to examine how the English expressions of power in India often produced outcomes they did not anticipate - even, or especially, when their intentions were “good”.We’ll begin with Cohn on the English...2022-08-111h 11
A Freedom of IdeasEPIPHENOMENA: The Language of Command in Imperial IndiaIn Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Today, a brief treatment of a point made in Bernard Cohn’s COLONIALISM AND ITS FORMS OF KNOWLEDGE: THE BRITISH IN INDIA. Cohn talks about the way the English taught and used a hyper-simplified version of Indian language whose only purpose was to allow British Imperialists to give orders to “menials” under their command. By teaching English nobility who were new t...2022-08-0821 min
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Imperialism 4; Cohn on Knowledge in ImperialismIn Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Today, and next time, we’ll look at Bernard Cohn’s COLONIALISM AND ITS FORMS OF KNOWLEDGE: THE BRITISH IN INDIA. Cohn uses the critical style of Michel Foucault to examine how the English expressions of power in India often produced outcomes they did not anticipate - even, or especially, when their intentions were “good”. Chalk this up in part to tryin...2022-07-2840 min
A Freedom of IdeasEPIPHENOMENA: Power to Foucault!In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Today, we have a quick(esque) episode on Michel Foucault, who is not at all a "foundational" philosopher, but who set the tone for the work of Bernard Cohn, who we’ll be talking about on our next two episodes.Also, on this episode, I try my hand at a bit of lite-hearted banter to kick off the show. Lite-h...2022-07-2634 min
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Imperialism 3; “Indian Boarding Schools”In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Having contended that Imperialism served to “change the minds” of much of the world – meaning, to re-make the human understanding of how the mind operates in relationship to the world – for the next three episodes we’ll talk about how, exactly, that mind-changing took place.We’ll begin by discussing “Indian Boarding Schools” in the United States as one of a number of bruta...2022-07-1450 min
Ravel95. Processing Quantum Theology (feat. Cori Di Biase)As we all know, Emily has recently been busy preparing for and celebrating the confirmation of her ordination, so we thought today was a perfect opportunity to entangle Ravel with our guest co-host, Cori Di Biase of the A Freedom of Ideas Podcast. Cori visits the show to ask questions about philosophical Absolutes and how a vision of process theology might be moving us to a whole new mode of thinking in the same way the field of physics shifted from Newtonian to Einsteinian ideas.Connect with Cori:afreedomofideas.comA Freedom of Ideas Podcast@afreedomofideas TwitterCori...2022-07-131h 03
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Imperialism 2; There's No Reason, DudeIn Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.For many, including John Stuart Mill, Imperialism included the goal of “helping” subject people to become more rational; to think more like Europeans, with a certain kind of rationality that would lead to a greater capacity for self-governance and freedom. Explicit in this goal, and often implicit in our assumptions about Imperialism, today, is the assumption that European rationality is ultimately a better...2022-06-301h 06
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Imperialism, Part 1In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Today we come to the crux of our conversation on European reason, European rational chauvinism, and their profound effect on how the world thinks. We’ll trace the process of European rational chauvinism – the sense inherent to the European form of rationality that it has a unique claim on and capacity to seek the truth – as it combines with numerous o...2022-06-161h 02
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Mid-Season Re-CapIn Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.In this episode, in preperation for a deep dove on reason, freedom, and Imperialism, we'll re-cap the season thus far. 2022-06-1443 min
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Locke & the Trajectory of Rational Chauvinism, Part 2In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Following Locke as he begins to craft and assemble the building blocks of Civil Society, to ward off the State of War. We consider Locke’s view of humankind as naturally driven toward nearly perfect versions of freedom, reason, and equality that are impossible in the imperfect realm of governments, institutions, and laws.We’ll consider Locke as one of the p...2022-04-211h 10
Know Normal PeopleCori Di BiaseCori Di Biase proves that "the only normal people you know are the ones you don't know very well".Cori grew up in rural upstate New York in a K-12 school of 200 total students. He attended Simon's Rock College beginning in the 10th grade then moving on to SUNY Purchase for his Bachelors in Philosophy. Cori began life after college as a saleman of goods with which he had no connection with or passion for, leading to Cori's "favorite failure" moment that shifted his life toward the work he does with public policy and disability service provision...2022-04-191h 50
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Locke & the Trajectory of Rational Chauvinism, Part 1In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.Today we begin our exploration of Locke’s philosophy by looking at the politics of his time, from the death of Queen Elizabeth through the Glorious Revolution in England.Framing Locke’s work in the philosophy of governance as comparable to Descartes’ search for first principles, we begin by seeing how Locke’s notion of “Civil Society” emerges as a mediate point...2022-04-141h 05
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Permissible Despotism in Mill, Part 2In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.We continue our discussion of Mill’s justification for “despotism” as a means of cultivating maturity in societies in their “nonage”.Following Hannah Arendt, we begin by looking at the rational justifications for racism as they developed in Europe, and how this related to Mill’s notion societal immaturity. We use this discussion to cast further light on the relationship bet...2022-04-071h 06
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: Reason & Permissible Despotism in Mill, Part 1In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.As we continue our look at Mill’s ON LIBERTY, we see him establish a dangerous formula by which to justify Imperialism. Mill’s contention that some societies should be viewed as “immature” – and thus not capable of the rationality required for liberty - opens the door to a definition of freedom that recognizes permissible despotism.We’ll use this deeply trou...2022-03-3159 min
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: John Stuart Mill, Part 2In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.We begin with the thesis statement from Mill’s ON LIBERTY. We continue our discussion by exploring the fact that how we are perceived or identified may affect how we are included, or excluded, from aspects of freedom in Civil Society. Specifically, in a system that we describe as being driven by the dynamics of reason, we’ll ask how bein...2022-03-241h 04
A Freedom of IdeasFOUNDATIONS: John Stuart Mill, Part 1In Season 2 - our FOUNDATIONS series - we’ll examine European philosophers from the 17th through the 19th centuries, to see how their views have shaped and defined our own… whether we realize it or not.We begin with the thesis statement from Mill’s ON LIBERTY. In what amounts to a fundamentally libertarian view of freedom – that my own freedom should not be limited, so long as I am not doing harm to others – we begin by asking: What constitutes harm?How must differing perspectives and power dynamics be weighed and considered? What does it means that...2022-03-1755 min
A Freedom of IdeasSeason 1 Re-Cap & Season 2 PrimerIn this episode, we’ll talk about what’s new and exciting in the world of A Freedom of Ideas, we’ll do a re-cap of our conclusions from Season One. We’ll line ourselves up to hit the ground running for Season Two, in preparation for talking about the philosophy of Mill, Locke, Hobbes, Rousseau, Hegel, and others. If you were not able to listen to Season One, I believe the recap, here, should suffice to dive into Season Two.A FREEDOM OF IDEAS may be found online at afreedomofideas.com.Support t...2022-03-1552 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?) Part 7: ConclusionFollowing the lead of the great Daniel Dennett, in this final full episode in our opening series on the Philosophy of Mind, we'll take the many challenges we've reviewed, and turn them on their heads to create the beginnings of an explanation for the way we experience individual Free Will.As we've discussed all along, the way we use language, and the way language developed, and continued to develop, for us, will play a leading role in our description.***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***A Philosophical Essay on Probabilities, by Pierre-Simon Laplace2021-10-281h 00
A Freedom of IdeasEpiphenomena: Quantum EntrancelmentKeeping a promise I made you folks (in passing, but still) way back at the beginning of this series, today we’ll explore how - or if - Quantum Physics can help us escape determinism, and maybe even explain free will… and mind, and consciousness, and all the rest.***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***A Philosophical Essay on Probabilities, by Pierre-Simon LaplaceConsciousness Explained, by Daniel C. Dennett (Paul Weiner, Illustrator)Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting, by Daniel C. DennettFreedom Evolves, by Daniel C. D...2021-10-2746 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?), Part 6: Wilder Penfield’s Shocking ConclusionToday we’ll continue with Wilder Penfield’s ground-breaking work and research in neuroscience, and what it can teach us about the mind. After a career spent exploring the brain, Penfield concluded that the brain, alone, was not sufficient to create the mind. But is this a consequence of Penfield’s work in the “hard sciences” – the objective outcomes of his direct experiments? Or is Penfield re-telling a story of mind that has been passed down to us from prevailing religious traditions and assumptions from Medieval Europe and before?***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***A Phil...2021-10-2150 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?), Part 5: Wilder Penfield’s Electrifying MethodToday we’ll look at Wilder Penfield’s ground-breaking work and research in neuroscience, and what it can teach us about the mind. After a career spent exploring the brain, Penfield concluded that the brain, alone, was not sufficient to create the mind. But is this a consequence of Penfield’s work in the “hard sciences” – the objective outcomes of his direct experiments? Or is Penfield re-telling a story of mind that has been passed down to us from prevailing religious traditions and assumptions from Medieval Europe and before?This is the first part of a two-part s...2021-10-1443 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?), Part 4: Medieval MemesThe way we talk about mind, self, and free will create those phenomena to a very large extent - or so we contend. We'll look first at the work of Richard Dawkins and hi notions of Memes, then at Frank Farrell and his analysis of the way the thinking in Medieval Europe has influenced its intellectual descendants, and we'll talk about Shakespeare.Or, I should say, we INTEND to talk about Shakespeare. According to Claudius, it’s possible we didn't really manage it.***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***A Philosophical Essay on Pr...2021-10-0754 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?), Part 3: The Radical Ubiquity of "Me"We will explore the barriers to explaining free will in the context of the philosophy of mind. Can a brain make a mind? Can real, rigorous, freedom come from the natural elements that make up a human being? What role does language play in creating free will? What role does our history of language use play in creating an idea of free will that is so grandiose and mythologized as to be almost impossible to explain in a way that meets our expectations?Also, I'll say "quote-unquote" quite a bit.***SEASON ONE...2021-09-3049 min
A Freedom of IdeasEpiphenomena: The Unbearable Vat-ness of BeingAs an aside to our conversation about the possibility of not having free will, here is a conversation about having free will, but not having a real world in which to exercise it.Also, a telling reminder that whenever philosophers imagine a shockingly brilliant creature, count on that creature applying its brilliance to the strangest possible ends.***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***A Philosophical Essay on Probabilities, by Pierre-Simon LaplaceConsciousness Explained, by Daniel C. Dennett (Paul Weiner, Illustrator)Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting...2021-09-2825 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?), Part 2: Choosing "Not"What if it turns out we do not have free will? What would that mean? How would it work? And why, then, is it so important that we THINK we have free will?Of course, I believe we do very much have the capacity for free will - even if it does not work exactly the way we assume it does. But examining the alternative is important to our overall understanding. Also: there's a SWEET "Wizard of Oz"-reference pun. You'll be bummed if you miss it.***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***2021-09-2355 min
A Freedom of IdeasEpiphenomena: Cramming for the Turing TestWelcome to the first of our bonus Epiphenomena episodes.Today, we’ll talk briefly (and a bit chaotically) about the brilliant Alan Turing. We’ll discuss the Turing Test, and its influence on how we think of both Artificial Intelligence and Natural (human) Intelligence.As a programming note, “Epiphenomena” episodes are not exactly part of the main narrative. These are occasional bonus episodes that I’ll throw out on no particular schedule, and whenever I can manage it, or feel like it.BUT: these episodes are also not edited with the same scrupulousness that I asp...2021-09-2029 min
A Freedom of IdeasFree Will (or Not?), Part 1Today we'll begin our discussion on individual free will through the lens of the Philosophy of Mind. We'll ask how - or IF - it is possible for human beings to make truly free choices.And we'll talk pancakes.***SEASON ONE READINGS AND SOURCES***A Philosophical Essay on Probabilities, by Pierre-Simon LaplaceConsciousness Explained, by Daniel C. Dennett (Paul Weiner, Illustrator)Elbow Room: The Varieties of Free Will Worth Wanting, by Daniel C. DennettFreedom Evolves, by Daniel C. DennettMeditations on First Philosophy...2021-09-1649 min
A Freedom of IdeasProlegomenaBy way of an introduction, we'll begin to explore what we mean by "freedom," and what freedom means to us.2021-09-1534 min