-
Continue reading →: Do ends justify means?
This week there was a familiar problem posted on the Open University’s Philosophy Forum. You see a train hurtling towards a group of five workers on the line. If you pull a lever the train will be diverted to a side line where only one worker is working on the…
-
Continue reading →: Local Anaesthetic
My teeth have needed a lot of visits to the dentist over the years. Luckily a great deal of work went into conserving teeth that have a genetic flaw known as opalescent dentine. Plenty of crowns provided by the NHS dentists in London and Belfast, but I switched to a…
-
Continue reading →: Is creativity irrational?
Our rational thoughts do not allow for flights of fancy or wildly emotional reactions, so are we using a different area of the brain when we become creative? If we organise shapes on a canvas or structure a story, are we giving full vent to our creativity? Maybe we can…
-
Continue reading →: The joys of seating
Last night I took my seat in the stand at Ulster’s rugby ground. This is an admission of old age and painful joints that make my days standing on the terraces a thing of the past. There’s even a lift that took me to the top of the stand where…
-
Continue reading →: Reason
The ability to weigh up factual information and decide on a course of action based on that judgement. That’s how I would define reason. The difficulty arises when you try to establish factual information. The search for objective truths is never easy, particularly when inaccurate or false information is so…
-
Continue reading →: Anarchy or what?
Those who do not accept the legitimate rights of elected governments to rule, often carry out attacks on police forces whenever the opportunity arises. What form of government would appeal to anarchists? you may well ask. Capitalism is reviled by anarchists, as is socialism and any political philosophy that has…
-
Continue reading →: Beer yes, but alcohol free?
I decided to give up alcohol for a while, but I didn’t want to stop drinking beer. I was surprised at the range of beers available that are alcohol free. I had accidentally ordered 48 tins of Brewdog online and hadn’t realised that I had bought their AF range. I…
-
Continue reading →: A Russian perspective on nationhood
When the Americans wanted to take action against the Serbs for their policy of genocide against Bosnian Muslims, the Russians opposed it. This forced the USA to use military force against the Serbs without obtaining approval from the UN Security Council. Russia would have used their veto in the UN…
-
Continue reading →: Finding reasons to do nothing
I have been watching the BBC series ‘The Corridors of Power’. It is a shocking revelation of the international community’s inaction in the face of genocide. Whether it was Rwanda, Bosnia or Kosovo the evidence was in the hands of nations who could have done more to stop the bloodshed.…
-
Continue reading →: Xenophobia
It is definitely racist to target foreign workers based on the colour of their skin. Eight families were forced out of the Ballycraigy estate in County Antrim where they had rented private accommodation. Nurses, desperately needed by the NHS in Northern Ireland, were the victims of these attacks along with…
-
Subscribe
Subscribed
Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
odespinner 