Freedom and Tariffs Tariffs raise prices on imported goods, as importers pass on costs to consumers. This decreases demand, by the basic laws of economics. It may reduce it to zero. This means that consumers don’t buy what they would have bought if it were not for tariffs. They would prefer to buy what they […]
Due Process The Fifth Amendment of the United States constitution states: “No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” This condition derives from the Magna Carta, clause 39, of 1354. Due process of law requires, at a minimum, notice of alleged offence, a proper hearing, and a neutral […]
Convergence, Truth, and History We tend to converge on the truth. Independent investigators often arrive at the same truth because it is the truth. If investigators are not independent, their coinciding beliefs may well be explained by influence not truth: they have the same beliefs because of interpersonal contact. Convergence of belief in independent investigators […]
Jim and Me I was over at the tennis wall at the Biltmore yesterday, as I frequently am. My pal Jim was there, a retired tennis pro. He told me he had just turned 78 and was working on hitting his forehand from shoulder height; he liked to learn new things. He demonstrated the technique […]
Kings and Queens The President was in his bathroom fantasizing about torturing his political enemies. They clearly deserved it. It was a habit of his; he meant no harm by it (or not much). He stood up and his ample buttocks were reflected in the gold plate of his Presidential toilet. He gazed at his […]
Am I an Analytical Philosopher? The question is not easy to answer. On the one hand, I have written extensively on topics not usually covered in the analytic tradition typified by Frege, Russell, Wittgenstein, Moore, and their successors—disgust, good and evil in literature, sport, mind manipulation, Shakespeare, dreams, movies, the hand. I happen to have […]
An Audacious Solution to the Mind-Math Problem The mind-math problem is the problem of explaining how the mind and mathematical reality manage to come together: how do numbers and geometric figures get to be apprehended by the mind? Suppose we adopt a Platonic view of mathematical reality—it consists of abstract objects, existing outside space and […]
Impersonating Trump Impersonating Trump has become a growth industry. I’d like to see a Trump AI robot. But have you noticed that Trump officials and followers are beginning to impersonate him—his bluster, his insults, his nastiness? I wonder how much his personality and style have seeped into the culture—here and abroad. One Donald Trump is […]
Action and Trying Davidson once memorably said, “We never do more than move our bodies; the rest is up to nature”. This aphorism has the sound of an illuminating truism, but does it stand up to critical examination? Suppose you are suffering from paralysis, total or partial, following an accident. Your physiotherapist asks you to […]
Good Intentions I was in my local supermarket, Milams, yesterday, doing my weekly food shopping—not a place of moral drama, you might think. Only one checkout line was open, I was dismayed to discover; a passing supervisor (big, black, vaguely professorial) observed my distress and suggested I take the empty express line (10 items or […]