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Index for this page...(Be aware some links below may have expired.)
All The Following Items Were Posted On January 1, 2006 1. Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) German Idealistic philosopher
Read about Arthur Schopenhauer in The Radical Academy. 2. Cicero (106-43 B.C.) Ancient Roman philosopher and ethicist
Read about Cicero in The Radical Academy. 3. Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) German Logical Positivist philosopher
Read about Ludwig Wittgenstein in The Radical Academy. 4. John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) English philosopher of Utilitarianism
Read about John Stuart Mill in The Radical Academy. 5. Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) German philosopher, theologian, physician
Read about Albert Schweitzer in The Radical Academy. 6. Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947) English philosopher of Neo-Realism
Read about Albert North Whitehead in The Radical Academy. 7. Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German physicist and philosopher
Read about Albert Einstein in The Radical Academy. 8. Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) German philosopher, theologian, physician
Read about Albert Schweitzer in The Radical Academy.
FOR THE RECORD: POLITICS There is a lot of hatred being stirred up against Wal-Mart, from both the left and the right. There's even a new documentary movie devoted to demonizing Wal-Mart, playing across the country now. A great response to all this comes from a radio commentary by Paul Jacob, Senior Fellow for Americans for Limited Government (whose "Common Sense" column is posted regularly in our Radical Academy Web Logs): "Some folks don't like Wal-Mart. Okay. Fine. It's a free country. No one should be forced at gunpoint to shop at Wal-Mart. Or to work there. "And no one is. "Wal-Mart has found enormous success in the marketplace only because people have voluntarily chosen to shop and work there. Wal-Mart employs more than 1.6 million people worldwide and, according to the company's published calculations, its lower prices saved the average American family $2,329 last year. "Now I know why, when my wife sends me to the store, she says, "Go to Wal-Mart." "And yet we witness a sustained and hysterical assault against the company... "What on earth makes offering lower prices so evil? "We're told Wal-Mart doesn't pay its employees enough. It doesn't offer generous enough benefits. But if Wal-Mart is so terrible, why didn't these employees choose to take other jobs? Or, were no better jobs available? Is it remotely possible that Wal-Mart should actually be given credit for creating jobs? Could it be that the company has helped its employees escape unemployment and poverty? "Listen: the free market offers Wal-Mart haters an easy way to hit Wal-Mart right where it hurts. These folks need only start their own companies and pay workers more and offer generous healthcare benefits. Problem solved! "Isn't the free market great?" Source: The Freedom to Hate Wal-Mart, by Paul Jacobs NOTE: An expanded version of this responds more fully to common charges against Wal-Mart. Read it at: http://www.townhall.com/opinion/columns/pauljacob/2005/11/20/176217.html 2. Grover Norquist Looks at the 2008 Presidential Race Hillary Clinton is a shoe-in to grab the Democratic nomination for president in 2008, but the Republican field is wide open, according to Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. Writing in The American Spectator, Norquist says that Clinton "will be followed around the nation by six or seven emasculated senators" who will "pretend to run for president while actually auditioning for vice president." He mentions Sen. John Kerry, Sen. Evan Bayh, former Sen. John Edwards and Virginia Gov. Mark Warner among those who might seemingly challenge Clinton for the nomination, but in the end they will "suck up to Hillary," Norquist predicts. Here is Norquist's take on the race for the GOP nomination:
Norquist also mentions Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford and Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel. But he saves his final remarks for Florida Gov. Jeb Bush: "At present Bush is saying 'no' to the idea of a 2008 presidential bid. Some believe he should pass that year to avoid the appearance of a Bush Dynasty. "But logic runs the other way. Only in 2008 will it be impossible for even the New York Times to argue with a straight face that we cannot elect one president's brother because we must elect another president's wife." 3. Another Update from Dr. Rudy Rummel Regarding Democide (Government Genocide) [Note: Dr. Dolhenty has corresponded with Professor Rummel over the past few years regarding his research into government-initiated mass murder during the 20th century. This is a new notice he just received from Dr. Rummel.] I recently emailed you my reevaluation of the total democide for the PRC, which changed my estimated total for 20th Century democide. Sorry to say, I've had to make a new readjustment upward. This is occasioned by my study of King Leopold's democide in his Congo Free State. I published the details of this in my blog here: http://freedomspeace.blogspot.com/2005/12/reevaluating-colonial-democide.html, and followed that up with a docudrama -- what it was like to be a native in Leopold's Congo -- to give heart and feeling to the cold statistics. It is here (bottom of the page): http://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/DOCUDRAMAS.HTM. Note that democide is any murder by government, and includes genocide, politicide, massacres, mass murder, extrajudicial executions, assassinations, atrocities, and intentional famines. To recap: my estimates for democide in the last century were for China; From my book, China's Bloody Century, Mao/CCP Democide:
Now, by virtue of my reevaluation of the 1958-1962 famine dead that I had not counted in the above (unlike many experts who did include it in PRC's toll), I have to add 38,000k to the above, which brings the total to a democide of 76,702,000. As to colonial democide:
Just to give perspective on this absolutely incredible murder by government, if all these bodies were laid head to toe, with the average height being 5', then they would circle the earth ten times. Also, this democide murdered 6 times more people than died in combat in all the foreign and internal wars of the century. Finally, given popular estimates of the dead in a major nuclear war, this total democide is as though such a war did occur, but with its dead spread over a century. Rudy Rummel References: "Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty." -- John F. Kennedy, 35th president of the United States (Those currently serving in Congress, please take note.) 5. Acknowledgments Some of the information included in our "For the Record" section may come from one or more of the following sources or is referred to us by that source. The subject matter or any views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of the Center for Applied Philosophy or any of its associates. It is simply presented for your information and thoughtful reflection. COUNSELING CORNER: 20 Ways to Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity 1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down. 2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice. 3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, Ask If They Want Fries with that. 4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label It "In." 5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks. Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso. 6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write "For Smuggling Diamonds" 7. Finish All Your sentences with "In Accordance With The Prophecy." 8. Don't use any punctuation 9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk. 10. Order a Diet Water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face. 11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is "To Go." 12. Sing Along At The Opera. 13. Go To A Poetry Recital And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme 14. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area And Play tropical Sounds All Day. 15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In The Mood. 16. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom. 17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream "I Won!, I Won!" 18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot, Yelling "Run For Your Lives, They're Loose!!" 19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner. "Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have To Let One Of You Go." 20. And The Final Way To Keep A Healthy Level Of Insanity....... Send This To Someone To Make Them Smile. Its Called therapy.
A LITTLE OF THIS & A LITTLE OF THAT A Little Wisdom: If you fill your heart with regrets of yesterday and the worries of tomorrow, you have no today to be thankful for. A Little Advice: If you don't like the news, go out and make some. A Little Question: I love to give homemade gifts... which one of my kids do you want? A Little Put-Down: If you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning. A Little Proverb: If you must choose between two evils, pick the one you've never tried before! A Little Reflection: Reality is the leading cause of stress among those in touch with it. A Little Observation: You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely. A Little Quote: "Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing." -- Wernher von Braun (1912-1977), rocket pioneer, chiefly responsible for launching of the first US artificial Earth satellite A Little One-Liner: Death is like God's way of saying, your table is ready. A Little Definition: Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die. A Little Quip: I hope to be the kind of person my dog thinks I am. A Little Legal Shmegal: There is far too much law for those who can afford it and far too little for those who cannot.
Some interesting & provocative articles on other websites: As Astonishing as Elvis, a review by Jenny Turner: Jenny Turner on Ayn Rand, by Jeff Britting - Very interesting review. Worth a look by anyone interested in Objectivism, the so-called philosophy of Ayn Rand, whose "philosophy" is still alive and well. Both Left and Right, by James Leroy Wilson: If I'm asked whether libertarians are on the "left" or the "right," I would say that I can't speak for others, I can only speak for myself. And that I am both on the left and the right. This reply would not be borrowed from the shallow and nearly-fraudulent "social liberal, economic conservative" definition of libertarianism. Nor would it imply a "centrism" or wishy-washy indecisiveness. Indeed, I really do strongly hold many values and beliefs long associated with the "Left," and equal and corresponding beliefs and values associated with the "Right." Why You Are a Libertarian, by Harry Browne: You're a libertarian because you abhor violence . . . When a neighbor isn't willing to contribute as much to a social project as you are, you'd never think of: Using a gun to force him to contribute; Hiring an armed gang to threaten to kidnap him or confiscate his money if he didn't contribute; ... PETA's Ties to Terrorism, by Cam Edwards: This week's revelation that the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has been the subject of an FBI investigation into the animal rights group's possible ties to terrorism has stunned many liberals. PETA's general counsel, Jeff Kerr, called the investigation "shocking and outrageous", saying "it's an abuse of power by the F.B.I. when groups like Greenpeace and PETA are basically being punished for their social activism." No room at the inn for smokers ...or even in their own homes, if health officials have their way, by Rob Lyons: 'Does your organisation know which of the homes visited by its staff are occupied by smokers? If not, it would be advisable to develop such a list.' This is a taster from new guidelines issued by the Scottish Executive on helping public sector workers avoid exposure to second-hand smoke. The increasingly popular bans on smoking in public places are being followed-up by restrictions on smoking even in private. Chinese Internet vs. free speech: U.S. tech giants are helping the Chinese express themselves online as long as they don't write about democracy, Tibet, sex, Tiananmen Square, Falun Gong, government corruption or any other taboo subject. Microsoft bans "democracy" and "Dalai Lama" from the Chinese version of its blog site. Yahoo recently turned over information that helped the Chinese government track down and imprison a journalist for the crime of forwarding an e-mail. Google omits banned publications from its Chinese news service. Why Does the Muslim World Lag in Science?, by Aaron Segal: By any index, the Muslim world produces a disproportionately small amount of scientific output, and much of it relatively low in quality. In numerical terms, forty-one predominantly Muslim countries with about 20 percent of the world's total population generate less than 5 percent of its science. An unholy marriage - Catholic reactionaries and secular miserabilists have joined forces to spoil our fun, by Brendan O'Neill: It is coming to something when our secular leaders, radicals and the Pope of Rome himself all sing from the same hymn sheet. Down with the Church - and the secular killjoys who today provide it with its moral script. Torture's Long Shadow, by Vladimir Bukovsky: One nasty morning Comrade Stalin discovered that his favorite pipe was missing. Naturally, he called in his henchman, Lavrenti Beria, and instructed him to find the pipe. A few hours later, Stalin found it in his desk and called off the search. "But, Comrade Stalin," stammered Beria, "five suspects have already confessed to stealing it." Now you can be arrested for any offence, by John Steele: Police are to be given sweeping powers to arrest people for every offence, including dropping litter, failure to wear a seat belt and other minor misdemeanours. The measures, which come into force on Jan 1, are the biggest expansion in decades of police powers to deprive people of their liberty. At present, officers can generally arrest people if they suspect them of committing an offence which carries at least five years in prison. They will now have the discretion to detain someone if they suspect any offence and think that an arrest is "necessary". Is Psychology Losing Its Way?, by Warren Throckmorton: A recent book edited by eminent psychologists Rogers Wright and Nicholas Cummings delivers a stunning indictment of the mental health professions. Silencing Science, by Julia A. Seymour: Critics of intelligent design claim that the theory is not scientific, it is creationism in disguise, that there is no debate or controversy over the "facts of evolution." Global Trend - More Science, More Fraud: The South Korean scandal that shook the world of science last week is just one sign of a global explosion in research that is outstripping the mechanisms meant to guard against error and fraud. Experts say the problem is only getting worse, as research projects, and the journals that publish the findings, soar. The Burke Habit - Prudence, skepticism and "unbought grace," by Jeffrey Hart: In "The Conservative Mind" (1953), a founding document of the American conservative movement, Russell Kirk assembled an array of major thinkers beginning with Edmund Burke and made a major statement. He proved that conservative thought in America existed, and even that such thought was highly intelligent--a demonstration very much needed at the time.
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