How Refusing To Judge Any Culture Completely Undermines Human Rights
When one fully embraces cultural relativism, human rights violations––like funeral pyres and child sex abuse––become very difficult to identify.
Why Most People Can’t Explain The Reasons Meddling With Babies’ DNA Is Wrong
We feel, almost instinctively, that it is wrong to meddle with the DNA of an unborn human being, but we don’t know why we feel that way, nor can we articulate it.
How Upending Its Hidden Assumptions Can Deepen Your Read Of Science Fiction
Which foundational ideas, assumptions, and seemingly-semantic debates mold how we interpret our world in relation to science and faith?
How The Bible Undermined The Concept Of Global Empires In Favor Of Nation-States
The Bible put a new political conception on the table: a state of a single nation that is united, self-governing, and uninterested in bringing its neighbors under its rule.
Why We Need Poetry And Literature To Teach Us Practical Philosophy
On this episode of the Federalist Radio Hour, Ben Domenech and Matthew Mehan discuss young adult literature, Harry Potter, and high lessons in popular art.
‘The Good Place’ Tackles Complicated Ethics Questions With Wit And Charm
As Eleanor seeks to become her best self, she realizes that moral improvement involves self-sacrifice, something she never thought about on Earth.
Why Reason Turned Into A Dead End For Enlightenment Philosophy
We are finite, contingent beings, and we must not presume that our reason is capable of transcending this to achieve a sort of God’s-eye view of reality.
Unfrozen Caveman Intellectual: Jonah Goldberg’s Strangely Dark Enlightenment
Jonah Goldberg’s defense of the legacy of the Enlightenment ends up being mostly a rehearsal of boilerplate 20th-century American conservatism.
Socialism’s Resurgence Is A Doomed Attempt To Address A Spiritual Problem With Politics
The concerns and anxieties that beset our culture will not be addressed only by reminders of material abundance provided by free market economics.
3 Things I Learned From Attending Jordan Peterson’s Sold-out Show In DC
Peterson’s message is one focused on finding meaning, not fueling hate. Although it’s not a saving message, it’s one we’ll be hearing for a long time.
For The Left, The Enlightenment Is Just Another Excuse To Cry ‘Racism’
Jamelle Bouie gives us a critique of the Enlightenment from the Left, and it’s exactly what you were expecting: another excuse to call everyone racist.
Why Jonah Goldberg Is Right About ‘The Suicide Of The West’
Jonah Goldberg is certainly not naive about the role religion plays in the ‘miracle’ of western classical liberalism. ‘Suicide of the West’ is best understood as an apologetic to non-conservatives.
The Left And The Right Aren’t Hearing The Same Jordan Peterson
A New York Times Magazine hit piece says more about the mainstream media than it says about Jordan Peterson.
Let’s Cool The Philosophical Hot Takes On The Laurel Versus Yanny Audio Illusion
We can’t be content to view ‘Laurel Versus Yanny’ as a fun intellectual puzzle. No, somebody has to claim it proves everything is subjective.
Dear Conservatives: The Enlightenment Is Not The Enemy
Some conservatives are dismissing the eighteenth-century Enlightenment and trying to surrender its brilliant legacy to the enemies of Enlightenment on the Left.
Why The United States Is Not Too Big To Be Governed As James Madison Proposed
James Madison is credited with debunking a prevailing suspicion that self-government was only possible on a smaller, state level.
Why It’s Impossible To Have Diversity Without Unity
Every time we invoke diversity, we are necessarily implying a deeper unity. Maybe that deserves some celebration, too.