I am sure Rawls must have read “The Social Contract” by Rousseau (1792) and his idea of “General Will”.

In order for a society to work its members must be prepared to give up a degree of freedom by obeying the rules of that society. By doing so they gain certain advantages, such as protection, community groups and access to shared resourc…[Read more]

So Rawls rejected traditional utilitarianism as being unsatisfactory.  He proposed that a principle of state justice (which utilitarianism apparently claims to be) should be seen from the standpoint of the most disadvantaged person from behind the veil of ignorance: any of us could be that person, therefore any self-interested person would want…[Read more]

We decorate, exchange gifts, have turkey dinner, & listen to music while the fire is burning in the fireplace. No prayers, religion, or pettiness involved.

I participate in it with my family and whomever “turns up” on the day. I am fortunate that we are all atheists and the day has no religious significance. It is just another occasion in the year for us to all meet up. Sometimes I go abroad to get a week of sun and extra daylight. A few times I have forgotten that it was Christmas day. Once I was in…[Read more]

OK, my statement was too short and merits further comment.

I do not give any consideration to moral or ethical concerns when it comes to how “cosmogenesis” occurs. For the sake of argument let’s assume it is possible to create one. If China builds its own particle collider and a collision creates a “Big Bang” or it discovers a monopole that infl…[Read more]

Reg the Fronkey Farmer wrote:

Our cosmos could thus have been burped into being by the laws of physics alone. It could only come into being via the Laws of Physics.

So, anything that conforms to the Laws of Physics is ipso facto ethical?

BTW, there was a theological movement in the 1960’s called the God Is Dead or Death of God Movement. It’s…[Read more]

Here is a very interesting lecture about Rawls and the social contract.

Here’s the best lecture yet I’ve seen on how to respond to creationists. If you don’t want to watch the whole 80 minute video (which imo is good in every minute, by the way), we jump (below) into when Dr. Donald Prothero presents encyclopedic evidence for transitional species: