Philosophy today is often dismissed as mere mysticism, lumped in with crystal healing and fortune-telling—a telling reflection of our era. As philosophy fades from our personal lives and our education systems, people aren’t left with nothing to believe; rather, they’re primed to believe almost anything. Yet, not everything we’re told about the world is true.
To abandon philosophy—to stop engaging with questions and ideas that sharpen our understanding—would be to disarm ourselves and leave our less-prepared peers without defense against unfounded beliefs and empty ideas. As C.S. Lewis reminds us: “Good philosophy must exist, if for no other reason, because bad philosophy needs to be answered.”
Here, I explore philosophical ideas, examining beliefs and their impact on our daily lives. Through evaluating their validity, soundness, and reliability, I hope to reach more accurate conclusions, and ultimately, find a path to a more truthful, optimistic way of living—not just for myself, but for others.
In this episode of the Will Work For Purpose Podcast I speak with professional illustrator Alex Braun about the meaning behind his work and art in general. We also talk about the state of modern art, mental illness among artists, and social media propaganda.
We can no longer be passive in our treatment of equality and racism in America. Their reality is before us daily. Regardless of where you live, who you are, or where you work, you will be brought face to face with this struggle and ongoing dialog in one form or another. It is your duty to handle these issues, charitably with love and respect lest you facilitate the burning of our known world. Put your pride and preconceived notions of race and racism to death and allow them to be born again with a fresh perspective. We can not afford any lackluster participants on this road. For better or worse, all of society must participate, as we all participate in the economy or traffic laws. Even if you try to avoid it, your avoidance itself will be recognized as a form of participation. Avoidance, contrary to popular belief, is far from being neutral, as it serves to bring about only negative outcomes. Refusing to move while an avalanche is rushing towards you does not mean it will not hit you, but rather it ensures that it will hit you and bring you down in the process. Likewise, a lackluster or neutral approach to the tension in America will only bring about adverse outcomes both in your personal and public life. Chaos, disorder, and suffering are the rules, while peace, love, and order are the exceptions. As exceptions, to the rules, they require active participation to bring them into actuality. They are not principles entirely natural to humanity. Thus if you wish to bring peace to the areas of racial tension and inequality, you must actively pursue them. The road ahead is long and fraught with many treacherous pitfalls. Nevertheless, we all must persist in the incremental pursuit of justice, love, and peace, for the sake of ourselves and future generations.
In this latest installment of the Will Work For Purpose Podcast I speak with the host of the Red Line Podcast, Michael Hilliard about running from the KGB, social credit scores, being cool under pressure, and the nature of conflict journalism.
We are coming closer, every day, to a society that places the rectification of injustice above all other goods. We now value fixing other people and giving them their just deserts, over fixing ourselves and healing the iniquity within our hearts. We overlook all other moral goods and set upon a pedestal out of our vanity that good, which is among the most easily corruptible. In seeking justice, we have become tyrants. We are applying an iron fist where other virtues could have been better suited.
Most people have been focused on the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and rightfully so, but I don't think we are limited to thinking about it in such away. It seems to me that there are a good number of positive outcomes as a result of this global tragedy.