September 2016
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Why utilitarianism (and effective [sic] altruism?) are the ideology of capitalism
Well, perhaps: What matters in the narcissistic world of late capitalism is not what you think or do but how you feel. And since how you feel can’t be argued against, it is conveniently insulated from all debate. Men and women can now stroll around in continuous self-monitoring mode, using apps to track their changes…
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Best PhD Programs for 19th-century Continental Philosophy for 2016-17
Following up on this post, and once again taking account of faculty changes since the fall 2014 PGR, here's an attempted update of the top (3.5 or higher) programs for 19th-century Continental Philosophy for 2016-17, again by rough "clusters" of peer programs: Group 1 (1) University of Chicago Group 2 (2-4) Brown University Columbia University (incl.…
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Adolf Reed is voting for Clinton…
…and his reasons seem right to me!
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The latest capitalist defense of the “liberal arts”–and what all this really means
Reader Nick Gardner kindly calls to my attention this essay from The Atlantic. I've noted a number of perfectly sensible pieces like this over the last couple of years, but let's step back a bit and ask what it all means: 1. The cost of higher education in America is now quite extravagant, far more than most…
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Robert Paul Wolff: “All Hands on Deck”
Do as you're told!
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Best PhD Programs for Kant for 2016-17 (UPDATED)
Following up on this post, and once again taking account of faculty changes since the fall 2014 PGR, here's an attempted update of the top (3.5 or higher) programs in Kant for 2016-17, again by rough "clusters" of peer programs: Group 1 (1) Brown University Group 2 (2-6) Indiana University, Bloomington Johns Hopkins University New York…
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The bizarre LA Times/USC poll
This one has been an outlier throughout mot of the electoral season, and now is alone among national polls in showing Trump ahead of Clinton by five points or more. It is clear the race has tightened, ever since the new campaign managers got Trump to shut up and read from a teleprompter more often. …
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Northwestern Professor Stevens may return to campus and will teach this fall…
…but may still face disciplinary proceedings for her conduct. Prof. Stevens's response (prior link) to the Dean's straightforward letter is, alas, par for the course.
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Best PhD Programs for Ancient Philosophy for 2016-17 (UPDATED)
Following up on this post, and once again taking account of faculty changes since the fall 2014 PGR, here's an attempted update of the top (3.5 or higher) programs in ancient philosophy for 2016-17, again by rough "clusters" of peer programs: Group 1 (1-5) Cambridge University Oxford University Princeton University Stanford University Yale University
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A new biography of Habermas
The intellectual historian Peter Gordon (Harvard) offers an informative review of the new biography of Habermas. Among other things, I was struck by the irony that Habermas–always an admirable critic of post-Nazi complacency in Germany, as Gordon emphasizes–secured his habilitation and first academic post thanks to the influence of the disgusting Nazi and lifelong anti-semite…
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A victory for academic (and intellectual) freedom at Berkeley
As everyone knows, the major threat to free speech at American universities comes not from hyper-sensitive and narcissistic millenials (though they can be a nuisance at some schools) but from those who want to police discourse about Israel and Palestine, and punish those who hold insufficiently pro-Israel views. Several readers have flagged for me the latest incident…
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What should we do with sexual harassers in the academy?
I have a piece in CHE, which touches on some cases well-known (alas) to the philosophical community.
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Trump supporters aren’t just deplorable…
…they're irrational. Now don't you feel better? (Thanks to Michael Swanson for the pointer.)
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The turmoil at the University of Florida over its tax program
Blog Emperor Caron has been tracking this–one might start here. One peculiarity of the critical analysis of the tax program by UF faculty member Robert Rhee is that, in discussing the Sisk data on faculty citations, he fails to note (at least not that I saw) that tax is a low-citation field compared to corporate or…
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The latest from Prof. Stevens at Northwestern regarding the investigation of her conduct
Professor Stevens has updated her website, and released a number of documents, most significantly, the June 22 investigative report prepared by outside counsel, Kathleen Rinehart, after Prof. Stevens requested indemnification following receipt of a cease-and-desist letter from Prof. Tillery's lawyer last Spring. (For those who have not been following this case, see the earlier post…
I am very pleased to have stumbled upon this site. I am Andrew & Lynne’s nephew, Peter. My mother was…