A Philosopher’s View
- Philosophy
- Philosophy is the investigation of fundamental issues by rational argument.
- It’s defined by:
- Applied Philosophy
- Application of the philosophic method — the analysis of arguments — to matters of public concern
- Arguments
- An argument is a piece of reasoning, from premises to a conclusion.
- Democracy
- The U.S. is a Representative, Constitutional, Presidential, Federal, Liberal Democracy
- Its vulnerabilities and flaws: Tyranny of the Majority, One Person, Not One Vote, Undemocratically Elected Presidents, Disparity in Party Makeup of Legislature and Electorate, Gerrymandering, Election Subversion, Voter Suppression, Voter Fraud
- Epistemology
- The investigation of knowledge and rational belief
- Ethics
- The investigation of right and wrong, good and bad, and what should be
- Logic
- Tools for formulating and evaluating arguments
- Scientific Theories
- A scientific theory is
- designed to explain certain kinds of phenomena,
- defined by its postulates,
- supported or disproved by its predictions.
- Big Bang, Electromagnetism, Energy, Evolution, General Relativity, Global Warming, Mendel’s Heredity, Newton’s Gravitation, Plate Tectonics, Thermodynamics, Quantum Mechanics, Special Relativity
- Skepticism
- The disposition to believe based only on rational argument