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Philosophical
'Isms' (Cont.)
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 A
Contrarian's Dictionary: 2000 Damnable Definitions For The Year 2000 by
Murray L. Bob and Wilhelm Busch
A 200 page dictionary containing 2,000 definitions for
contrarians, sceptics and realists. The viewpoint is iconoclastic and
the style is satiric. The goal is to "define" terms, names,
and euphemisms in an amusing, pithy way. Many of the entries are topical
and quotable. All (with the exception, perhaps, of half-a-dozen) are
original.
Most of the entries are one-, two-, and three-liners,
although a few are longer. Inspired by Ambrose Bierce's classic,
"Devil's Dictionary," this is a book that will make the reader
think - and smile. Topics covered include: politics, economics,
religion, psychology, film, the theater, literature, philosophy, New
Age, management, media, personalities, and entertainment.
Many of the definitions are accompanied by marvelous
illustrations by the greatest cartoonist- caricaturist who ever lived,
Wilhelm Busch.
A bible for sceptics, cynics, sinners, and radicals of
all stripes. True believers read at their own risk!
From the Author
In order of importance, my intention is, first, to make you smile
inwardly if not outwardly and then to make you think. Not every
definition will do both (some may not do either), but I'd like to
believe that most readers will do at least one or the other, most times.
If you laugh out loud, it will be a bonus. If your
life is changed, it will be a miracle - and I don't believe in miracles.
But, if some of the definitions cause you to say, "Aha" or to
view a thing from a fresh perspective, they will have done their job -
which is to tickle or provoke. Some definitions are pure wordplay -
nonsense, kidding around. So what? Shakespeare was the Pontiff of Pun.
If he could do it, surely we pygmies can.
Since the greatest joy contrarians can have is to
communicate with others of their ilk, please let me know how you feel
about this book, after you have read it.
About the Author
A librarian-administrator, consultant, writer, and teacher for 44 years,
Murray L. Bob is a committed contrarian - or a contrarian who ought to
be committed - depending on your point of view. Father of three,
grandfather of two, he, his wife and their dog live (or some facsimile
thereof) in a relatively remote region of Western New York. Like
Stendhal, Bob expects his writing will be appreciated 100 years after
his death - which is why he will have his brain cryogenically preserved
in single-malt scotch.
 Click
here to read more about this book
Click
here for more Philosophy Books
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The naturalism.org Website: This site is intended as a
resource for those interested in naturalism and its personal and social implications.
It seeks to encourage the non-dogmatic, non-confrontational dissemination of
naturalistic philosophy as an alternative to theism, spiritualism, and other varieties of
dualism. Here you will find articles on naturalism and its applications, brief
descriptions of some of its main aspects, and links to journals, magazines, newspapers,
organizations, and personal web sites which relate either directly or indirectly to
naturalism. Naturalism.Org encourages your feedback and suggestions for additional
links and resources. Site Includes:
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The goal of the Objectivism WWW Service is to make
Objectivism-related information available to WWW users. There are two components to this
goal: first, to provide locally-sponsored content such as essays and bibliographies.
Second, to provide pointers to other resources---both on and off the net---that may be of
interest to people interested in Objectivism. Site Includes:
See also the Ayn Rand page on this website.
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Website by Bernt Rostrom.
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From the Dictionary of the Philosophy of
Mind: The monistic
view that all empirical statements (such as the laws of physics) can be placed in a one to
one correspondence with statements about only the phenomenal (i.e. mental appearances).
See idealism, neutral monism, monism, phenomenological
critique of representationalism. Excerpt from a short essay by Chris Eliasmith:
A view held by A.J. Ayer which was shown by Roderick Chisholm to be untenable. Chisholm
showed that would not be possible to translate physical statements into phenomenal
statements because phenomenal statements are dependent on physical descriptions of the
observation conditions and conditions of the perciever...
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From the Internet Encyclopedia
of Philosophy: Excerpt:
"Pluralism" denotes any metaphysical theory which claims that reality
consists of a multiplicity of distinct, fundamental entities. The term was first used by
Christian Wolff (1679-1754), and later popularized by William James in The Will to
Believe. Pluralism is distinguished from both monism, the view that one kind of thing
exists, and dualism, the view that two kinds of things exist. There are weak and strong
forms of pluralism theories. The weak form holds that there are many distinct individual
things, whereas the strong form holds that there are many distinct kind of things.
Theories dealing with the number of entities are referred to as substantival, and theories
dealing with the type of entities are referred to as attributive.
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From the Philosophy Research Base. Site Includes:
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From the Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy: The term "Continental Rationalism"
traditionally refers to a 17th century philosophical movement begun by Descartes. After Descartes,
several dozen scientists and philosophers continued his t eachings throughout continental
Europe and, accordingly were titled "Cartesians." Some Cartesians strayed little
from Descartes' scientific and metaphysical theories. Others incorporated his theories
into Calvinistic theology. But a handful of philosopher s influenced by Descartes were
more original in developing their own views and these people are included under the more
general title "rationalists." the principle rationalists include Benedict Spinoza , Nicholas Malebranche, Gottfried Willhelm
Leibniz, and Christian Wolff.
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The Scientific Rationalism Website: the permanent
renaissance. You'll never be free unless you can work this out: If you
always believe what you're told, what happens when you're told a lie? If you never believe
what you're told, how can you know what's happening outside your door?
Site Includes:
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From the Dictionary of the Philosophy of
Mind: Briefly, a realist about x holds that x enjoys mind-independent existence, that
is, x exists regardless of whether anyone thinks, hopes or fears that x exists. It may
sound odd to demand of minds and other things mental that they have mind independent
existence, but the claim, for instance, that my mind is mind independent just means that I
have a mind regardless of whether anyone thinks, hopes, or fears that I do.
As well, a realist insists on there being explanations of the empirical world
(including minds) in terms of the real world. Thus, a complete theory of the mind should
explain the existence and functioning of minds in terms of the reality lying behind their
empirically testable properties. This expectation strongly contrasts with the strictly empiricist
position of phenomenalists.
By Pete Mandik & Chris Eliasmith
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Romanticism On the Net is a Peer-reviewed, Electronic Journal
devoted to Romantic studies. Site Includes:
Also see: Les
Miserables: Romanticism Project
Site Includes:
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The Secular Web from Internet Infidels, Inc: Have you
ever felt that there would be fewer religious believers if only more information from our
side were available? The Internet is the only medium where both believers and nonbelievers
are on a level playing field. Internet Infidels, Inc. is the world's only organization
which exclusively uses THE INTERNET to promote agnosticism, atheism,
freethought, and
secular humanism. Our web site, the award-winning Secular Web, receives more visitors than
any other web site of its kind. Site Includes:
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Excerpt: ...the sensualist will discover that what had
previously passed for passionate sex had been merely an agreeable piece of foreplay.
Erotic pleasure of an intoxicating intensity that mortal flesh has never known will be
enjoyable with a whole gamut of friends and lovers. This will be possible because jealousy
- already transiently eliminable today under the influence of serotonergic drugs - is not
the sort of gene-inspired perversion of consciousness likely to be judged worthy of
conservation in the Post-Darwinian era. Better still, designer love-philtres and smarter
sex-drugs can transform our conception of intimacy. Today's ill-educated fumblings will
seem inept by comparison. Tomorrow's sensualists may opt for whole-body orgasms of a
frequency, duration and variety that transcends the limp foreplay of their natural
ancestors. Whether the sexual adventures of our descendants will be mainly auto-erotic,
interpersonal, or take guises we can't currently imagine is a topic for another night.
Profound love of many forms - both of oneself and all others - is at least as feasible as
the impersonal emotional wasteland occupied by Huxley's utopians....
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Welcome to Skeptic.com, the official website of the Skeptics Society. Our award-winning site is your
pathway to critical thinking, where everything must pass under the magnifying glass of
scrutiny. Also:
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Review by William B. Provine of The Origin of Species
Revisited: The Theories of Evolution and of Abrupt Appearance (2 vols) By W. R. Bird
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The Tao Te Ching was written in China about 2,500
years ago. Its 81 chapters have been translated into English more times than any other
Chinese document. The text-only
version of this page has more translations, a total of 27 in all (out of the over one
hundred that have been published). If you go to that page with the Netscape browser then
you can, by opening New Windows and using the Go menu, place several of the translations
side by side at the same time to compare subtle differences. This can be accomplished in
more compact form in the frames version.
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Essays Arguing for or promoting Theism: Including:
William P. Alston
John A. Bloom
Walter Bradley
William Lane Craig
John Gay
Norman Geisler
Owen Gingerich
Ralph McInerny
Hugo Meynell
Alvin Plantinga
Rick Rood
Allan Sandage
James Stump
Richard G. Swinburne
Paul C. Vitz
Peter S. Williams
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