Most/Least Favorite Philosopher and Why?

[Sandman]

Hume is pretty good. I especially like his treatment of miracles.

[Fake Boris]

About Bastiat: it seems to me the only way we could really apply his theory would be to take the entire world's money and then share it equally to make a "new" start. Then again, those born from rich parents in a few years from now would be unduly advantaged, and we would see again a new path towards oligarchy.
And no, I am not an advocate of plundering- neither in its socialist or anarcho-capitalist form. It's just that I think it's necessary for everyone to create their own democratically ran "state oligarchs" to counter-balance the private ones that would arise from free market. I don't think it is possible for a State to stay un-corrupt and truly defend rights (however minimal they may be) if it doesn't have much more power than the private rich. Think of it a second: if the whole State of America had a budget of 4 billions that would be exclusively spent on elections, courts, and police, wouldn't you be affraid that it could be taken over by a large corporation in a matter of years?

Well, I may taking the easy escape route... but I can't go on about Bastiat. Just too hard for me to discuss such things in English. Be sure, however, that I'll be following the discussion, but I won't actively participate in it, unless I feel like my vocabulary is sufficient to offer an intelligent and clear point. (Judging from the replies you gave to my first argument, it is obvious to me I have not made myself entirely clear).

And about Ayn Rand: I don't like her, but I don't think it's fair to say she brings no arguments. Didn't she make a table that sought to prove that "inaction", as a semantic negative, could therefore have no moral value? OK, it may not be the best argument ever, but it desserves some reflexion nevertheless.

[Brundlefly]

Ayn Rand was the ultimate spokesman for the left hemisphere of the brain.

[Brundlefly]

Charles Atlas Shrugged

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by bfg9000
Ayn Rand was the ultimate spokesman for the left hemisphere of the brain.

[Buck Birdseed]

I don't agree with any of them, but there are ideas that appeal to me in Hume, Kant, Heidegger, Foucault, plus strangely enough both Popper and Wittgenstein.

Least favourite would have to be Plato, who ****ed up philosophy quite seriously from the start.

[Harry Tuttle]

Originally posted by Lazarus and the Gimp
I believe she also concluded that one of the most evil men in history was Robin Hood.

Literary history you mean. Her Robin Hood metaphor does strike upon a decent point of argument. Is robbing the rich and giving to the poor really a moral decision? I mean yes, I believe that the poor should be helped, but the Robin Hood argument supposes that the rich don't deserve their riches or obtained it at the expense of the poor. This isn't necessarily true of course because of the basic reasoning behind trade.

While Rand's assertation that the Robin Hood myth/story is evil is a somewhat valid argument, it is taken out of context from the Robin Hood story. Besides, in Atlas Shrugged one of the characters was a modern day pirate, stealing back the taxes that Hank Rearden, etc... had paid to the government. Anyways, I think this statement was made in jest at the time it was written in the book and wasn't really supposed to make a statement about her philosophy. It's way to hypocritical.

[Agathon]

Originally posted by Buck Birdseed
I don't agree with any of them, but there are ideas that appeal to me in Hume, Kant, Heidegger, Foucault, plus strangely enough both Popper and Wittgenstein.

Least favourite would have to be Plato, who ****ed up philosophy quite seriously from the start.

Well he pretty much invented it.

[Verres]

epicureanism! now thats a useful philosophy!

Finally, an -ism I agree with!

[Whaleboy]

Hedonism is my personal favourite...

[VetLegion]

Yeah, right, everyone here is a philosophy expert too, besides being ace in politics, engineering, sports and everything else...

Hands up who doesn't know anything about philosophy and is just posting something to look smart!

[Bereta_Eder]

Agreed with vetty godammit you people are sad

[monkspider]

All philosophers are pretty good except Ayn Rand L. Ron Hubbard.

[Peter Triggs]

Someone (Urmson?, Quinton?) once remarked something like "When you see the words 'philosophical' and 'theory' conjoined, be prepared to be disappointed." Question to Agathon: "Would you say the same thing about the words 'Apolyton' and 'philosophy'?"

[Bosh]

[quoteDidn't she make a table that sought to prove that "inaction", as a semantic negative, could therefore have no moral value?[/quote]
So standing around whistling while someone drowns because you didn't give them a hand isn't immoral? Gotta love Rand.