Walking seems a simple enough activity. We celebrate it when our children do it for the first time, but once that threshold is crossed, we think nothing more of it; we just do it. About the only time we appreciate it is when we feel like we are doing too much of it or cannot […]

Once upon a time I taught World and European history. Both of those curricula involve the study of Classical Rome. Of course well known are names such as Julius Caesar and Augustus, but the second century saw a group of rulers known as The Five Good Emperors, a title bestowed mostly because they were not […]

Last semester I mentioned to my students that I believe one of the purposes of philosophy is to unsettle us. I then offered the age-old example of Socrates who likened himself to a type of biting fly that arouses a sluggish horse to action through irritation and pain. I then mentioned the philosopher Peter Singer, […]

While recently finishing the intriguing book Galileo’s Error by Philip Goff, I was reminded of an interview with the author and Philip Pullman as part of the Philosophy in the Bookshop series hosted by Nigel Warburton. This monthly event takes place in the Norrington Room at Blackwell’s Bookshop in Oxford, England.  While watching the YouTube video, […]

When I was growing up, a common refrain heard on the elementary school playground was: “I can do what I want. It’s a free county.” This was a frustrating argument my fourth grade brain knew on some level was not true, yet it was used to justify all kinds of nefarious school yard abuses.  “It’s […]