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1500 questions
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14 answers

Is faith necessary for man to survive / why is existentialism valued if it is unsubstantiated?

I'd like to point out that I have basically no knowledgeable background in philosophy, but this question has been troubling me as of late, and I need an informed take on this. I was watching a video by Dr. Jordan Peterson, a professor of psychology…
sangstar
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Why is it okay to eat meat but not to be cruel to animals?

Why is eating meat allowed in a social setting ( Most people think it's not bad ) but not animal cruelty in a social setting ( Most people think it's bad )? Like: Imagine what would happen if someone abused an animal in a crowd. Imagine if someone…
Seal
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Does happiness motivate every action?

Pascal wrote: All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views.…
Jon 'links in bio' Ericson
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Is circular reasoning always a fallacy?

Suppose the following dialogue: ... "I accept only one notion of land property. Namely, 'I am doing my stuff here, therefore I am here". "But this means," he responded, "you can break into any place and stay there, using this rule." "There is…
rus9384
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What should philosophers know about math and natural sciences?

My question is whether a lack of knowledge about formal mathematics or theoretical science in general would have an impact on a philosopher's ability to think and make judgments. Why should a philosopher acquire a deeper understanding of natural…
Bob
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14 answers

How come nihilism is so popular today?

I've been trying to attack this question (or more precisely, come up with an answer to that fact) for some time now, but after a while of research I'm suddenly not so sure of the reason the situation is as it is. I used to think that nihilism today…
Yechiam Weiss
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What should a rational person accept as a miracle?

I was reading through this collection of short essays from theologians, scientists and thinkers each responding to the question "Does the Universe have a purpose?" which was suggested to me in a response to my question here on the purpose of the…
Saeed Neamati
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24 answers

Asserting that Atheism and Theism are both faith based positions

I am recently testing an assertion that I have concluded namely that atheism is a faith based position just like theism is a faith based position. The reason I arrived at this conclusion is that theists have no proof that God actually exists. It's…
user37713
37
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10 answers

Is it a fallacy, and if so which, to believe we are special because our existence on Earth seems improbable?

People often use the argument that there must be a God, for example, because Earth and the laws of physics are perfectly situated for humans to exist the way we do. However, if Earth or even the universe as a whole were not situated so that life…
Tori
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Should I respect other people's religions?

My point of view is that there is no reason to believe any god exists without evidence. So I find religions a very irrational idea and I mostly heard people saying We have to respect other people's religion But I have barely heard: We don't…
Danowsky
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Why do atheist euthanasia proponents consider nothingness preferable to suffering?

I have heard some atheists support euthanasia, on the grounds that death is preferable to agony. But I don't understand this; if there is no afterlife, death isn't a relief. It's true nothingness, the deceased won't experience painlessness, they…
Ryan_L
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Was Socrates a fictional character invented by Plato?

I have read a lot of websites that suggest Socrates was a fictional character created by Plato (albeit without the citation of any corroborating evidence), but I have also read the opposite (and by "opposite" here I don't mean that Plato was created…
Garmen1778
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Is it a fallacy if someone claims they need an explanation for every word of your argument to the point where they don't understand common terms?

Is it a fallacy if someone claims they need an explanation for every word of your argument to the point where they don't understand common terms? For example, suppose someone said, "If a dog bites people, then it's a vicious dog." Then someone…
dogperson
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Why has the philosophy of Bishop Berkeley fallen out of favor in academic philosophy?

I studied George Berkeley as an undergraduate, and though I absolutely loved his work and his philosophy, many of my peers, and even some of my professors, found his philosophy wholly unappealing, even worth mocking. My school offered full classes…
dimo414
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Fundamental idea on proving God's existence with science

I think that proving God's existence or any deity from any culture with the rigors of science is fundamentally absurd. The popular arguments usually involve space-time and the big bang theory. (I have a layperson's understanding of those ideas).…
TheLast Cipher
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