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Great Thinkers

stuff On people who represent big ideas

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The ‘Great Man’ theory of history has the history of ideas moved forward by individuals. But by thinking of these as ‘Great Ideas’, or better ‘spirits’ of ideas, we’re encouraged to examine their motivations, which is surprisingly effective.

Great Spirits of History

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There’s this quote that floats around sometimes. It goes something like:‘If you don’t do the thinking, the thinking will be done for you’. This is usually presented like a bad thing, but really it’s often the only way to navigate the complexity of the world. Here’s one little tool for doing just that.
The ‘Great Man’ theory of history has the history of ideas moved forward by individuals. But by thinking of these as ‘Great Ideas’, or better ‘spirits’ of ideas, we’re encouraged to examine their motivations, which is surprisingly effective.
Check it out

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betterment gratification thought-architecture on-(un)happiness on-culture on-politics-and-power on-thinking-and-reasoning

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Greek philosophers argued whether social morality was a creation of the weak to control the strong, but of course this is simply another form of strength.

The sophists: natural justice or social justice?

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The ancient Greek sophist philosophers often debated the influence of natural laws on the social ones we use to constrain them. This is most striking in the discussion of justice. Where is the justice of nature—the drive toward pleasure and the domination of the weak by the strong–more useful or productive than the justice of society—those laws and norms installed by people to constrain our natures?
Greek philosophers argued whether social morality was a creation of the weak to control the strong, but of course this is simply another form of strength.
Check it out

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connection betterment gratification thought-architecture on-ethics on-leadership on-politics-and-power wealth-architecture

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Today’s representative democracy balances power between the few & many. Despite flaws & crises, it provides stability for change, avoiding turmoil & uprisings. The many gave power to the few; change is in their hands.

The New Democracy

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The Athenian democracy of Plato’s time was a ‘truer’ democracy than ours. Plato was staunchly against it, and yet his anti-democratic ideas still influence our democracy today. How? The age old dichotomy between ‘the many’ and ‘the few’ of Plato’s time doesn’t really exist anymore. From Plato, to Machiavelli, to Thomas Hobbes, we have devised a new democracy that collapses the two. And it’s this change that should give us hope for the future.
Today’s representative democracy balances power between the few & many. Despite flaws & crises, it provides stability for change, avoiding turmoil & uprisings. The many gave power to the few; change is in their hands.
Check it out

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connection on-politics-and-power on-leadership

article

Who was Plato and Why Should We Care

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Plato has become something of a synonym for philosophy. A figurehead that encapsulates the idea of searching for meaning. In doing so, his philosophy has escaped us. And yet, his works from almost 2500 years ago reflect on matters that we still grapple with today.
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spiritual-architecture connection betterment on-politics-and-power on-leadership on-culture on-ethics

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The struggle to be good; early psychology

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Sigmund Freud was an unusual dude. He had some wacky ideas. But he also had some very useful ones. Prior to Freud, not very many people took the study of the mind very seriously. One of his more useful conceptions was his 1923 ‘Structural Model’, essen…

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