I heard there was some extra credit for posting on the blog.  Here it is.

Greg Karabinos

Philosophy

The Matrix

October 24, 2009

                                                            Ethics

            Throughout the Matrix, Neo is faced with many ethical issues.  He must decide weather it is wrong to kill regular humans in the Matrix even if they are following the instructions of the machines.   In addition to this he is faced with a choice: is sacrificing one to save the lives of many morally correct?  Also, he has to choose between his race and the machines.  Even though Neo does not contemplate ethics as much as what is real and unreal they are presented to the viewer as very distinct choices.  Each time a moral decision is made in the movie, the viewer is guided to his own conclusion.

            While walking through a simulation of the Matrix, Morpheus explains to Neo that the matrix is a system and that system is their enemy.  He continues, explaining that in this system all the people that inhabit it, the people they are trying to free are their enemies as long as they are plugged into the Matrix.  Ironically, Morpheus and his band cause more harm to the other humans in the Matrix than the machines.  They kill countless innocents.  Neo accepts this decision without hesitation and shows little remorse in killing and maiming these cogs in the Matrix.  Even though it would be impossible for Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus to complete their objectives without this killing, the morality of this is still questionable.  In modern wars, civilian casualties are strongly avoided.  This is largely due to the fact that each country must answer to the public and other countries.  However, Morpheus does not answer to anyone in the Matrix or the real world, during the entire movie he does not have contact with any humans superior to him in the real world.  Because of this he is able to make his own decisions, even if they are immoral. 

            Morpheus helps Neo overlook the moral issues regarding to killing the humans in the Matrix, but Neo must make his own decision when the agents capture Morpheus.  The agents are trying to coerce Morpheus into giving them the codes to Zion, the last human city.  Neo, Trinity, and Tank are confronted with a choice.  They have to decide weather it is morally correct to kill Morpheus for the greater good.  They all know that Morpheus would rather die than give up the codes to Zion to the robots.  But can they make that decision for him?  This is a debated issue today in the modern world in the form of assisted suicide.  Is it principled to assist someone’s suicide or is it merely murder?  In the Matrix Neo comes up with an answer to this difficult decision.  He creates a third option.  Instead of letting Morpheus die or murdering him, Neo attempts a daring rescue.  To the viewers, this is the most honorable option and it skirts the difficult questions resulting from the choice Neo would have had to make.  Can one value a human life?  Can a human life be defined by dollars, or is it measurable in other human lives?  Are certain lives worth more than others?  The Matrix presents the viewer with this question but moves on before the viewer can make a decision.

            One of the most important questions of the movie is presented to Neo when he must choose between the Humans and the machines.  Although he makes this choice early in the movie when he allies himself with Morpheus, we see that other humans were not as committed as he.  Cipher, one of Morpheus’s band betrays them to the agents, computer programs designed to protect the Matrix.  While Cipher’s choice is motivated by pure self-gain, it brings doubt to the viewer.  Who is right, the machines or humans?  Morpheus admits that the humans were the ones who scorched the sky and Agent Smith compares the humans to a virus consuming more and more territory and using up many natural resources.  Even though the viewer is clearly intended to support the humans regardless of their past failures, it may not be as obvious choice.  Once Neo joins with the humans the machines are bent on his destruction.  This forces him to accept the humans as his allies despite his lack of facts.

            A viewer of the Matrix is able to question the ethics displayed in the Matrix without the pressure the characters are under.  With less resources and time the characters are forced to compromise their ethics occasionally to survive while a viewer has the luxury of principles.  Even though the characters may seem to be mercenaries, they are in fact devout believers adhering strictly to their cause.  Their enduring goal is to free the humans from the Matrix but their immediate goal is to merely survive.  Thus they are compelled to make decisions with less thought to ethics than usual.

Hey Dr. P,

My paper is 744 words right now, I went through and took off any extranious stuff I could find, but I don't think I can crop it down anymore without making it choppy and lacking explenations for my points. So how important is the 500-600 word rule?

Post 2

In the beginning of the movie, everytime something bad happens to Neo or everytime he is in a difficult situation he wakes up from a dream. Why?

"Discovery"

After watching most of the movie I am still a bit confused. How did Morpheus find Neo? How did he discover him. And how does he know that he is the one, why did Neo stick out so much? Does the history of this come out in the sequels of the matrix?

Matrix

This is a question for Dr. P can we please watch Matrix 2 were Neo goes through thousands of gaurds?

"...as a species, human beings define their reality through suffering and misery." A quote from Agent Smith. He also said that early in the Matrix the AI had created a perfect world for the humans, but that the humans rejected it. These two thoughts along with something from the third movie led me to thinking that the real world, out of the matrix, was yet another piece of the matrix. Before Neo was released he was unhappy with reality, saying that something just felt wrong, perhaps rejecting reality because it wasnt difficult enough, much as the humans did long ago. The "real" world out of the matrix acts like a safety net for people who cannot handle the reality they were first given. In their real world they constantly suffer and are miserable, constantly having to risk their lives, without good food which makes it seem more real for them.

The Philosophy of the Matrix Day 3

Today's part of the Matrix spoke more towards the ethics part of the assignment but metaphysics got some time too.
The spoon isn't real. Taking that to a broader sense, while in the Matrix once you give up the illusion, only you are real.
Deja vu is actually a glitch in the system. Which is a smart way to explain it in the context of the universe and situations in the movie.
The agent mentioned how smell may not even be real in the Matrix which ties into my first point of defining what real in the Matrix is. But that brings it all full circle as that is the essential questions of my topic.

Matrix

As for todays viewing i found that it was full of new information, new areas of debate, and lots of new violence. One point of discussion is of Cypher. Why do you think he wanted out of the Matrix so badly? Another point, the oracle says that Neo will have to make a choice between his life or Morphius's. Does this mean that only one of them can live? Because as of now it seems like Neo will save Morphius as well as live himself.

Ethics

Is it wrong to kill one person to save many even when there death seems inevitable?  Would it have been morally wrong to for Neo to kill Morpheus even if that was what Morpheus would want had he been present?  We deal with these questions today.  Neo choose to attempt a rescue. Although it is not stated, it is clear that Tank would probably kill MorphuesIs it wrong for a docter to help one of his patents commit suicide if they are unable to do it alone?  This is a highly debated question.  I believe that each person has a right to die.

matrix oracle

or⋅a⋅cle –noun
1.
(esp. in ancient Greece) an utterance, often ambiguous or obscure, given by a priest or priestess at a shrine as the response of a god to an inquiry.
2.
the agency or medium giving such responses.
3.
a shrine or place at which such responses were given: the oracle of Apollo at Delphi.
4.
a person who delivers authoritative, wise, or highly regarded and influential pronouncements.
5.
a divine communication or revelation.
6.
any person or thing serving as an agency of divine communication.
7.
any utterance made or received as authoritative, extremely wise, or infallible.
8.
oracles, the Scriptures.
9.
the holy of holies of the Temple built by Solomon in Jerusalem. I Kings 6:16, 19–23.

so, if an oracle has to talk to god, does that mean there is a god or possibly multiple in the real world?

Cruz and Philosophy

Mr. Cruz's talk yesterday was interesting.  I would have been interested to hear more philosophical questions though.  Did he ponder the nature of reality on his trip or was he only thinking about what he was.  I think that to be able to get to that question many others have to be asked first.  For example if this is only a Matrix it may tell me what I am in this world but I have no idea what I am in the real world.

The Philosophy of the Matrix Day 2

After two days of this movie, I now understand it more but at the same time, I'm more confused. I've decided to focus on the nature of reality in the Matrix. Thus, many of my questions were actually answered .
The real world is actually 200 years ahead of the Matrix. What we know to be the real world is actually a computer program designed to trick humans into a false sense of security. The real world had been taken over by the machines that the humans invented. "The One" refers to the person in the real world that brought others from the Matrix. The key to mastering the boundaries, or lack thereof, of the real world is to free your mind.
How do the machines know the actual taste of the food they program into the Matrix?
Can you dream in the real world if the Matrix is a dream?

Day 2 matrix

When Morpheus is training with Neo, Morpheus doesn't show Neo how to do anything, but makes him just figure it out on his own. Why would Morpheus do this? If he is just programed, of course he will have the skills, but it would take time to figure out the program, and they keep saying they are running out of time.

Neo is told that he has been living in a "dream" world. so does a human being used as a battery not come alive or become real untill they are unplugged?

Matrix

I have a few questions on the epistomology on the movie so far. How does Morphius indeed know that Neo is the one and has he done this with other types of people to find The One?

also, how does the oracle know what is the truth? how does it know what is real and what is fake when sometimes the matrix can suck in reality but warp it? So far there are alot of questions on the knowledge of the movie and the realities.

For Teh LOLs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ur5fGSBsfq8&feature=player_embedded

The Matrix and Fate

I was also wondering, if the Matrix is a computer program is there room for chance? Is everything that happens in the Matrix fated to occur in just a certain way, and is that why there is an oracle who can make true predictions?

Preexisting condition

"You have the look of a man who believes what he sees, because he is expecting to wake up." --Morpheus speaking to Neo-- Does this mean that Neo already knows the Matrix is false, on a subconcious level, and that this is how he came to Morpheus's attention? Did all the people who were freed know that the world they were living in was false, at least on some level?

matrix controll program

so, since the people in the matrix are just a computer program, what if they just stop eating, a computer program can't just die

how come people just didnt demagnitize machines to begin with rather than resorting to scorching the sky

How many matrices are there?

When Neo is pulled from the matrix he hardly believes this new setting is reality.  Even though Morpheus is certain that he is in the "real" world could there be more than one matrix?  For example is the "real" world merely a matrix set up by the humans to trick the artificial intelligences.  There could be limitless levels of reality.

Another thought: Does time continue in the Matrix?  Has it always been the year 1999 in the matrix or will the robots allow the humans to continue through time in the matrix.

Can something be invented by an inhabitant of the matrix that hasn't been invented outside of it?

Expanding on this question, could a brilliant programer in the matrix write a more advanced program than the matrix.  What if, for example, an artificial intelligence were invented by a human in the matrix?  Would it be bound by the human's mind and obey the limits he forces his body to obey or would it be unable to be tricked and see through the Matrix?

I thought I would do a little research on the names of characters because Dr. P mentioned that many of them have significance.

Morpheus: is the Greek god of dreams. Morpheus has the ability to take any human's form and appear in dreams

Neo: Neo is a prefix signaling a "new" form or a revival of an old one.

Trinity: the Christian concept of God as three persons.

Some of the other crew members have names that make sense too, Mouse is small and mousy, Cipher deciphers the code of matrix.

I believe this is the name of their ship- Nebuchadnezzar. He was the king of Babylonia about 1100 BC. He was the king at the time when Israel was conquered and occupied by Babylonia, about the time of the Book of Daniel.

I'm not quite sure what the connection would be there.

Matrix Day 2

Your first round of questions may have been answered, but the rabbit hole goes much, much deeper. Although we now know the nature of the Matrix, many questions remain. Share them again tonight, and consider posing some possible answers - you might even wish to think about philosophical ideas from earlier in the semester to see if they are relevant.

WTF

As Dr. P said you are going to say to yourself WTF!!!! I LOVE THIS MOVIE. Theres alot of things that i dont get but one question i would like to ask is How did Morpheus know that Neo was going to touch that mirror? and does he always set up new ways of getting people?

Matrix

What happens when/ if Neo actually does come to a point where he can no longer tell the difference from reality and and a dream? Is that what the Matrix are trying to acomplish? What exactly are they trying to do?

My question was; Why did the robot not just throw Neo over the edge or something and kill him? Humans that have escaped are useless to the machines, and if the agents know that Morpheus is trying to use Neo wouldn't they take this opportunity to foil Morpheus's plans? Haven't they caught on by now that people who are freed end up coming back to fight against them? In response to Kevin, Neo has to be rescued as quickly as possible, in part because they can't risk the agents getting to him again, and also because the longer someone has been in the Matrix the more attached to it they become, (they try to rescue everyone at as young an age as they can). In response to Dominique; I never really thought much about the Alice reference, as far as I can remember there are no mentions of it, other than what we have already seen, good question, I'll have to look for that now.

The Philosophy of the Matrix Day 1

Considering the fact I have never seen this movie before and have extremely limited knowledge concerning the movie, my notes were mainly questions.

How does the Matrix give people the ability to defy gravity, time and death?
How did Neo already know about Morpheus?
The agents are the enemy, but are they the bad guys?

Thoughts on Matrix

As we watched some of the beginning of The Matrix i was confused because i did not know much of the details. Here are some questions/thoughts that i pondered during the movie:

1. What is it that Neo knows that has made him such a unique target to the agents and Morphius?
2. Was the real universe made up of millions of human biengs that are practically held in chambers until they are needed?

Also,maybe the other members of Morphius's group must have gone through the same process that Neo is/did going/go through.

Matrix and Plato

Is the test tube area based off the allegory of the caves?

Operation: Enter the Matrix: ACTIVATED

Your mission has begun! Using your field notes (which you took today), remember your TWO mission assignments tonight: FIRST, create your own post, sharing with your fellow agents your own observations, and especially questions you think are interesting and/or important. SECOND, take time to read at least two other agents' posts, and write two different comments. Remember: almost EVERYONE is confused about something right now - the Matrix is complicated! Don't expect to find answers yet... but asking the right questions is often the first step on the road to the right answers.

As Trinity said: "It is the question that drives us, Neo. It's the question that brought you here."

**ONLY if you have trouble logging in: you can get credit for the first half of the assignment by commenting on THIS post. You must still complete the SECOND half (two other comments on others' posts).

Enter the Matrix

Here's the assignment for the upcoming week (as outlined in class on Friday).

Remember that we will meet in the A/V Room, NOT S-13. Be prompt to class, since I'll be starting the movie directly.

OPERATION: ENTERING THE MATRIX

MISSION SPECIALIZATION CHOICES:
A> SUB-OPERATION: THE DESERT OF THE REAL. DESCRIPTION: YOU WILL FOCUS ON THE NATURE OF THE REALITY PRESENTED IN THE MATRIX. OBSERVATION AND ANALYSIS WILL BE DIRECTED TOWARD METAPHYSICAL INVESTIGATION.
B> SUB-OPERATION: BLUE PILL. DESCRIPTION: YOU WILL FOCUS ON THE NATURE OF KNOWLEDGE IN THE WORLD OF THE MATRIX. OBSERVATION AND ANALYSIS WILL BE DIRECTED TOWARD EPISTEMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION.
C> SUB-OPERATION: VIRUS H(uman)1N1. DESCRIPTION: YOU WILL FOCUS ON THE NATURE OF MORALITY IN THE MATRIX. OBSERVATION AND ANALYSIS WILL BE DIRECTED TOWARD ETHICAL INVESTIGATION.

YOUR MISSION PARAMETERS:
>>>1. RECONNAISANCE. MAXIMUM ALLOTTED TIME: 136 MINUTES. DESCRIPTION: FROM A SECURE LOCATION, OBSERVE AND RECORD MAJOR CHARACTERS, INTERACTIONS, EVENTS WITHIN THE MATRIX. BUILD A DATABASE COMPLETE ENOUGH TO SUPPORT 4 PERIODIC COMPREHENSIVE MISSION DEBRIEFS (VERBAL AND/OR WRITTEN FORMAT) TO ZION MISSION HQ AND/OR EXTERNAL COMMAND REPRESENTATIVES.
>>>2. EVALUATION/SYNTHESIS. MAXIMUM ALLOTTED TIME: 60 MINUTES. DESCRIPTION: INTERPRET THE DATA YOU COLLECT. RECORD QUESTIONS AND MAKE INFORMED HYPOTHESES ABOUT THE SIGNIFICANCE/MEANING OF: CHARACTER NAMES, SYMBOLS, CONVERSATIONS, ESPECIALLY POSSIBLE PHILOSOPHICAL SIGNIFICANCE (RELEVANT TO YOUR CHOSEN MISSION SPECIALIZATION). THE RESULT OF THIS ACTIVITY WILL BE RECORDED IN JOURNAL FORMAT, DATE-STAMPED, AND WILL BE SAVED IN ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT FORMAT FOR IMMEDIATE USE (SEE MISSION PARAMETER 3 BELOW). **NOTE: THIS PORTION OF YOUR MISSION MAY REQUIRE ACCESS TO MULTIPLE RESEARCH DATABASES (ONLINE AND OFFLINE) FOR UNFAMILIAR TERMINOLOGY.
>>>3. COLLABORATION. MAXIMUM ALLOTTED TIME: N/A. DESCRIPTION: ACTIVE DATA SHARING WITH OTHER OPERATIVES VIA COMMON BLOG ACCESS (CODENAME: MOUNTIESPHILOSOPHY.BLOGSPOT.COM). THE MATRIX IS A SOPHISTICATED AND COMPLEX ENTITY; IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT ALL OPERATIVES SHARE THEIR DATA/OBSERVATIONS IN COMMON, TO ACHIEVE A FULL ANALYSIS OF THE PHENOMENON. ONCE YOU HAVE COMPLETED MISSION PARAMETER 2, YOU WILL POST YOUR EVALUATION/SYNTHESIS TO BLOG AND POST A MINIMUM OF 2 COMMENTS ON 2 OTHER OPERATIVES' EVAL/SYNTHS.
>>>4. MISSION REPORT. LENGTH: 500-600 WORDS. SUBMIT DEADLINE: 10/26, 0800 HOURS. DESCRIPTION: SUBMIT A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF YOUR CHOSEN SUB-OPERATION, BASED ON THE SUM TOTAL OF DATA COLLECTED THROUGH COMPLETING MISSION PARAMETERS 1 THROUGH 3. ZION MISSION HQ WILL MAKE COMMAND DECISIONS BASED UPON YOUR INTEL; OBVIOUSLY YOU STRIVE TO PRESENT AS THOROUGH AS POSSIBLE A REPORT.

END TRANSMISSION

Scientists Use Quake 2 to Study Mouse Brains

From Slashdot.org:

In this week's issue of Nature, scientists from Princeton University trained
mice to navigate around a virtual environment using a setup that resembles a
combination of a giant trackball and a mini-iMax theater displaying a virtual
world rendered using a modified version of the Quake 2 open source game
engine. (Here's the academic paper, subscription required.) They hold the
mouse's head still atop a giant trackball, which the mouse turns by running. The
scientists use the rotations to move the mouse around in the virtual
environment, and when he reaches certain places, he gets a reward. Because they
are able to hold the head still, they can stick microscopic glass electrodes
into individual neurons in the hippocampus of this mouse as it 'navigates.' They
find the neural activity that resembles activity during real life navigation,
and learned new things about the inputs and computations that are going on
inside these neurons, which weren't known before.

What do you imagine we might learn from such experiments? Anything interesting or useful or practical?

Out of the Cave...

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

"On the mountains of truth you can never climb in vain: either you will reach a point higher up today, or you will be training your powers so that you will be able to climb higher tomorrow."
-Friedrich Nietzsche, philosopher (1844-1900)

Can you think of a way this quotation applies to Plato's allegory of the cave?

Finish the Phrase...

HW: either comment here or write on paper for class tomorrow:

"The philosopher must return to the cave because..." ...finish the sentence (or two or three) with your best, most thoughtful reason. Be creative! Be logical!

Philosophy Assembly next Wednesday!

On Wednesday the 21st (the half day), the schoolwide assembly will be a presentation by a philosopher! The talk is called:

"Disappearing Into Asia"

The speaker: Joe Cruz is professor of philosophy and cognitive science at Williams College. His writing and research is on consciousness, thought, and knowledge. Professor Cruz is also an elite mountain bike racer, and he coaches the Eph cycling team. His bicycle expeditions include Pakistan, India, Tibet, Nepal, Southeast Asia, the American West, and much of Western Europe.

HW...and $

First: Tonight, post a comment in response to the question I posed this morning: what three abstract (non-physical) things would it make an important difference in your life to lose? Remember: you'll be answering this question differently if you're a realist or if you're a nominalist.

Now, what about this "$" in the title above? I invite you to click on the "Philosophy Slam!" link (to the right). You will see that next Friday, October 16, is an important date for a national philosophy contest, which I'm going to encourage all of you to enter.

Extra, Extra!

Here's the story about our class by reporter Megan Foley from today's North Adams Transcript.

Ooooh, Nominalism...

Your mission tonight is all about thinking on your feet. I gave you only a very little bit of information in class today about this nominalism theory. Based on what you know, try to think of a creative objection to it. There's more than one possibility. (If you're having a hard time, here's one possible hint: courage. Here's another: five. Don't say I never gave you anything. :-)

Plato (not Play-Doh) [D'oh!]

So today, as you recall, we introduced the Greek philosopher Plato's Theory of Forms - the metaphysical theory that hypothesizes not one, but two (count 'em) levels of reality. Recall why Plato ends up at this idea? Right - he recognizes that no perfect or ideal item ever exists in the 'real world', but we can imagine such things, AND there always seems to be some common element among the physical objects we see, no matter HOW different they are. For example, my 1-year-old baby cousin and my 84-year-old great-uncle are very different in a whole lotta ways, but they DO share something in common - something that makes them both human beings. That 'something in common' is what Plato calls the Form.

The Forms exist in a separate 'level' of reality - an unchanging and eternal place. What we see around us are all mere reflections or copies of these perfect Forms: and, like all copies, they're slightly imperfect.

Okay, boys 'n' girls. Time to tackle that pesky question that ended the class today. HOW can there be ideal Forms when everybody's ideals are different? HELLO?? (Okay, I'm being a bit obnoxious. So sue me.)

Take a stand! Comment below, making sure to state FIRST where you stand on the issue, then why you think what you do. I heard some pretty persuasive doubters in class today (e.g. Alyssa); if you can convince me (with good, logical reasoning, of course) that Plato's full of it, I might just skip over this section. Give it your best shot! <> Defend Plato, as Jon did today. I have to admit I like Plato, so I may be biased. :-)

Always Thinking: Philosophy in the Liberal Arts

An article in which friend and colleague Prof. Paul Nnodim, a philosophy professor at MCLA, talks about the real-world value and relevance of the study of philosophy.

"While many students who major in philosophy may not become philosophy teachers, they certainly have a wide range of career perspectives and opportunities," says
Nnodim. "Some may pursue a career in law, business, management, as well as in
government, non-profit or international organizations. The skills they gain
studying philosophy complement most careers."

For Your Edification...

This post: Extracredit + HW

HW: find a good philosophical definition of metaphysics, and post here.

Extracredit: The following exercise is available for any of you to ponder; for anyone who scored an 89 or lower on the exam, it has a special, added characteristic - i.e., it can count for up to 10 points in my gradebook. The point-value of your answer will depend on its correctness, completeness, and clarity. The real value of your answer will depend on these same things. (What's the difference?) If you are responding to the exercise and want to qualify for points, you must comment on this post by 11:59 pm on Wednesday 7 October.

ANYway...

Below are excerpts from actual letters to the editor in which the authors argue for or against a particular position on a social issue. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to choose one excerpt and:

1) Identify and label the premises and the conclusion of the argument. (Remember that you can, if necessary, insert enthymemes - any statements that are assumed, and are important to the argument, but which the author hasn't stated explicitly. Enthymemes are often omitted because the author considers them too obvious to state aloud - but they're important to analyzing the argument.) There can certainly be more than two premises, so don't worry if you find more. Label them P1, P2, ... C.

2) Classify the argument. First: is it deductive or inductive? Second: if deductive, is it valid/invalid, then sound/unsound? if inductive, is it strong/weak, then cogent/uncogent? Third: are there any fallacies committed? if so, name them.

3) If there is a fallacy, reconstruct the argument so that it is a valid (or strong) argument. (If there is no fallacy, simply write "no fallacy" for this step.)

4) Respond to one (1) of your classmates' analyses - either suggest a revision, or ask a question, or otherwise challenge her/his analysis. (If only one person in the class chooses to do this assignment, this step does not apply.)

Happy hunting! Please note: the writers are not exactly neutral or unbiased in their writing. When you analyze their arguments, try to make them as unbiased as you can.


Excerpt #1. "Evolution would have been dealt serious setbacks if environmentalists had been around over the eons trying to save endangered species. Species are endangered because they just do not fit the bigger picture any more as the world changes. That's not bad. It's just life. In most cases we have seen the 'endangered species' argument is just a ruse; much deeper motives usually exist."

Excerpt. #2. "The problem that I have with the pro-choice supporters' argument is that they make 'choice' the ultimate issue. Let's face facts. No one has absolute freedom of choice sanctioned by the law. One can choose to rob a bank, but it's not lawful. Others can choose to kill their one-year-old child, but it is not legal. Why then should a woman have the legal right to take the life of her unborn child?"

Excerpt #3. "Since when did military service become a right, for gays or anyone else? The military has always been allowed to discriminate against people who don't meet its requirements, including those who are overweight or too tall or too short. There is an adequate supply of personnel with the characteristics they need. And there is no national need for gays in the military."

Excerpt #4. "The issue is not whether we should subsidize the arts, but whether anyone should be able to force someone else to subsidize the arts. You and I are free to give any amount of our money to any artistic endeavor we wish to support. When the government gets involved, however, a group of bureaucrats is given the power to take our money and give it to the arts they wish to support. We are not consulted. That is not a way to promote a responsible culture, That is tyrrany."

Excerpt #5. "If the advocates of prayers in public schools win on this issue, just where will it end? Perhaps next they will ask for prayers on public transportation? Prayers by government workers before they start their job each day? Or maybe, mandatory prayers in public restaurants before starting each meal might be a good idea."

Philosophers' Thought of the Day

"It is hard enough to remember my opinions, without also remembering my reasons for them."

-Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche, philosopher (1844-1900)

[from A.Word.A.Day]