SocraticGadfly: Philosophy in politics cuts both ways

January 22, 2012

Philosophy in politics cuts both ways

Gary Gutting, one of the New York Times' "Stone" philosophy column opiners, has a half-good column about how philosophy could better political discourse.

It's only half-good because he only talks about how Democrats, using philosophical principles, could more charitably interpret the ideas driving GOP conservativism. He offers nary an example of how Republicans could, and should, do the same.

It's "insight" like this which, on the intellectual side, continues to stimulate the drift, or whatever, from liberalism to neoliberalism, along with many other factors.

I'm really, really disappointed.

We'll see if he does a follow-up column looking the other way, but, I doubt it.

No comments: