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Open for Debate

Objectification, Knowledge, and Pornography

Posted on 8 April 2019 by Aidan McGlynn

Objectification is treating or depicting a person as a mere thing. What does this involve? By now we’re all familiar with the idea that it’s an aspect of women’s subordinate status in society that they are sexually objectified: they are treated and depicted as sex objects. Practices such as sex work, pornography, street harassment, and
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Open for Debate

On Silencing Conservatives on Campus: Some Possibilities

Posted on 25 March 2019 by Mary Kate McGowan

There has been a lot of talk lately about silencing.  In particular, some claim that conservative voices are silenced on university campuses, the very place where a diversity of thought ought to be fostered and valued.  If this is true, it is a bad thing.  I will not attempt to settle this (thorny) issue here. 
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Open for Debate

Epicurus on Losing Arguments

Posted on 11 March 2019 by Scott F. Aikin

Epicurus’s Vatican Saying #74 runs: “the one who loses in a philosophical dispute gains more the more he learns.”  I remember reading that line as an undergraduate, thinking it curious and perhaps a bit perverse.  How would Epicurus himself apply this to his own views, after critique from the likes of Stoic, Skeptic, or Christian
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Open for Debate

Empathetic Understanding in Politics

Posted on 25 February 2019 by Michael Hannon

What is the goal of political conversation? Why should we deliberate with others about politics? Democratic deliberation is said to benefit people in many ways. For example, it has been touted as a way to produce civic engagement, increase faith in democratic institutions, encourage a willingness to compromise, and make people better citizens overall.
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