Philosophy

Philosophy articles feature reflection and analysis about public life, values, ethics, and morals.

All philosophy articles at Brownstone Institute are translated into multiple languages.

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The Freedumb Fallacy

By / / , , / 7 minute read / Articles
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Freedom matters—even in a pandemic. Without freedom, elderly people may spend their remaining time on earth isolated from their loved ones, and we know that social isolation kills. Without freedom, people may lose not only their livelihoods but the momentum and opportunity to build careers as flight attendants, orchestra musicians, chefs, or scientists working on viruses. Without freedom, children may lose important and irretrievable experiences and milestones. Without freedom, life becomes a shadow of itself. 

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Seven Urgent Lessons of Lockdowns

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The destruction wrought by the lockdowns has many fathers—computer-modelers who terrified federal policymakers with guesses dressed up as certainties; health officials who were given the levers of government without any sense of or care for unintended consequences; governors who ruled by executive fiat.

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Brownstone Institute at Six Months

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Freedom is not an option, despite what they say. It is not something granted to us by the powerful at their discretion. It is a universal right, one protected only by a culture that loves it, institutions that guard it, and people who fight for it. We can get there. We are in a position to help prove this, to rebuild, and work for a world in which nothing like this ever happens again. 

Brownstone Institute at Six Months Read Journal Article

Why Academia Is Drawn to Fascism

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Central to the lure of fascism is the lie that power will not corrupt us. As illustrated poignantly in The Hobbit, the lure of fascism – even to the morally upright person – is the delusion that he can both hold absolute power and continue to be a morally good person. By succumbing to the lure of power, an otherwise good person succumbs to the lie that power corrupts everyone else, but not himself, because he is Better.

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Some People Will Follow Authority – “The Science” – to Their Doom 

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And, even after the most cataclysmic events predicted by “The Science” have not come to pass, there remains a core group of true believers who are convinced “The Science” had simply gotten the date or the variant wrong and that the End of Days are still to come unless we all remain vigilant by forever being ready to mask up and lock down when “The Science” says it’s time.

Some People Will Follow Authority – “The Science” – to Their Doom  Read Journal Article

Now is the Time for Mass Resignations from Within the Ruling Class

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The obvious answer to the current instability is mass resignations within the administrative state and among the class of politicians that gives it cover. In the name of peace, human rights, and the renewal of prosperity and trust, this needs to happen today. Bury the pride and do what’s right. Do it now while there is still time for the revolution to be velvet. 

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It Was All There in the EUA. Why Couldn’t They See it? 

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In a world where, to paraphrase Zygmunt Bauman, all is liquid and most are driven by the search for fleeting sensations, and where establishing a personal hermeneutic through reading and contemplation is considered quaintly quixotic when not impossible, the mutterings of the authority figure nearby take on an enhanced attraction. 

It Was All There in the EUA. Why Couldn’t They See it?  Read Journal Article

First We Must Grieve

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We need time and space to mourn the loss of hope we had and plans we made, of businesses closed, of church groups no longer meeting, of relationships with co-workers we won’t get back, of trust in institutions, and of our previous understanding of health. Parents, grandparents, children, teens, and community members all need time to grieve for childhoods halted, rites of passage canceled, and celebrations skipped.

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