MonthOfQuestions

The "Philosophy Breakfast Table" random-walked through a host of issues during four recent Friday morning get-togethers.

2 June — Politics:

Is current politics totally rotten? ("I thought I had gotten cynical enough — until I saw the political pandering going on today!")
Is the root of the problem money-raising? ("Congress will do anything for money.") Perhaps the process in other countries is less bad?
Maybe strict term limits on everyone would help?
Could a bad person make a good leader?
Can someone "rise through the system" and still be able to change it when s/he gets to the top? Or would one inevitably be corrupted by the process of getting there?
Look at how gambling has been embraced by the State: is it a tax on the poor (or foolish?), or is it a voluntary contribution?

9 June — Evolution:

Has anything really changed in human nature over the millennia?
Is there now just a thin veneer of "acceptable behavior" imposed, sitting on top of an unchanged system of internal beliefs? (In particular, are human males still the same sexist animals they have always been?)
Do societies "evolve"?
What is "progress", anyway?
Are there places (perhaps the more sophisticated bureaucracies?) which are "models for the future" in their embracing of diversity, multiculturalism, and basic fairness to all? (e.g., in their deliberate suppression of racism, sexism, etc., are such experiments ahead of the rest of society?)
How can "good" choices diffuse through society? Must there be many cultures, perhaps (Galapagos-island-like?) isolated from each other, to permit evolutionary drift and large-scale experimentation?
Are the key social problems low productivity, under-employment, and an unfair distribution of income (or wealth)?
Could "some bright Abraham Lincoln" arise in the Third World and trigger a great step forward there?
Is the magic of the United States based on the fact that "there are no secrets to what we're doing"? (i.e., explicit Constitution, openly debated and known laws, (relatively) fair enforcement of the rules, etc.)

16 June — Science and Art:

Is science a "social construct" — arbitrary? Or is it based on "something out there"?
Where do new ideas come from? What are the roots of creativity?
Is it necessary to master the fundamentals before you can be good at any craft? (e.g., must all great artists first learn how to draw?) Or could one skip ahead and still be good?
"Can one be a great performer and not a composer?"
Are the best books mainly the ones which ask good questions and make unexpected connections?
Is action sometimes a mistake? ("Don't just do something, stand there!")
How critical is a basic level of mathematical literacy? (Remember the books How to Lie With Statistics and Innumeracy)
Can psychological test results (e.g., Myers-Briggs personality typing) be correlated with creativity, analytic skills, or other useful talents?

23 June — Generational Differences:

Is there a real change in "Gen X"? Is there now a focus on making money, rather than patriotism or other large-scale contribution to society?
Why do people come to work in a given place? What makes them stay? What makes them successes or failures?
How can someone learn mission-critical skills without time in the trenches? What about the important jobs that take five years to begin to get good at?
Can a large organization thrive by offering internal opportunities for change? (things such as rotational assignments, sabbaticals, temporary tours of duty in other areas, etc.) Or must modern outfits prepare themselves to have the best people come and go on short timescales? If so, how can continuity and "corporate memory" be preserved?

30 June — War, Politics, and Technology:

Is it morally acceptable to threaten enemy civilian populations (e.g., "strategic bombing"?)
How about the Asian proverb re deterrence: "Kill the chicken in front of the monkey!"?
Are politicians becoming "personally responsible for the smallest of events"? Is this foolish behavior for those who should be national leaders?
Are we now "trembling on the threshold of wait-until-the-next-Administration"? — and therefore incapable of significant action?
Is it true that, in a few years, "everything that people are concerned with today will be seen as swatting gnats"?
Is technological advancement inevitable? Or is technology "simply tools" — not something that "advances"?
Is technology driven by motivations — by the needs which must be met?
What unintended consequences are associated with technological progress?

(Many thanks to BD, BW, GdM, JC, JJ, and everybody else for their thoughtful comments, suggestions, and above all questions!)

Tuesday, July 11, 2000 at 06:01:37 (EDT) = 2000-07-11