A delightfully inspiring On Being podcast discussion between Krista Tippett and Nobel physicist Frank Wilczek about beauty and truth….and how beauty might be a compass for us all in the scientific and moral realms. Listen here!
This American Philosophical Association blog by Jeremy David Bendik-Keymer (inspired in large part by an interview with artist Misty Morrison on her exhibit “Oblivion”) offers some deeply reflective and inspiring insights about the importance of COMMUNITY to philosophical communities and their various expressions.
Field education and research is an important part of public philosophy. Helena and its residents are a huge source of inspiration for us. We learn and grow from you. We also get to share how amazing you are with people outside of Helena! As part of our commitment to living the philosophical life and enriching and fine-tuning our craft, we regularly participate in several conferences and workshops throughout the year. This is also where we get to brag about you, Helena! Check out some highlights from 2019…and things on the radar for 2020!
Montana is home to a lot of elk—134,557 to be more precise. Elk reign prominently in our state’s identity and Montana is better for it. Yet, according to the Elk Management Plan put forth by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), this is 42,419 elk too many. In this article, 2019 Merlin Community Scholar Fellow Thomas Baumeister, discusses the numerous practical and moral challenges of elk shoulder seasons. Read more!
No other species on this planet elicits stronger emotions in us than the wolf. This should come as no surprise. After all, it’s the wolf which has been in our presence the longest, it’s the wolf with whom we’ve shared our ancestral dwellings and whose descendants we keep as pets today, and it’s the wolf who has shaped our humanity and our relationship to wildness like no other. In this article, 2019 Merlin Community Scholar Fellow Thomas Baumeister, discusses the role of adaptive management, pragmatism, and engaged citizenry in wolf conservation.
Elk are elk and their worth does not rely on us, though it is influenced by our ability to identify and communicate that value. If we truly love and appreciate elk, it’s time for hunters to reclaim the ethical highroad of fair chase hunting that honors elk for what they are and demands the hunter to be the very best he or she can be. In this article, 2019 Merlin Community Scholar Fellow Thomas Baumeister, discusses two different “measures” of hunting, how fairness and respect are part and parcel of reverence, and why reinstating the ethical pursuit of the hunted as a measure is important.
This article, written by Merlin volunteer and scholar Jonathan Drake, explores the work of Theodor W. Adorno and offers an analysis of his philosophical reflections on the “culture industry,” Marx’s commodity fetishism, mass media, and the liberating potential of art.
A founding member of the Frankfurt School and the philosophical style known as critical theory, Theodor W. Adorno’s contributions continue to have an impact on philosophical, sociological, and aesthetic thought. This article, written by Merlin volunteer and scholar Jonathan Drake, offers an introduction to his works and influence, as well as some important clarifications about his critique of western philosophy and the enlightenment.
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Please click here to read our 2020 End-of-year Newsletter highlighting the happenings of 2020 and what’s on the radar for 2021.
Thank you to everyone who participated in the first of our 4-part philosophy workshop series on “What is Philosophy?” Access recordings & other resources here!
“Real wisdom does not merely cause us to know; it makes us ‘be’ in a different way.” (Pierre Hadot) Learn more about philosophy as a way of life.
Philosopher Jane Drexler, PhD — Associate Professor of Philosophy at Salt Lake Community College — provides a wonderfully informative, relatable…and always entertaining (she’s a hoot!) overview of her approach to teaching, inspired by her unique life experience and philosophy as a way of life. Watch the video here!
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