Author Archives: David Hume

The different qualities of distaste

Posted on March 4, 2010 by David Hume

A comment below: ” I’m sure many people here have read opinion polls that show Atheists to be public enemy #1 ranking less favorably than Gays, Blacks, and Gay Blacks. Many still can’t understand that someone can believe in morality … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | Tagged , | 26 Comments

The most powerful atheist politician in the USA

Posted on March 3, 2010 by David Hume

Pete Stark. One of my “TO-DO” projects is to infer the real proportion of atheists in Congress based on demographic variables.

Posted in culture | Tagged , | 28 Comments

The “Next in Line” model

Posted on March 3, 2010 by David Hume

Alex Knepper argues that Romney’s Nomination No Lock. The evidence he marshals seems respectable, but I have to say that it was less persuasive than I’d expected, so I am actually increasing my confidence in the model, not decreasing it … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | 7 Comments

Moral thought, rational or reflexive?

Posted on March 3, 2010 by David Hume

Rod Dreher, Does moral action require rational thought?: What do you think? My answer is, “Mostly, no.” I believe virtue is mostly a matter of habit. This is not to say that reason has nothing to do with morality; obviously … Continue reading →

Posted in philosophy | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Another reason Mitt Romney won’t be nominated in 2012

Posted on March 2, 2010 by David Hume

There are many reasons, but over at Gene Expression I assert that Mitt Romney simply comes off as too wonky and brainy to do well in the Republican primaries in 2012. You don’t need to be dull to be nominated. … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | Tagged | 55 Comments

Change of design

Posted on March 1, 2010 by David Hume

I have to change themes. Will make it a less generic one soon, but the previous theme kept having security holes, and I can’t waste anymore time working on that.

Posted in politics | 3 Comments

Neocon is like liberal?

Posted on March 1, 2010 by David Hume

Look at the reader survey I notice not too many neoconservatives. Not that surprising. But I had an offhand thought: neoconservatism as a label has become somewhat like liberal, something no one wants to admit to, but a movement which … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | Tagged | 23 Comments

Rejecting a mathematics of morals

Posted on February 28, 2010 by David Hume

In my post below where I outline what I believe are the appropriate parameters of eudaimonia I was obviously influenced by the inductive methods of history and natural science. Naturally this elicited a strong response from some quarters. This is … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | Tagged , | 16 Comments

How I learned to love moral relativism & cultural chauvinism

Posted on February 27, 2010 by David Hume

Over at Crunchy Con Rod Dreher points me to a new book, Paul Among the People: The Apostle Reinterpreted and Reimagined in His Own Time, which, in Dreher’s words “attempts to defend St. Paul against his modernist critics (e.g. those … Continue reading →

Posted in culture | Tagged , , , , | 45 Comments

Secular Right reader survey

Posted on February 25, 2010 by David Hume

A reader asked about a survey for this weblog. If you are a regular reader, please consider taking this survey. I’ll post the csv on the 6th of March (survey closes on the 5th). There are 30 questions, none of … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | Tagged | 39 Comments