Author Archives: David Hume

Sexuality and human nature

A friend emailed me in response to my post below: Interesting example with homosexuality, both because the choice of sexual behavior, pretty much the sort of thing that one would expect the strongest biological constraints on, was apparently needed to … Continue reading

Posted in culture | Tagged , , | 11 Comments

Truth matters

In Heather’s post she mentioned that at the end of the day for her it is about truth, not consequence, in relation to supernatural claims.  This is a point that needs to be made because intellectuals such as Michael Novak … Continue reading

Posted in philosophy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 18 Comments

Young bloggers be aware!

2009 College Blogger Contest: Doublethink Online is pleased to announce the second annual America’s Future Foundation College Blogger Contest. The purpose of the contest is to encourage original liberty-minded blogger journalism on college campuses and to identify young conservative and … Continue reading

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Atheism makes you a great scientist?

A reader asks, perhaps facetiously: Funny, but given the homage being paid to science in so many of these first threads, I was just wondering if there’s any actual evidence that, in practice, atheists make better scientists than believers. There … Continue reading

Posted in data | Tagged , , | 15 Comments

Back to the future for Newt?

Here’s a quick piece in TNR which reports that Newt Gingrich is going into culture-war mode. Michelle Goldberg obviously has a perspective which is at odds with Newt’s rhetoric, but didn’t he make a name for himself in the 1990s for … Continue reading

Posted in politics | Tagged | 6 Comments

Religion & Culture

With all the Christmas posts, I thought readers might find this of interest: The Grinch Delusion: An Atheist Can Believe in Christmas.  The fact is that religious traditions are a part of human culture, and they interact with ostensibly non-religious … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged | 27 Comments

On impossibility & religion

I highly recommend Winnifred Sullivan’s The Impossibility of Religious Freedom.  It clarifies many of the incoherencies in the “church-state separation” debates.  You can read the introduction online.

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The season needs no reason

Apropos of Bradlaugh’s post about Christ, I thought it might be appropriate to repost something I wrote two years ago about Christmass…

Posted in culture | Tagged | 2 Comments

Good books for conservatives not on the usual lists?

How about some recommendations?  And non-obvious ones at that!  Let’s limit it to three submissions per person so that “you make them count.”  Here are my heterodox submissions: The Blank Slate, The Iliad and The Elements.

Posted in culture | Tagged | 25 Comments

Young anti-abortion & pro-gay?

A commenter below asks if there is any data to back up Ross & Reihan‘s assertion that the young are more supportive of gay rights and more skeptical of abortion on demand. So I looked in the GSS as the … Continue reading

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