Bad Philosophy

Peter Buffett recently accused charities of philanthropic paternalism. What does this mean and why does it matter?

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Benedict Cumberbatch, Bill Gates, business, capitalism, charity, Colonialism, feminism, humanism, John Hodgeman, Kevin, Malaria, micro lending, New York Times, nonprofits, paternalism, Peter Buffett, philanthropy, poverty, progress, Pronunciation Manual, Richard Dawkins, Snap Judgement, Stephen, This American Life

After a completely unintended hiatus brought on by the super-unfortunate necessity to re-edit this episode, it’s finally here! And it’s a good one, folks. Dr. Mark Webb, now chairman of the Texas Tech philosophy department joins me for his third appearance on the show, alongside Numero Uno Fanboy Jed Cummins and national traveler Kevin Saunders. […]

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apathy, Aristotle, Bill Gates, Buddhism, charity, Christianity, Confucianism, Dell, Dr. Webb, education, ethics, gay rights, government, homosexuality, human nature, Islam, Jediah, Kevin, Linux, Maslo's Hierarchy of Needs, metaphysics, Miami University, Mickey Rooney, moral realism, relativism, religion, Skype, smoking, Stephen, Turkey, values, women's right

We’re back! Pardon the week off. We had to deal with a rather unexpected chainsaw-wielding polar bear invasion, but all is good now… except for Kevin’s leg … Anyway! This week BF took a trip to the movies, grilling Hollywood’s latest Oscar fetish, Slumdog Millionaire with first-time guest Eric Braden. We also delved into the realm of free will vs. determinism, where Eric and I pulled no punches in our quest to disprove the other. Oh, and the audio was FRAKKING AMAZING if I do say so myself. Enjoy, peeps!

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24, Adaptation, Al Qeada, Albert Einstein, American Dream, Batman, Beauty and the Beast, Best Picture, Bill Clinton, causation, charity, Charlie Kaufman, Christopher Nolan, Dan Brown, Danny Boyle, destiny, determinism, education, epistemology, Eric Braden, Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind, ethics, evolutionary psychology, fatalism, fate, Forrest Gump, free will, Frost/Nixon, God, guilt, Harry Potter, Heath Ledger, Hollywood, Jack Nicholson, Joker, Kevin, LEGOs, Leibniz, LOST, love, memes, metaphysics, MIA, Milk, multiple universes, Mumbai, neoconservatives, Nietzsche, Occam's Razor, Oscars, Patrick Swayze, Peter Travers, Pixar, poverty, Pulp Fiction, quantum mechanics, reality, Richard Dawkins, Roadhouse, Robert Wright, Slumdog Millionaire, Star Wars, Stephen, string theory, Ted Stevens, The Big Lebowski, The Coen Brothers, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Dark Knight, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Reader, Titanic, Trainspotting, Wall-E, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Wikipedia, Woody Allen