Week Eight: Pessimism

Both the conservative Scruton and the Marxist Zizek describe themselves as being pessimists in some sense. Reflecting on their pessimisms (they are not pessimistic in the same sense), is pessimism a necessary component of political wisdom?

Week Seven: Can't buy me love...

In short, David Cameron (British Prime Minister), argues (http://www.ted.com/talks/david_cameron) that through information technologies public policy can increase citizen 'wellbeing' on the cheap (and that it must be done on the cheap because there is no more money to spend on public services).

Do you basically agree or disagree with Cameron, and why?
What is one way you can think of that government (local, state, or federal) can foster citizen wellbeing without increasing public spending (or with minimal increase)?

Week Six: Aristotle, Liberalism, and Catholic Social Teaching

Catholic social teaching ultimately derives from Aristotle (via St. Thomas Aquinas whose great work was to reconcile the truths of reason with those of faith). Here is an informative article contrasting our modern liberal conception of politics and a Christian-Aristotelian conception:  http://distributistreview.com/mag/2012/08/liberalism-and-the-absence-of-purpose/

What do you think is the single greatest strength of the modern-liberal view as Storck describes it? What do you think is the single greatest strength of the older Christian-Aristotelian view? Is there a rational basis for preferring one over the other?

Week Five: Natural Rights

In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson argues that there is a natural law that guarantees 'inalienable rights', including those of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. As Shapiro points out (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS16-tI5Zxk), this way of thinking (in both Locke and Jefferson) relies on certain theological presuppositions. Now, what are the consequences for the notion of natural rights (or human rights) when a society becomes skeptical about the very notion of theological truths?

Week Four: Political Order- Hobbes, Locke, and the Arab Spring

Hobbes argues that political order comes about only when there is a sufficient, all-powerful, sovereign (Leviathan) to impose that order. Locke, by contrast, holds that both society and moral law exist prior to the state (and hence, there is a good bit of 'natural' social order), with the state merely being a way to overcome certain inconveniences of a pre-political situation.
Think about the 'Arab Spring' (a summary of events can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Spring). Do the significant changes that have occurred over the past several years tend to provide support to a Hobbesian view, a Lockean view, or do different aspects of events lend credence to both? Give examples and explain why.

Week Three: Biology and Ethics

Singer, Wright, and de Waal all argue that our biology, as it has evolved, contains the seeds for morality. Embedded in these ideas is the notion that we are, by nature, a social/political species (ie, morality has evolved to regulate social/political arrangements which in turn contribute to our biological survival). With reference to some of their comments, what do you think an understanding of evolutionary biology has to contribute to our understanding of politics?

Reading the Prince, etc...

Just an interesting article (not an assignment) that I came across on the value for business leaders, etc.... to read 'the classics' such as Machiavelli and Aristotle....
http://www.theimaginativeconservative.org/2015/03/mark-zuckerbergs-a-year-of-books-without-any-classics.html

Week Two: Makaveli

Machiavelli is one of the infamous 'bad boys' of philosophy (the hip hop artist Tupac Shakur reportedly studied Machiavelli while in jail and for a time went under the name Makaveli himself; supposedly President Richard Nixon kept a copy of The Prince on his night stand for bedtime reading). Is Machiavelli's fundamental stance towards politics (the place of power, the place of ethics, etc...) basically right or basically wrong? Defend your answer. (Throw in a few quotes from Machiavelli to support/illustrate your point--cite them with just the page number from our text in parentheses).