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in braincrave
Men have been taught that the highest virtue is not to achieve, but to give. Yet one cannot give that which has not been created. Creation comes before distribution - or there will be nothing to dist...
editorial posted by
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in braincrave
I believe that Adult Education is best described as a continuous learning process through which adults acquire desired knowledge to satisfy their needs at that time. Adult Education is not restricted...
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in braincrave
We all have previously learned about the Great Flu Pandemic of 1918, which killed between 20-40 million people worldwide in our history classes. Now with the advance of modern molecular biology techn...
editorial posted by
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in braincrave
People study science and natural science (i.e., philosophy) to understand the nature of reality. Presumably, the more accurately we understand reality, the happier we will be. (Similarly, when we ope...
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braincrave
in braincrave
In honor of upcoming V-day (and maybe to give you something to talk about over dinner with your significant other)...
Love is our response to our highest values. Love is self-enjoyment. The nobles...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
We deal with philosophy in one form or another, multiple times every day. For instance, every time we form an ethical viewpoint or act on such, we are forming a philosophical (ethical) idea or applyi...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
By definition, a contract has to be an agreement. It's intellectually dishonest to call something a contract without an agreement. To paraphrase Lysander Spooner, a contract made hundreds of years ag...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
The collectivists assert the socialist moral imperative that the highest good for each individual is to live for the sake of others (e.g., for the good of "society"). Marx summed it up perfectly: "Fr...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
What does it mean to be a "good" person? Is there an objective way to define good? Is there a specific procedure/method to evaluate something as good? Does defining the good in life even matter? Assu...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Once upon a time, in a land far away which has nothing at all in common with the world we humans inhabit, a horse was running free in the plain. He longed to climb up the mountains and see the world...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
In the adventure film Sahara, General Kazim states: "Don't worry. It's Africa. Nobody cares about Africa." In 2009, it's estimated that 33 million people are living with HIV/AIDS, with almost 70% liv...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Make everyone equal. It is a common battle cry across the centuries. Just look at the current class warfare that Obama is pushing because we are not all equal. (Or, as Orwell famously put it in Anima...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Ayn Rand said in Atlas Shrugged: "Happiness is the successful state of life, pain is an agent of death. Happiness is that state of consciousness which proceeds from the achievement of one’s values....
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Our current culture appears to revolve more around "dos and don'ts," which is to suggest that society appears more focused on rules of what you are and aren't allowed to do. With that premise, perha...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Given the growing unrest and corruption in the world, it's reasonable to generalize that social relations are strained and getting worse. It's difficult to pinpoint one specific problem but it's logi...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
As many mourn the death of Apple founder Steve Jobs, they use words such as visionary, brilliant, innovative, leader, entrepreneur, capitalist, and philanthropic to describe him. Many aren't aware th...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
It is true that the welfare-statists are not socialists, that they never advocated or intended the socialization of private property, that they want to 'preserve' private property - with government c...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
New research confirms scandal: not just anyone can be a supermodel. Such discrimination! Say the word discrimination and most immediately think of prejudice. In many countries, by law, employers cann...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Let's assume for a moment that morality is a system of values that a group of individuals (i.e., society) must generally follow in order to live. Let's also assume that the closer individuals get to...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
There is enough evidence now to implicate the US government of a massive cover-up of 9/11. At this point, it's ignorant to claim otherwise. Yet, the only ones who suffer from the terrible events of 9...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Ayn Rand warned us. She did it in her books such as Atlas Shrugged (and, to a certain extent, >The Fountainhead). She did it on TV such as in this famous interview between her and Mike Wallace on...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Ethics is a branch of philosophy that deals with morality, and the moral code/ideology used when differentiating between right and wrong is critical (e.g., consider that Hitler used national socialis...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
The US government consists of a bunch of hypocrites. I know, tell you something you don't know, right?
Recently, Hillary Clinton and her lackeys at the US State Department released the Country Re...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Albert Einstein once said: "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." Although not supported by math or science, and certainly not an axiom of physics, Occam's Razor (or Ockh...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
History repeats itself. Men have constantly fought and died in the war for equality throughout the centuries. However, not all of them had in mind the same idea of equality when they gave their lives...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Nowadays, you have to take on massive amounts of debt to go to college, only to graduate and find that there aren't any jobs available. So you leave college, go back to living with your parents, and...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Written in 350 BCE. 'nuff said.
FTA: "Democracy, for example, arises out of the notion that those who are equal in any respect are equal in all respects; because men are equally free, they claim t...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Most of you are probably aware of the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. It states that it is not possible to know the precise position and momentum of subatomic particles such as electrons. (There is...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
What's the difference between being a slave and a serf? When slavery was common hundreds of years ago, your master kept 100% of what you earned. Now they take about 50%. Masters used to keep you in l...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
A neuroscientist is someone who studies "the anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, or molecular biology of nerves and nervous tissue and especially their relation to behavior and learning." Although the...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Can we all agree that, no matter who it is, the US president does not have the legitimate power to bomb another nation without an act of Congress formally declaring war?
Five wars have been declar...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Meanwhile, as people in Haiti continue to starve in a country "occupied" by 10,000 aid organizations under the government umbrella of the United Nations (an organization designed for war)... They're...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Libertarians are often talking about freedom and liberty. Thomas Jefferson claimed in his magnum opus the Declaration of Independence that we all have a right to liberty. But freedom and liberty aren...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
First, let me make this perfectly clear: I am an anarchist (or, more specifically, an anarcho-capitalist). I do not support any kind of government, including a president. The last election I voted in...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
You can call a fish a duck, but that doesn't make it so. Does anyone else find it funny that people claiming to be anarchists - which is, by definition, being against government - are rioting in su...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who "passionately" believes in the welfare system, is lashing out at parents who are raising their children through social welfare programs. He thinks the issue is a...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Are human values detached from science? Many, such as moral relativists, argue that morality has little, if anything, to do with reality. Science attempts to prove what reality is through an objectiv...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
A few months ago, I was discussing certain aspects of quantum mechanics with somebody. I got around to saying that certain claims within the realm of physics can be rejected outright on philosophical...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Discussing sports, Noam Chomsky once remarked: "Take, say, sports -- that's another crucial example of the indoctrination system, in my view. For one thing because it -- you know, it offers people so...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
You sometimes have to wonder why teaching children seems to be more complicated than rocket science. There are many valid debates in education as to the proper conditions required for a child to lear...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Just when you thought you understood how the world works, the tachyons come to shake things up.
For those who haven't heard by now, the masterminds at CERN who brought you the LHC rap have made wh...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Today I learned through math that Aristotle was correct on the law of identify (i.e., A = A), and that everything that exists does have a specific nature. Specifically, all numbers do not equal all o...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
In group chat, we recently went on a tangent to discuss the effectiveness of charity. (To quote one of our Braincravers, "teach a man to fish and he'll stay drunk on a boat.") Benjamin Franklin obser...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
I'm talking about the real anarchists here, not bloody bomb-throwers or anti-capitalist window breakers. I'm referring to people who have faced the scary fact that all coercive power corrupts and tha...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Article 21 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights states the following:
(1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely ch...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
We experience art as an emotional reaction to our senses. Enjoying art has a personal meaning and relevance; therefore, we evaluate art differently depending upon our own values, perceptions, and kno...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Why are so many children familiar with the adage "do as I say, not as I do?" The answer should be obvious - because we, as adults, often do things that we don't want our children doing. Let's face it...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
One of the many fun things to do as a kid is to sit around a campfire late at night and hear adults tell ghost stories. Our imaginations would run wild - are there really such things as ghosts?
Bu...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Can you think of any other or, at this point, are we out of options? How do you convince and/or reason with people who think civility is no longer an option? What other ways do you suggest to people...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
"America's leading leftist intellectual" and MIT professor Noam Chomsky once remarked that "The U.S. is a leading terrorist state, as are its clients." He has said "that there is no War on Terror." H...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
When it comes to protecting civil liberties, it just keeps getting worse. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is now testing what it calls Future Attribute Screening Technology (FAST). It i...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
My daughter just came back from camp and, as we were discussing all of her wonderful experiences, she mentioned that she bought a "happy book" at the camp store. You list all the things that make you...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Through Hamlet, Shakespeare said "there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so." You'd never believe it if someone told you the secret to happiness in life is to accrue wealth, power...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
It appears the "natives are getting restless." Liberals were "up in arms" (pun intended) because the organization Oath Keepers is preparing for violent revolt. They blasted Tea Partiers for purported...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Though I understand that www.braincrave.com and The Atlasphere are technically competitors, at a higher level of abstraction, their goals overlap. This is a brilliant video that discusses some of the...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
As this is an article about the theory of games, I thought that, as I intend to do this systematically, I should start with a brief post defining what a game actually is. You might think that I could...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Thou shalt not be a victim. Thou shalt not be a perpetrator. Above all, thou shalt not be a bystander. - Holocaust Museum
DISCUSS!
Original posting by Braincrave Second Life staff on Mar 21, 20...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
What do you love? What are your passions? Have any hobbies? Want to make some money from them? With the economy suffering, many continue to look for other income sources. Granted, many of the article...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Administrator's Introduction: The Greek philosopher Epictetus believed that only the educated are free. With that in mind, BrainCrave.com is more than just bringing people together for dating - it's...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
There's a button that some wear on election day. It says "I voted." It's as if voting makes them feel powerful.
But the vote they cast typically isn't for a specific law - it's usually for a polit...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Sigmund Freud famously said that "...we men... find reality generally quite unsatisfactory." Over the years, we have become less polite and more sloppy. Now-a-days, we say reality's a bitch. Regardle...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Making generalizations always comes with challenges. After all, just because a claim is oftentimes true doesn't make it fact in all cases. Although intellectual dishonesty abounds, I generally catego...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
As I get closer to formally launching the real-life dating website braincrave.com, I've spent a lot of time reading about how to advertise. Not having any real experience, I first turned to the maste...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
"Always blame yourself. It's the only way your problems get solved."
DISCUSS!
Original posting by Braincrave Second Life staff on Mar 12, 2010 at http://www.braincrave.com/viewblog.php?id=136...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Through Francisco d'Anconia, Ayn Rand claimed in her marvelous novel Atlas Shrugged that "Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think that you are facing a contradiction, check your premises. You...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Mark Twain once said "Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect." What does it mean to think for ourselves? How often do we base our choices and actions...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
When people argue against capitalism (aka the free market), almost never do they argue from an efficiency perspective. Instead, the arguments typically claim capitalism exploits the working class by...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Imagine that you are a human brought to another planet. You are not religious. You haven't any belief in God or the supernatural. On this planet, the aliens are immediately able to cure all your dise...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
As Murray Rothbard put it in his marvelous article The Anatomy of the State, "Some theorists venerate the State as the apotheosis of society; others regard it as an amiable, though often inefficient,...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
In her interview with Playboy, Ayn Rand stated "My views on charity are very simple. I do not consider it a major virtue and, above all, I do not consider it a moral duty. There is nothing wrong in h...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
The holidays are often difficult, and can be downright depressing, especially for those who have pain from a loss, a traumatic experience, or just plain loneliness (e.g., not having a date for holida...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
In 1996, Dolly the sheep made headlines around the world as the first mammal to be successfully cloned. As a result of the experiment, President Clinton ordered research into the legal and ethical is...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Is there any circumstance in which the government should be a gate-keeper of information? What are the benefits of holding back information vs. letting information flow freely?
FTA: "In a recent c...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Today I learned hot water sometimes freezes faster than cold water. Although there isn't one, conclusive scientific explanation for the phenomenon, one of the theories for why this occurs is that hot...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
BrainCrave.com Book Club starting now. We will attempt to do this in group chat unless there is significant lag. If so, we'll switch to local. Please join us at Within Ten Years
http://www.braincr...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we've been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We're no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozl...
editorial posted by
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in braincrave
Through John Galt, novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand discussed the "hero in your soul" in her famous book Atlas Shrugged: "Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless s...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Remember the guy who talked about change? Where'd he go?
In 2006, Obama said this:
The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Can a person strive to be something that he doesn't understand? Take integrity: are you a person of integrity? If so, how do you know? Is integrity always associated with virtue, or is integrity amor...
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braincrave
in braincrave
The Road Not Taken (by Robert Frost)
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To w...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
My answer is that love is...
Contemplation.
Many would tell you that love is something beautiful and powerful. They might tell you that it is inexplicable and entirely irrational. They would be...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Today I learned that Platonic love isn't what we thought it was. In fact, Plato didn't even believe in it, was pro-sex, thought erotica was a spiritual force that helps us find our true selves, and e...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man. - George Bernard Shaw...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Winning people's hearts and minds through ideas is one way to affect change, but it's a very, very slow process. Most would consider it "impractical." For those who want to implement change quicker,...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
What are your premises for your life? Have you ever thought of your philosophical base in concrete terms? What principles do you uphold and to which do you just pay lip-service? Were your premises de...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Who's Ayn Rand?? Only one of the most well-known and life-changing philosophers out there. Her philosophy is unlike any most have ever read. It's philosophy mixed in with drama and lots of great sex....
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Technology is so grand. With the research from this experiment, we might finally be able to replace the lowest form of humans - politicians - with robots. After all, if you can teach robots to lie, t...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
In the movie Extreme Measures, a brilliant doctor attempts experimental surgeries on live patients (who eventually die), trying to find a way to help spinal cord victims walk again. I think most agre...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
"Philosopher of revolution" Pyotr Kropotkin (aka Peter Kropotkin) once wrote: "America is just the country that shows how all the written guarantees in the world for freedom are no protection against...
editorial posted by
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in braincrave
If you're a person who prefers the grayness of relativity to the "black or white" positions of an absolutist, ultimatums likely make you uncomfortable. But such is the nature of choices - selecting a...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
The problem really is crime, isn't it? It doesn't matter whether it's legal crime, as committed by government agents, or whether it's crimes committed by communal garden scumbags. Before we can enjoy...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
John Adams once wrote "Government is instituted for the common good; for the protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of the people; and not for profit, honor, or private interest of any one man...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
I recently read "Conservatives Freak Out Over MTV's "Skins" -- Teenagers Have Sex. Get Over It." posted at the liberal blog AlterNet. If you have any question as to why kids, especially teenagers, ha...
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braincrave
in braincrave
Remember that the socialist/collectivist mantra is that the NEEDS of the many outweigh the RIGHTS of the few? As I think we've established that socialists/collectivists have no problem with stealing,...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
For those of you who refuse to vote for the lesser of two evils, take comfort in knowing that you're in the majority. Politicians are always claiming their wins indicate that "the people have spoken....
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
When it comes to non-violent, ideological leaders, Mahatma Gandhi has got to be toward the very top of the list. His resistance to British tyranny through mass civil disobedience is famous. Needless...
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braincrave
in braincrave
The Noble physicist Richard Feynman once said "There are 10^11 stars in the galaxy. That used to be a huge number. But it's only a hundred billion. It's less than the national deficit! We used to cal...
editorial posted by
braincrave
in braincrave
Many women like having big breasts. They also like looking good. According to the American Society for Plastic Surgeons, of the 13 million cosmetic plastic surgeries performed annually, women seek 9...