Tag Archives: Tolerance

The Basic Truths Are The Same

Posted on August 8, 2021 by N.S. Palmer

My mentor Brand Blanshard, a philosophy professor at Yale, said that “the basic truths of life are the same for every honest mind, whether atheist or devotee.” My grandfather, a Methodist minister, said that “Every person you meet knows something … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Philosophy | Tagged Blanshard, Freedom, Meaning of life, Rationality, Serenity, Tolerance, Truth, Wisdom | 1 Comment

Humility and Tolerance Go Together

Posted on December 1, 2020 by N.S. Palmer

Name an issue: Immigration. Abortion. Free speech. Lockdowns. Riots. Race relations. Many people are absolutely sure that they know what the problems and solutions are. If you don’t agree with them, then they think you must be ignorant, stupid, or … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life | Tagged Arrogance, Benjamin Franklin, Humility, Intellectual humility, Intolerance, Rational disagreement, Rationality, Tolerance, Wisdom | Leave a comment

Utopia’s Biggest Problem

Posted on July 21, 2020 by N.S. Palmer

Blogger Marcus Ampe has written a thoughtful essay about utopianism. But he’s realistic about the impossibility of creating a perfect society. He wants, instead, to think about ways we can make society better. That’s a practical goal for which we … Continue reading →

Posted in Philosophy, Political Science, Society | Tagged Goals, Happiness, History, Humility, Morality, Philosophy, Social Change, Social harmony, Social Peace, Tolerance, Utopianism | 1 Comment

America Will Be (More) Authoritarian

Posted on July 14, 2020 by N.S. Palmer

History is full of surprises, but this prediction is a pretty safe bet: In the next 10 years, America will become even more authoritarian. It probably won’t be called “America,” though that change might take a little longer. The continent … Continue reading →

Posted in Political Science, Society | Tagged Anarcho-Tyranny, Anarchy, Authoritarian, Authority, Civic virtue, Edmund Burke, Nationalism, Order, Rule of law, Shared culture, Terrorism, Tolerance | Leave a comment

If We Can Learn, We Can Do Better

Posted on April 1, 2020 by N.S. Palmer

The world is scary right now. But it won’t stay that way. Things will get better. The pandemic will subside. We will mourn our dead, be they many or few. We will go on. But if we can learn, then … Continue reading →

Posted in Jewish Philosophy, Life, Society | Tagged Constructive attitude, Experience, Family, Get priorities straight, Learning from experience, Optimism, Politicization, Positive attitude, Priorities, Priorities in life, Social Peace, Tolerance | Leave a comment

Forgive Us Our Microaggressions

Posted on January 25, 2020 by N.S. Palmer

I have a question, but please don’t take it in the wrong way. I don’t mean to offend anyone. I’m just curious. How is a microaggression different from nothing at all? “Microaggression” is one of those new words made up … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Psychology | Tagged Lunacy, Microaggression, Paranoia, Political correctness, Racism, Tolerance | Leave a comment

Tolerance or Violence?

Posted on May 29, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

A friend and I recently had a rational debate about abortion. Yes, rational debate is possible, even about touchy subjects. Neither of us convinced the other, but we understand each other better. Perhaps even more important, we confirmed that disagreement … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Society | Tagged Abortion, Base-10, Base-3, Coercion, Constitution, Definitional arguments, Definitions, Federalism, Fetus, Freedom of choice, Live and let live, Ternary, Tolerance, Violence | 3 Comments

Thinking Sideways

Posted on May 7, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

There are three kinds of people I like most in the world. First, the ones who tell me how incredibly good-looking I am. Even though I worked on Capitol Hill, I still haven’t met anyone who’s able to lie that … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Creativity, Dimensions of morality, Incomensurable, Incommensurability, Jonathan Haidt, Modes of thinking, Moral dimensions, Moral foundations, Moral intuitions, Moral Psychology, Multiple intelligences, Mysticism, Pragmatism, The Righteous Mind, Thinking, Tolerance, Viewpoints | 2 Comments

Advantages of Getting Older

Posted on April 6, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

I got some reading glasses today. However, they’re not actually for reading. I can do that fine except with paperback Hebrew dictionaries, whose print is almost microscopic. I gave up on those a long time ago, and got a magnifying … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Psychology, Society | Tagged Aging, Millennials, Older, Optimism, Positive thinking, Presbyopia, Rationality, Reading glasses, Skepticism, Tolerance | 3 Comments

Can You Feel the Love?

Posted on January 30, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

Can you feel the love? It’s kind of a cliché, sometimes said as a joke. But it points to a real problem. For any society to survive, its people need to cooperate. That requires at least a minimum level of … Continue reading →