Back to the Drawing Board: Did I Mention How Excited I Am?

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Did I Mention How Excited I Am?

I know I'm a little late in reading this, but still...I don't think I've ever been this eager to start something in my life! Check it out -- "Philosophy of Freedom: Creating a World-Class Center at the UA."

4 comments:

Michael said...: "the UA political philosophy program has recently been ranked #1 in the world"

Schwing!; April 30, 2009 at 12:40 AM
Dan Waxman said...: Sounds really great. I don't mean to be a downer or anything, but are you worried at all that by going to Arizona you'll be pigeon-holed as a libertarian political philosopher rather than a philosopher simpliciter? I only ask because I'm seriously considering applying for the same program after I graduate, and I wondered what you thought.; April 30, 2009 at 6:19 AM
Lester Hunt said...: Yay, Dave! The only problem is that picture of him is so tiny. But seriously, don't worry that having a degree from Arizona will type you as a nut-job.; April 30, 2009 at 7:46 AM
Danny Shahar said...: Crazy, right?

Dan, you should check out some of Thomas Christiano's work. He's most definitely not a libertarian, and at least until the new faculty hires come in, I'm going to be relying on him to be my designated critic. We got to sit down to talk for an hour or so when I visited the school, and I can already tell that working with him is going to be just as important as working with Dave and Jerry. Also, the department is going to be hiring several new faculty members in political philosophy, and I can't imagine they'd all be even remotely libertarian.

So I guess I'm not too worried that studying at Arizona will make me close-minded or narrow-focused. And aside from working with Dr. Christiano and the other non-libertarian political philosophy professors who will be joining the faculty, I'm also going to be continuing my climate change research, and my hope is to be able to articulate my ideas in that community in a way that will be accessible to the non-libertarians who tend to exert a dominant influence in some areas. So that'll force me to make myself presentable to a more mainstream audience as well.

In any case, definitely feel free to get in touch with me as you're working through the grad school application process; good luck!; April 30, 2009 at 11:05 AM

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What is this?

Hi! My name is Danny Shahar, and this is my blog. Mainly, this site will serve as my online notebook -- a place for me to post my thoughts about whatever I'm working on so that I can keep track of it and so other people can chime in. My posts, accordingly, will typically consist of reflections on projects I'm working on, books or essays I'm reading, or discussions I'm having with other like-interested people. Hopefully, there will be something in here for you!

I've gotten to where I am today through a broadly libertarian path, and so a lot of my work will reflect that slant. I still think that it's important for individuals to be treated with dignity and respect, and that we should treat individual self-determination as the status quo. To me, that means recognizing that we have different values and different ideas about what would would be the best way to live, and so I think that in some cases, it might not be best to seek a single mandatory solution for everyone. I also think it's important to look very hard about the choices we entrust to our leaders, because they are fallible and flawed people just like everyone else. But I have also developed a number of reservations towards traditionally libertarian ideas, particularly those pertaining to the non-aggression principle, the homesteading theory of property, the "axiom" of self-ownership, the nonexistence of unchosen positive duties, and the inherent evil of either government in general or any sort of government besides a specific kind.

I'm still trying to figure out how the parts of libertarian thought which I find compelling fit into the greater scheme of political philosophy, and that process will be reflected here. But more than that, I'm just trying to figure out what makes sense to me. In reading through this site, please keep in mind that nothing I say here is intended to be the final word on anything, and the position I defend in any post is not even necessarily the one I hold now. Even the web address for this site -- libertarian-left -- hearkens back to a time when I held a very different set of views than I do now, and eventually this letter you are reading will no doubt become obsolete as well. This is just a philosophical photo album -- a record of what occurred to me along my path to a better understanding of things. So please don't take this stuff too seriously, and certainly don't get upset; just remember that I'm doing the best that I can.

As you check the place out, I would love to hear any thoughts you would care to contribute. If you don't agree with something, say so! I think that the best philosophy is done through dialogue and debate, and though I may not always have a chance to respond, I always appreciate readers' comments! Thanks so much for visiting my site, and I hope you enjoy what's here!

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Thursday, April 30, 2009

Did I Mention How Excited I Am?

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