From Darwinian Conservatism: ‘Cosmic Evolution: The Known, the Unknown, and the Unknowable’:
‘In many of my posts over the years, I have defended an evolutionary classical liberalism, which I see as a tradition of thought that stretches from David Hume and Adam Smith to Herbert Spencer and Charles Darwin and to Friedrich Hayek and Matt Ridley. This evolutionary classical liberalism can be rooted in a universal history of cosmic evolution like that presented by Eric Chaisson and David Christian.’
John Gray at The New Statesman: ‘Why Humans Find It Hard To Do Away With Religion:’
‘The irony of the new atheism is that it is pre-Darwinian. Making sense from the chaos of human events, religions provide something that science cannot offer, but which most people still desperately want. Accordingly, the new atheists have turned science into a religion: a gospel of enlightenment that can deliver the world from darkness.’
As previously posted:
‘The search for the pure guiding light of reason, uncontaminated by human passion or metaphysical principles that go beyond all possible evidence, continues, however; and recently, an epidemic rash of books has declared success, at least if success consists of having slain the inveterate enemy of reason, namely religion. The philosophers Daniel Dennett, A. C. Grayling, Michel Onfray, and Sam Harris, biologist Richard Dawkins, and journalist and critic Christopher Hitchens have all written books roundly condemning religion and its works. Evidently, there is a tide in the affairs, if not of men, at least of authors.’
Still a popular topic.
Jerry Pournelle’s chart with statism is on the -x-axis, and rationalism on the -y-. Reason enthroned hasn’t exactly worked out so well.
–Alain De Botton floated the idea of building an ‘atheist temple’ in the heart of London. He recommends combing through religious practices for useful organizing principles in response to the New Atheists. You can read more about it here, which includes a radio interview/podcast.
–A postmodernist temple without the materialist core? The Rothko chapel, in Houston, Texas.
Related On This Site: From The Stanford Encyclopedia Of Philosophy Entry On Eliminative Materialism…
From Darwinian Conservatism: ‘Jonathan Haidt’s Darwinian Conservatism’…Evolutionary psychology and moral thinking: Franz De Waal At The NY Times 10/17/10: ‘Morals Without God?’…
Does evo psy have aspirations in creating a sort of secular morality…or non-religious moral and philosophical structure that allows ideological materialism? Steven Pinker has adopted a rather libertarian set of statistics on lower levels of violence Steven Pinker From The New Republic: The Stupidity Of Dignity…Simon Blackburn Reviews Steven Pinker’s “The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial Of Human Nature” Via the University Of Cambridge Philosophy Department
Hitchens kept looking at the world through the materialist lens of history, and joined the New Atheists: Via Youtube: Christopher Hitchens On Faith And Virtue…A former Marxist materialist and still quite anti-religious: Via Youtube: “UC Television-Conversations With History: Christopher Hitchens”
David Sloan Wilson At The Huffington Post: Atheism As a Stealth Religion…Don’t immanentize the eschaton!: From The NY Times: ‘Atheists Sue to Block Display of Cross-Shaped Beam in 9/11 Museum’
Maybe if you’re defending religion, Nietzsche is a problematic reference: Dinesh D’Souza And Daniel Dennett at Tufts University: Nietzsche’s Prophesy…