Welcome to PHILOSOPHY UNLEASHED

September 09, 2030 by DaN McKee

Philosophy Unleashed is about breaking free from the limits of syllabi and exam boards and allowing students and teachers to cast a philosophical eye on issues that interest them beyond the topics of an exam paper. If you want to write for Philosophy Unleashed click HERE.

All views expressed on the blog are those of the author of each post, and are not a reflection of, or affiliated with, any institution to which they may belong. In some cases, being philosophical inquiries, they may not even be the views of the author, but rather a “devil’s advocate” position they are trying on for size and kicking about, ultimately to reject. Consider this place an intellectual gymnasium where we “work out” our thoughts. And enjoy!

CLICK EACH LINK BELOW TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

196. ARGUMENTS DON'T WORK - And I Won't Be Able to Convince You

November 18, 2024 by DaN McKee in Communication, Logic, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed

“I have been thinking about arguments. And the more I do, the more I think they don’t actually convince anyone of anything.“

195. RECKONING WITH THE ELECTION - Reflections on a Soul-Crushing Week

November 11, 2024 by DaN McKee in Authentic Democracy, Culture, Elections, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics

“Either I’d got Trump wrong, or I’d got the morality of my fellow citizens wrong? And neither explanation was particularly comforting.“

194. SHOULD THE STATE CARE ABOUT PRIVATE SCHOOLS? - On the Meaning of Independence

November 04, 2024 by DaN McKee in Education, Ethics, Obligation, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics, School, Teaching

“the conversation around VAT on independent schools being a conversation purely based around money, costs and affordability, instead of it being a serious public conversation around education and what a good education should look like is a conversation that fails to address what really ails the current state school system and what the advantages of going to, or working in, the independent sector actually are. “

- OCTOBER HALF TERM 2024 -

October 28, 2024 by DaN McKee

Now I’m back to regular weekly posting again that also means regular breaks when school is not in session. So October half term means there’s no new PU this week. Enjoy scaring yourself with some Halloween fun or, if that’s not your thing, you can always check out our archives.

See you next week…

193. THE WRONG CHOICE - Why Voting for Trump is More Than Just A Choice I Disagree With

October 21, 2024 by DaN McKee in Authentic Democracy, Elections, Ethics, History, Obligation, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics

“Sometimes, when given a completely free choice, to choose any other way but one can be so self-sabotaging that there really is no choice at all. The 2024 US election is one such case. Whoever wins, we lose, but if Trump wins, what we lose is so significant we may never be able to win again.“

192. BAND PRAXIS - Punk and the Anarchist Squint

October 20, 2024 by DaN McKee in Anarchism, Book, Culture, Economics, Identity, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Punk

Band Praxis - Punk and the Anarchist Squint by DaN McKee (taken from The Anarchism and Punk Book Project’s Book 2 - DIY or Die: Do it Yourself, Do it Together & Punk Anarchism)

BLACK HISTORY MONTH HISTORY ON PU

October 14, 2024 by DaN McKee in Black History Month

"No new post this week. Instead, I thought it might be worth flagging several PU posts I’ve written from our archives inspired by, or relevant to, Black History Month which we celebrate here in the UK during October..."

191. WRESTLING WITH DONALD TRUMP - Why We Ignore The Wrestling Connection at Our Peril

October 07, 2024 by DaN McKee in Authentic Democracy, Culture, Communication, Elections, Epistemology, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics, Pop Culture, Television, Wrestling

"Trump is undoubtedly a monster. Trump is a massive threat to the kind of democracy that all Americans should hold dear. But he is using the playbook of professional wrestling to win the White House once again and is therefore a monster we are responsible for keeping alive so long as we continue to not take the influence of professional wrestling on politics seriously."

190. TWO STUDENTS, BOTH ALIKE IN DIGNITY - On The Illusion of Individual Exam Success

September 29, 2024 by DaN McKee in Education, Ethics, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, School

"Does a grade truly reflect the work and ability of a student, or is it merely a result of a context and circumstance over which the student is powerless?"

189. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE - Still Haunting AI

September 23, 2024 by DaN McKee in Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, Justice, Mind, Philosophy Unleashed, Philosophy, Student Writing

"if these AI machines were conscious then we would effectively be using them as our slaves; they do not have a choice in the matter and are also not getting paid. This raises important questions on the morality of the use of AI" A student writes on AI and slavery...

188. GRENFELL - On Individual versus Collective Responsibility

September 16, 2024 by DaN McKee in Data, Economics, Education, Ethics, Epistemology, Justice, Meaning, Obligation, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics, Punishment

"The Grenfell Inquiry blamed everyone for the tragedy that took 72 lives, but if everyone is responsible, is anyone responsible?"

187. SHOUT OUT TO CHILDLESS CAT PEOPLE - Why I Still Don't Want Kids

September 09, 2024 by DaN McKee in Culture, Elections, Environment, Ethics, Free, Obligation, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics

"In the wake of this summer’s comments from Donald Trump’s vice-presidential running mate, J.D. Vance, about ‘childless cat ladies’ (and as a US citizen who is registered to vote in November and will be voting for Kamala Harris…who actually does have step-children) I thought it might be worth reviewing the sound reasons for my own decision not to have children and defending the decision of others who have done likewise..."

186. TO LOVE AND HATE PHILOSOPHY - What is really needed to think deeply?

September 02, 2024 by DaN McKee in Education, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, School, Teaching

"Philosophy is all about fine distinctions, and it is a fundamental error to conflate philosophy itself itself with its professional cousin. There is no logical reason the philosophy produced by a primary school student cannot reach conclusions just as profound and perception-changing as the philosophy produced by a professional academic."

185. THE TONE OF OUR OPPRESSION - On Why This Anarchist Votes

July 03, 2024 by DaN McKee in Authentic Democracy, Elections, Ethics, Obligation, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics

“It is because I am an anarchist, that I will still be voting within a system I don’t believe in for whatever limited, but vital, changes I can bring within that system, to make life better for those it oppresses the most…“

184. NOT CONVINCED BY POLITICAL ARGUMENT - On the UK General Election 2024

June 20, 2024 by DaN McKee in Authentic Democracy, Communication, Elections, Identity, Logic, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics

“We are changed in our political views when new ideas or arguments confront us in our every-day, non-political, life. Often these ‘arguments’ are experiential rather than logical: something seen, heard, witnessed or experienced first hand which have no formal logical structure but imprint some deep shift in values nevertheless. We change our minds because we are changed. Not because we are convinced by arguments.“

Association of Philosophy Teachers Annual Conference 2024: REPORT

June 15, 2024 by DaN McKee in Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed

Yesterday (June 14th) was a great day for teachers of Philosophy in secondary schools. Not only did SOAS release their Decolonising the Philosophy Curriculum Toolkit, but it was the 2nd annual conference of the Association of Philosophy Teachers (APT)…

183. I WATCHED EUROVISION - Does That Make Me a Bad Person?

May 12, 2024 by DaN McKee in Communication, Culture, Ethics, LGBTQ, Justice, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics, Pop Culture, Punishment, Television, War

“As a self-identified punk since my teenage years, I am very used to feeling shame about watching the Eurovision Song Contest each year, and even hiding the fact from people who know me…“

182. MUCH TOO QUIET ON SET - Stepping on Eggshells as we All Work Under Capitalism

April 21, 2024 by DaN McKee in Anarchism, Culture, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Pop Culture, Work, Wrestling

“This is not just Hollywood stuff. This is not just the entertainment business. This is all work under capitalism.“

181. EXTREME LANGUAGE - Governmental Warning

March 24, 2024 by DaN McKee in Academic Freedom, Anarchism, Authentic Democracy, Black Lives Matter, Book, Censorship, Communication, Free Speech, Meaning, Philosophy, Philosophy Unleashed, Politics

“The entire UK political system operates, arguably, on a mission to intentionally create a permissive environment for the perpetual violence of the state, for its intolerance of disorder and dissent, and for its hatred of alternatives.“

CLICK EACH LINK BELOW TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

Subscribe to Philosophy Unleashed