I usually
list my hobbies as reading, writing, walking, and talking.
Reading and Writing
My reading
and writing activities are not confined to this blog. As some of you will
already know, I have written a book, entitled Freedom Progress and Human Flourishing.
More recently,
I have written three book reviews that should be of interest to many readers.
Review
of Chris Sciabarra’s trilogy
This review,
published on The Savvy Street, is entitled: Chris
Sciabarra’s Trilogy on the Dialectics of Liberty.
The three
books in Chris’s trilogy are:
- Marx, Hayek, and Utopia, State University of New York Press, 1995.
- Ayn Rand: The Russian Radical, second edition, The Pennsylvania State University Press, 2013. (The first edition was published in 1995.)
- Total Freedom: Toward a Dialectical Libertarianism, The Pennsylvania State University Press, 2000.
Here are the
last couple of paragraphs of the review:
“I began this review with the goal of assessing the strength
of the arguments that Sciabarra presents in support of the view that
dialectical thinking might help us to escape from quagmires in libertarian
thought. My conclusion is that he has presented a strong case that
context-dropping has led some libertarian thinkers into quagmires. He has also
made a strong case that libertarian thinkers should take account of
interactions between existing political and legal frameworks, culture and
cultural change, and the aspirations of individuals.
As well, Chris Sciabarra’s trilogy of books has made an
outstanding contribution by helping readers to come to terms with the social
philosophies of Friedrich Hayek, Ayn Rand, and Murray Rothbard, three of the
greatest thinkers of the 20th century.”
I would like to draw attention to the discussion of my
review on Chris’s Facebook
page.
Review
of Ed Younkins’s trilogy
This
review, also published on The Savvy Street, is entitled: The
Vision of Ed Younkins’s Trilogy on Freedom and Flourishing.
The three
books in Ed’s trilogy are:
- Capitalism and Commerce: Conceptual Foundations of Free Enterprise, Lexington Books, 2002.
- Champions of a Free Society: Ideas of Capitalism’s Philosophers and Economists, Lexington Books, 2008.
- Flourishing and Happiness in a Free Society: Toward a Synthesis of Aristotelianism, Austrian Economics, and Ayn Rand’s Objectivism, University Press of America, 2011.
I conclude as follows:
“In my view, Younkins has made notable achievements in
writing a trilogy of books that can help newcomers to the philosophy of freedom
understand the major contributions of Aristotle, Ayn Rand, and some prominent
members of the Austrian school of economics. He has also made a significant
contribution of his own in demonstrating that Austrian economics is compatible
with Objectivism. That message seems to me to have been particularly important
in the context of encouraging proponents of a free society to be nonparochial
in their efforts to spread the freedom philosophy.
Those who are familiar with more recent writings by Ed
Younkins will know that his efforts to understand and promote the philosophy
and practice of freedom did not end with publication of the third book of this
trilogy in 2011. Hopefully, Ed will decide that recent advances in
neo-Aristotelian philosophy, Austrian economics and psychology provide him with
sufficiently interesting opportunities to become the author of a tetralogy.”
Review of Modernizing Aristotle’s Ethics
My review of the
book by Roger E. Bissell and Vinay Kolhatkar was first published in The
INDEPENDENT REVIEW, A Journal of Political Economy, Volume 28, Number 3, Winter
2023/24.
The title and publication details of the book by Roger and
Vinay are as follows:
Modernizing Aristotle’s Ethics: Toward a New Art and
Science of Self-Actualization, by Publisher: Cambridge, UK: Ethics Press.
Here are some extracts from my review:
“Roger Bissell and Vinay Kolhatkar offer a Neo-Aristotelian
view of what it means to live well in the twenty-first century. They aim “to
provide a highly practical ‘Neo-Aristotelian’ ethical framework to facilitate
human self-actualization (and thereby freedom, flourishing, and happiness)”.
Drawing upon modern insights from philosophy, psychology, and biology, they
give readers tools to help them “sculp” rewarding and virtuous lives.”
“The main focus of the book is what we, as individuals, can
do to live good lives. The authors base their view of what it means to live
well on an understanding of humans as integrated organisms with minds housed in
bodies that have physiological needs. They assert that the essence of human
nature is that of “an introspecting animal on a need-identification and
satisfaction hunt”. They see the ability to introspect as creating
psychological needs along the lines suggested by Abraham Maslow.”
“The final chapter presents the authors with the challenge
of persuading readers that their vision of a humane society is related in some
way to Aristotle’s views.”
“The chapter ends by considering what individuals can do in
the face of current threats to liberty and “the soul-deadening cultural
pessimism that grips our society.” The authors encourage readers to challenge
the current intellectual orthodoxies, and to promote an Aristotelian
perspective of “the reality and the importance of the individual”
Overall, I think the authors have done very well in relating
their vision of a humane society to principles that Aristotle would be likely
to endorse if he were to visit the modern world.”
Walking
I try to walk daily for exercise and to enjoy a longer walk in the bush at least once a week. That may be described as rambling in some parts of the world.
I have recently written on
this blog about the benefits of walking in natural environments.
Talking
I list
talking as a hobby because I am a member of Charlestown Toastmasters. I
have now been a member of the Toastmasters organization for about 20 years (including my time as
a member of clubs in Nowra and Canberra).
Most people
join Toastmasters to improve their public speaking skills. Some join because they
like public speaking and want the opportunity to hone their skills. Many others
join to overcome their fear of public speaking. I was definitely in the
latter group when I joined. Toastmasters gave me the opportunity to practice
public speaking in a supportive environment where members are encouraged to
develop greater self-confidence.
Some
readers may be interested to listen to my podcast episode entitled FindingMy Voice.
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