Philosophy
This is my 2,000th and final post at the Philosophers' Playground. It's been six and a half years of almost daily entertainment posing questions and provocative theses for you folks to bat around.
It was during a sabbatical when my former colleague who went by the blog name Aspazia convinced me to give the whole blog thing a go. It was still a new hot edgy thing in those pre-Facebook years. The sense was still there that blogs could be a place where voices could make themselves heard without corporate support. It was the heart of the post-9/11 George W. Bush years and politics were intense. I was working on a popular book on ethical reasoning to be called Was It Morally Good For You, Too: A How-To Guide to Ethics in Sex, Politics, and Other Dirty Words and thought that this might be a good way to test-drive some sections of the manuscript, a good way to find some clever language, and maybe gain a sense of what was interesting and engaging for non-academic readers. That work never found a publisher, but more than a half decade later, the blog persisted.
I have loved the way it took people from every facet and period of my life and brought them together in one continuous dinner party where I never had to wash a single dish. I also love that I met so many new folks who happened across the Playground from another blog and came to make it a regular hangout. Over the years we have had many, many friends stop through, most constructive in their time with us, some not so much. But no matter how passionate this community got over issues, the discourse was almost always respectful. Ad hominem attacks were shut down without my having to be a police officer for the place. It had a playful spirit, but a mature sensibility.
It has been a challenge to keep it fresh and lively, but it was really a joy for me to be a part of this open group. Thank you all for your energy, your presence, and your time whether you were a regular in the comments, wrote guest posts, or just lurked. It has been a lot of fun, good times filled with camaraderie -- everything you want a playground to be.
Thanks again everyone.
Warmly,
Steve
- The Sacred Right Of Complaint
With several elections going on today, it seems appropriate to bring out this one. I heard someone the other day utter the old chestnut "I vote because if you don't, you have no right to complain." It's a veritable cliche of American...
- Continuity Of Self
Today is my birthday and it is fun to look at all of the greetings on Facebook from folks I've known over the entire range of my life. Some who know me only as a graying department chair and others who knew me as a member of the red group in...
- The Irrationality Of Being A Fan
Today is opening day for the Orioles. I'm a lifelong O's fan and my kids have been junior Orioles for the last five years -- I figure, well, you have to learn to cuss sometime. In long discussions about the nature of bring a fan with...
- What's The Difference: Worry, Fear, And Anxiety
I was invited to sit in on a colleague's abnormal psychology class last week. No, I was not used as an exhibit. During the discussion, they were distinguishing between the ways in which mental health professionals use the words "worry,"...
- Grammar Curmudeons
Had a student ask yesterday about grammatical pet peeves. His was "irregardless." My big three are: 1) "Quote" used for "quotation." Quote is a verb. You quote someone. What you write down is not a quote, but a quotation. ...
Philosophy
The Playground Is Closed
This is my 2,000th and final post at the Philosophers' Playground. It's been six and a half years of almost daily entertainment posing questions and provocative theses for you folks to bat around.
It was during a sabbatical when my former colleague who went by the blog name Aspazia convinced me to give the whole blog thing a go. It was still a new hot edgy thing in those pre-Facebook years. The sense was still there that blogs could be a place where voices could make themselves heard without corporate support. It was the heart of the post-9/11 George W. Bush years and politics were intense. I was working on a popular book on ethical reasoning to be called Was It Morally Good For You, Too: A How-To Guide to Ethics in Sex, Politics, and Other Dirty Words and thought that this might be a good way to test-drive some sections of the manuscript, a good way to find some clever language, and maybe gain a sense of what was interesting and engaging for non-academic readers. That work never found a publisher, but more than a half decade later, the blog persisted.
I have loved the way it took people from every facet and period of my life and brought them together in one continuous dinner party where I never had to wash a single dish. I also love that I met so many new folks who happened across the Playground from another blog and came to make it a regular hangout. Over the years we have had many, many friends stop through, most constructive in their time with us, some not so much. But no matter how passionate this community got over issues, the discourse was almost always respectful. Ad hominem attacks were shut down without my having to be a police officer for the place. It had a playful spirit, but a mature sensibility.
It has been a challenge to keep it fresh and lively, but it was really a joy for me to be a part of this open group. Thank you all for your energy, your presence, and your time whether you were a regular in the comments, wrote guest posts, or just lurked. It has been a lot of fun, good times filled with camaraderie -- everything you want a playground to be.
Thanks again everyone.
Warmly,
Steve
- The Sacred Right Of Complaint
With several elections going on today, it seems appropriate to bring out this one. I heard someone the other day utter the old chestnut "I vote because if you don't, you have no right to complain." It's a veritable cliche of American...
- Continuity Of Self
Today is my birthday and it is fun to look at all of the greetings on Facebook from folks I've known over the entire range of my life. Some who know me only as a graying department chair and others who knew me as a member of the red group in...
- The Irrationality Of Being A Fan
Today is opening day for the Orioles. I'm a lifelong O's fan and my kids have been junior Orioles for the last five years -- I figure, well, you have to learn to cuss sometime. In long discussions about the nature of bring a fan with...
- What's The Difference: Worry, Fear, And Anxiety
I was invited to sit in on a colleague's abnormal psychology class last week. No, I was not used as an exhibit. During the discussion, they were distinguishing between the ways in which mental health professionals use the words "worry,"...
- Grammar Curmudeons
Had a student ask yesterday about grammatical pet peeves. His was "irregardless." My big three are: 1) "Quote" used for "quotation." Quote is a verb. You quote someone. What you write down is not a quote, but a quotation. ...