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Show 516: Dr. Daniel Fincke of the blog, ‘Camels with Hammers’

Dr. Daniel Fincke of the blog, ‘Camels with Hammers’

Where does morality come from? Is it just the whim of society, or is there an objective moral standard? And if the latter, does that confirm arguments for God? Does atheism have anything to say about morality?

This week we’ll be speaking with Dr. Daniel Fincke who has his Ph.D in philosophy from Fordham University and spent 11 years teaching in college classrooms before leaving to focus on teaching online philosophy classes. He wrote his dissertation on ‘Ethics and the Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche.’

On ‘Camels With Hammers,’ the philosophy blog he writes for a popular audience, Dan argues for atheism and develops a humanistic ethical theory he calls “Empowerment Ethics”. On this blog, he’s written about a variety of issues including objective morality, atheism — and specifically — an in-depth analysis of the philosophy of the movie “God’s Not Dead”, in which a Christian student is forced to debate his evil atheist philosophy professor. Does that movie get philosophy – and atheism – right? Or is there more to the story?

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Show 516: Stephen Eric Bronner on The Bigot: Why Prejudice Persists

Stephen Eric Bronner on The Bigot: Why Prejudice Persists

What are the conditions which lead to bigotry? How common is bigotry in American society today, and how does it manifest itself in our post civil rights, gay rights, and women’s rights culture? Has the twice elected, first black president helped cool the flames of prejudice and racism, or has it fanned them instead? And how do we challenge bigotry if it is so deeply rooted in many segments of American culture and around the world?

We’ll talk about this and more this week with Stephen Eric Bronner. Bronner is a professor of political science and the Director of Global Relations at the ‘Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights‘ at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. He is also the author of over a dozen books including the subject of this show, “The Bigot: Why Prejudice Persists.”