Wednesday, November 29, 2023
Monday, November 27, 2023
First drafts guidelines. Observe them!
2- Heading, left-hand side:
Doe, John
Final Paper First Draft
Phi 2010 Honors
3- Title, centered, bold,
4- Draft body: double-spaced,
5- Indent each new paragraph,
6- "Works cited" or "Bibliography" on a separate page, following MLA protocols (with last day of revision for digital sources),
7- All drafts must be STAPLED,
Tuesday, November 21, 2023
Monday, November 20, 2023
Sunday, November 19, 2023
Friday, November 17, 2023
Wednesday, November 8, 2023
How do you know an argument is good?
El secreto está en encontrar un principio fuerte. Por ejemplo, la regla de oro.
Haz con otros lo que quisieras que te hicieran a ti.
¿Cómo sabemos que el principio es fuerte?
1. Es claro (es decir, no es contradictorio)
2. Es proporcional.
3. Es justo (aplica a uno y a todos).
Apliquemos ahora el principio en el caso de ejemplos particulares de los pecados llamados veniales: adulterio, falso testimonio, hurto, robo, malversación, perjurio, chisme, schadenfreude, la gula, la pereza.
Por ejemplo, la gula y la pereza son pecados que me tocamn a mí y nadie más. ¿Cómo aplicar la ley de oro? Es muy sencillo. Yo = Yo.
Volvamos a la regla. Lo que me aplica a mí me aplica porque es universal y reversible. Siendo universal me aplica por igual. Si aplico la regla de oro a mi mismo, no debo tratarme meramente como medio para un fin.
Ahí tienen la respuesta a asuntos más polémicos, como la guerra, la pena de muerte, el aborto, etc.
Saturday, November 4, 2023
philosophy paper second assignment (how to start the discussion, 4 paragraphs)
whatever is in this color are either thesis or counter,
whatever is in this color is the first point, with an explanation,
whatever is in this color is the second point with an explanation,
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FISRT PARAGRAPH
In this paper I argue against the prohibition of marijuana. First, marijuana prohibition must be weighed against the loss of personal freedom. The point is that our laws should take into account citizens' right to self-determination. Second, the War on Drugs has only served the immediate interests of politicians. By taking a moral stand against recreational drugs or fighting the evils caused by the illegal drug trade, they have only increased their popularity among constituents.
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Now comes the discussion. In paragraph 3, you go back to your thesis. You flesh out the first point, bringing in outside experts and relevant data. In paragraph 4, you take the counterthesis and do the same thing you did in paragraph 3.
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THIRD PARAGRAPH
Abolitionists believe that prohibition must be weighed against our loss of personal freedoms. They argue that citizens should be able to choose what they want with their bodies, including the recreational use of drugs, as long as they do not harm others. Such arguments often cite British philosopher John Stuart Mill's harm principle, which states that "the state had no right to intervene to prevent individuals from doing something that harmed them if no harm was thereby done to the rest of society." (Mill, Liberty, 75). Mill's harm principle is designed to restrict the scope of government restrictions on personal liberty. Legal theorist Ronald Dworkin states that social disapproval or dislike for a person's actions isn't enough to justify intervention by the government unless they actually harm someone (New York Times, 2013).





