Fallibilism; freedom; fun; optimism; creativity; chesed. Problems are soluble. Playing with ideas. Possibilities abound! Founder of Taking Children Seriously.
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ALT Excerpt from: A Short Demurrer to the Jews long discontinued Remitter into ENGLAND, by William Prynne, 1655
ALT Excerpt from: A Short Demurrer to the Jews long discontinued Remitter into ENGLAND, by William Prynne, 1655
ALT Sarah Fitz-Claridge, 20th September 2025
ALT “When we realize what it is for us to dare, for our own pleasure, even with solemnest purpose of the holiest of pleasures, parenthood, to bring into existence a soul, which must take for our sake its chance of joy or sorrow, how monstrous it seems to assume that the fact that we have done this thing gives us arbitrary right to control that soul; to set our will, as will, in place of its will; to be law unto its life; to try to make of it what it suits our fancy or our convenience to have it; to claim that it is under obligation to us! The truth is, all the obligation, in the outset, is the other way. We owe all to them.” - Helen Hunt Jackson, 1873, Bits of Talk About Home Matters, p. 78
ALT “The burden of proof must be upon those who promise great things from vesting vast power in some people to punish and subjugate other people. In the preface of any new political philosophy, the writer should specify his conception of government; if he intends to discuss government as an ideal, he should make his intentions clear and explain why the ideal will become the real under his system. Philosophers who choose to ignore the coercive nature of the State must show why coercion is irrelevant—or why their ideals are more important than the coercion.” - James Bovard, 1999, Freedom In Chains, Chapter 9: Taking Coercion Seriously, p. 262
ALT “The habitual consumers of parenting manuals... can find examples of both approaches: books on how to care for your children with love, and books on how to crush them. Unfortunately, the latter are far more prevalent, which is why I resolved to write this, a book in defence of children. The stance of a book or of an expert is rarely explicit. On the back of every book it should state clearly: ‘This book assumes that children need our attention’, or: ‘This book assumes that, given the slightest chance, all children will try it on.’ ... That way, people would be aware of the different stances, and be able to evaluate or choose the book... most congenial with their own beliefs. Seeking the advice of a paediatrician without knowing whether he or she is an advocate of affection or discipline is as absurd as... reading a book on economics without knowing whether the author is a Communist or a Capitalist.” - Carlos González, 2020, Kiss Me, Chapter 1, p. 2
ALT “Reason depends for its clearness and strength upon the cultivation of knowledge. The extent of our progress in the cultivation of knowledge is unlimited. Hence it follows, 1. That human inventions, and the modes of social existence, are susceptible of perpetual improvement. 2. That institutions calculated to give perpetuity to any particular mode of thinking, or condition of existence, are pernicious. VIII. The pleasures of intellectual feeling, and the pleasures of self-approbation, together with the right cultivation of all our pleasures, are connected with soundness and understanding. Soundness of understanding is inconsistent with prejudice: consequently, as few falshoods as possible, either speculative or practical, should be fostered among mankind. Soundness of understanding is connected with freedom of enquiry: consequently, opinion should, as far as public security will admit, be exempted from restraint.” - William Godwin, 1993, Political and Philosophical
