Leiter-icious

So I checked out Leiter Reports this morning and discovered a post about a survey of the philosophy profession of which Leiter disapproved (anti-Leiter, anti-PGR, anti-analytic philosophy, anti-pedigree, anti-etc.). Presumably because of his disapproval, Leiter didn't provide a link to the survey. But using my astute web skills (i.e., google) I was able to track it down and started taking it -- I can't resist a survey. It was, as Leiter noted, filled with disapproval of all things Leiter and approval of things that even I can't stomach like greater influence of literary studies on philosophy. Literary studies!?!

But all of a sudden, as I was filling in a section of what I read and how regularly I read it -- embarrassing b/c apparently I only read newspapers, blogs (including the dreaded Leiter) and the odd philosophy article regularly -- the survey was declared terminated. And then I went back to Leiter Reports and the aforementioned blog post had, like Snowden before him (it?), disappeared as well.

What the fuck happened? A secret deal, maybe? Too many Leiterites followed my lead and took the survey -- frustrating Leiter's desire that we not do so and skewing the results of the survey in a direction the surveyor didn't desire. A negotiated legal settlement? Both Leiter and the surveyor took/ threatened legal action against the other and their respective lawyers recommended they remove their contributions until the whole thing was settled. A happy (or unhappy) coincidence? Or maybe the whole thing was in my head all along? Oh dear, it's back to therapy for me.

Football Analogy

Theists have been heard to describe atheism as just another religion. One tempting line of rejoinder is to (i) delineate the rather thin respects of similarity between atheism and real religions and (ii) note the motley and ridiculous collection of things that would count as religions by this loose standard. A better strategy, however, is the mocking analogy. To say that someone who believes that no gods exist is thereby religious is akin to saying that someone who has no allegiance to any football team -- and who doesn't even like football -- is nevertheless a football fan. 'nuff said.

misnomer

Pussy-whipped. Yup, that's me. But the term is something of a misnomer. It makes it sound like a somewhat attractive proposition: do whatever she tells you, put up with persistent nagging, give up booze, your male friends, watching sports on tv, your dignity, etc. , and in exchange you get a constant sex party. Yeah, right. It's like this, but without the sex party. Exactly the last person who's going to get lots of sex is Dr. Whi[m]pped. Pussy-whipped indeed.

Prorogation

Why didn't I think of this? I could have just prorogued all my classes this semester, until I got caught up on, well, everything. Of course, if I don't want to fall behind next semester, I'll have to prorogue those classes as well. I could even have argued that it would have allowed me to avoid a vote of confidence ... evaluations were coming up, after all. Now who occupies the role of the Governor General? The Dean ... fuck. Just forget the whole thing.

UPDATE: yes I know the whole prorogation thing is dated

Shoes and Civility

Does throwing your shoes at someone count as civil discourse? Does it count as discourse at all? Whether it counts as a statement or an act of violence depends on the intentions of the shoe thrower, I suppose. But can't one make a statement by means of an act of violence? So (as if a series of rhetorical questions counts as an argument) no, throwing shoes at someone is not an act of civility; but it might still be the right thing to do -- or at least not the wrong thing -- all things considered.

Fuck the void

This is stupid. It's like writing a diary and hoping someone will read it. What do I hope to achieve? Some kind of on-line following? And what are the prospects of this anyhow? Am I going to write clever comments at respectable blogs designed to draw readers here -- a kind of undignified e-whoring? Okay, maybe. But for now I speak to the void. So hello e-void. And fuck you.