On Rest

• June 13, 2004
• James Skemp

Rest. Passivity. Inactivity. All speak of the absence of movement – the absence of activity – in common language. Yet, when I stand still is it really very different than when I am moving about? Is inactivity really the absence of activity? Let us say I am walking down the street. I see a beautiful manikin in a storefront window with short, shoulder length, red hair. While it is true that I am no longer in motion – I no longer advance down the street, I still made a choice to stop at the particular storefront window and look in.

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Overview of Leibniz's The Principles of Philosophy, or, the Monadology

• June 12, 2004
• James Skemp

The following is meant to be an overview of The Principles of Philosophy, or, the Monadology (1714), by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716). My main interest in Leibniz is to see how his work relates to the works of Arthur Schopenhauer. Any notes that I make should be read with this in mind.

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Heilbroner's Inquiry Into the Human Prospect

• February 6, 2004
• James Skemp

I must admit that Robert Heilbroner's An Inquiry Into the Human Prospect was not quite the book that I thought it was going to be. The title and cover were what drew me to the book, and the back cover information had little impact, if any, because I realized after reading the book that I may not have read it... Of course, Heilbroner refers to Hobbes at least once, and Marx quite a few times, and since these two are political philosophers, and since philosophy runs through everything, I wasn't displeased with the book in the least.

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On the Speed Limit

• February 4, 2004
• James Skemp

Let's assume, firstly, that you are driving in a 55 mile per hour (mph) zone. Now, that is the speed limit, or, in other words, the limitation of traffic/vehicle speed. Now, if you are going 55 mph, then you are going 100% of the allocated speed. That is, you are going 55 in a 55 zone.

Now, if you are going 50 mph, in that same 55 mph zone, then you are going 90.90% of the allocated speed (50 / 55). So, you are going ~ 9.1% under the speed limit (5 / 55). Now, if you are going 5 mph over the speed limit, or 60 mph, then you are going ~ 9.1% over the speed limit, or, 109% of the allocated speed limit (60 / 55). Now, 109% over the posted speed limit is not that bad.

Now, let us assume that you are going 65 mph in a 55 mph zone. 65 / 55 is equal to 1.18, so, you are going 118% over the speed limit. Now, what about 7 mph over the speed limit (in a 55 mph zone)? Well, 62 mph translates to ~ 113% of the speed limit, or 13% over the speed limit.

Now, let us take that 7 mph and translate it to a few different speeds, which tend to be common road speeds (at least in Wisconsin), as well as what 5 mph over the speed limit would be, as well as 10 mph over. All percentages are rounded to the nearest percent (1%) in this and in later tables.

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On Clowns Taking the Souls of People, Especially the Young, and Encapsulating Them Within Balloons

• January 17, 2004
• James Skemp

Please God recall that I am naught but a sinner.
In Your arms I am released - In Your arms I am free.
Please God let those that are wary be shown the true path.
Please God walk with me as You have walked with those that have come before.
-A Prayer

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A Brief Discussion Amongst 19th Century Thinkers

• December 14, 2003
• James Skemp

Dear Sirs: I thank you for your interest in my system, as well as for your interesting comments. I do not think, however, that you clearly understood my main points about the goals, or end, of life. Please find here my thoughts regarding this. I look forward to your comments regarding this. As I said before, everything leads towards one goal, which 'results' in the end of history. After all, the telos is final, and therefore leaves room for no other causes.

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Thoughts and comments on Waking Life: The Holy Moment

• December 11, 2003
• James Skemp

Primarily Written/Added: May 14th 2003 Edited/Updated: September 18th 2003; November 10th 2003; December 11th 2003 This article is based upon Chapter 11 of Waking Life. See the complete script for Waking Life. There is more to this then the discussion about God. This is packed full with a lot of various things, all of which deserve some time. I'll start with this passage first. However, before I do that, I should point out that I'm not sure whether or not these two are both film directors.

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Overview of B.F. Skinner's Beyond Freedom & Dignity: Chapter 6

• December 9, 2003
• James Skemp

Note: Mainly, I will be quoting Skinner, interceding my own comments if/when necessary. This should not be taken as something which explains this particular chapter, rather as something which points out some of the things that I found to be important (and that I made notes regarding in the margins). Notes regarding mistyped statements would be greatly appreciated (since I had to type all of these quotes myself). Originally titled: B.

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Can One Find a Philosopher in Nietzsche?

• December 8, 2003
• James Skemp

As with the 19th century figure Kierkegaard, one could quite easily ask whether the 19th century writer Nietzsche is a philosopher. After all, if we compare their writings to the writings of such 19th century philosophers as Hegel and Schopenhauer, we are confronted with quite a difference. Yet, basing our decision of whether someone is a philosopher on the format of their writings is, I believe, flawed. Rather, one should base their decision of whether someone is a philosopher on the content of the writings. For this paper, I will be doing exactly this: I will be looking at the content of Nietzsche's writings in order to show that he is doing philosophy, and is therefore a philosopher.

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On the Saying "A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned"

• December 1, 2003
• James Skemp

It's said that "a penny saved is a penny earned," but is that really true? How can it be that by saving something you earn it? Doesn't the fact that you already have, in this case, a penny prohibit you from earning it, since we usually give something to someone and say they earned it...? After some thought regarding this topic I have come to find a possible answer to the question of what this saying means.

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