Epilogue to the Sam Harris Moral Facts Contest
A few years ago, Sam Harris put on a contest, that awarded $2000 to the best essay critiquing his “moral landscape” theory of moral facts—and could have awarded them $20,000 had it convinced him. It didn’t. I agree it shouldn’t have. But...Dennett vs. Harris on Free Will
In January of 2014 Daniel Dennett, a philosopher and cognitive scientist who is renowned as a world’s leading authority on free will, wrote a lengthy critical review of Sam Harris’s book Free Will (Reflections on Free Will: A Review by Daniel C. Dennett). Sam Harris,...Erik Wielenberg and How Atheists Keep Missing the Point of Grounding Morality
In 2009 philosopher Erik Wielenberg published “In Defense of Non-Natural, Non-Theistic Moral Realism” in the journal Faith and Philosophy. The abstract claims: Many believe that objective morality requires a theistic foundation. I maintain that there are...The New 2020 PhilPapers Survey
In 2009 a very useful and enlightening research study was done polling the opinions on key subjects of thousands of philosophers, called the PhilPapers Survey (something I wish someone would fund for Biblical Studies). Well, that study was repeated, with substantial...Three Common Tactics of Cranks, Liars, and Trolls
You might have noticed a shift over the past few years in how I address apologists, propagandists, kooks, and various disinformation scoundrels, toward laying out not just that they are wrong (their facts are bogus; their logic is hosed), but the underlying...Study the Science & Philosophy of Free Will with Me!
Do we have free will? In what sense? What sort of free will are we supposed to be talking about? Who or what is a will a will of? What are praise and blame, guilt and innocence for? What is fatalism and why is it bad for you? Challenge yourself by studying these...That Jordan Peterson Is a Crank: A Handy Guide
Jordan Peterson has already become a joke in many circles. But enough remain mesmerized by his shtick to warrant a survey of why he’s just another pseudoscientific guru running a con. He is, essentially, the Deepak Chopra of the Nones; and his books, akin to The...Will AI Be Our Moses?
Last Friday the 13th I discussed the future of morality with Canadian philosopher Christopher DiCarlo. We advertised the subject with a double question: “Is Society Making Moral Progress and Can We Predict Where It’s Going?” The description was apt:...Disarming the Motte and Bailey in Cultural Discourse
In aid and honor of my one-month online Critical Thinking Course that starts this weekend (Register Now!), I want to introduce you to a rhetorical (or indeed psychological) tactic that is found everywhere but you probably didn’t know someone had a name for it. I...The Carrier-Marshall Debate: Marshall’s Eighth Response
Christian historian Dr. Wallace Marshall and I are debating whether or not enough evidence points to the existence of a god. For background and format, and Dr. Wallace’s opening statement, see entry one. For subsequent entries, see index. Now we are focusing on...Want to Better Understand Your New Year’s Resolutions? Study the Science and Philosophy of Free Will with Me This January!
What Sort of Free Will Are We Supposed to Be Talking About? Who or What Is a Will a Will Of? What Are Praise and Blame / Guilt and Innocence For? What Is Fatalism and Why Is it Bad for You? Challenge yourself by studying these questions with me this January. It will...The Real Basis of a Moral World
What worldview is better for the world? That’s a question I debated with Joel McDurmon of American Vision just the other day in Houston. I’ll announce the video when it goes live. But one of the matters that came up centrally in that debate was moral...What’s the Harm? Why Religious Belief Is Always Bad
I’m often asked, “Christianity doesn’t really hurt anyone. Why is it so important? Just let people believe what they want. At least in religion. Why should we bother critiquing and opposing belief?” In some cases the question is terribly naive. In others,...How the Right and the Left Nuked Atheism Plus
Though I rarely have time, I occasionally check out what’s being produced in atheism. And thus I went on a binge of Noel Plum videos recently. My entryway was researching what happened to The Atheist Conference, which collapsed almost as soon as its planning began,...Money Buys Happiness? Not After You Hit Six Figures
Five years ago I took Michael Shermer to task for pushing pseudoscience in his bungled attempt to argue (in agreement with Sam Harris and myself) that moral philosophy could and should be retooled into a proper empirical science, the same way every other philosophical...Get Dr. Carrier’s Latest!
About the Author
Richard Carrier is the author of many books and numerous articles online and in print. His avid readers span the world from Hong Kong to Poland. With a Ph.D. in ancient history from Columbia University, he specializes in the modern philosophy of naturalism and humanism, and the origins of Christianity and the intellectual history of Greece and Rome, with particular expertise in ancient philosophy, science and technology. He is also a noted defender of scientific and moral realism, Bayesian reasoning, and historical methods.
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