Unlimited Opinions - Philosophy, Theology, Linguistics, & More

Is there a difference between the constitution of the people and the constitution of their government? How are those two constitutions related, and what is the role of God in their development? What about societies with terrible morals? Find out the answers to these questions and more! Follow us on Twitter! https://twitter.com/UlmtdOpinions Give us your opinions here!

In this episode, we finally end our discussion of Orestes Brownson's description of where authority comes from! We talk about why the spiritual authority does not grant temporal authority to kings, and how authority really has divine origins as expressed mediately through the people! We also look at how these ideas reflect our society today, and whether the American Revolution is really moral...

Is sovereignty really held by the people themselves, acting as the voice of God? Or is government just a natural evolutionary development? Or does God supernaturally give certain people the divine right to rule? Orestes Brownson says no to all three! Hear our thoughts on his refutations of these theories, as well as some lengthy rants in this episode of Unlimited Opinions! Follow us on Twitter! ht...

In this episode, we examine all of the reasons why Orestes Brownson believes that social compact theory is not a good explanation for the origin of government! By the end of this episode, we're pretty convinced that he's right! We break down the issues with the theory, including the nature of man, eminent domain, and the logical conclusions of the idea, and how these all fit into Brownso...

In this episode, we break down how Orestes Brownson views the authority of the state as coming from proprietorship of territory, rather than from the private rights of individuals. We also discuss what makes a society barbaric, how a republic should promote the common good, and why we need to bring back manifest destiny! Follow us on Twitter! https://twitter.com/UlmtdOpinions Give us your opinions...

Is loyalty one of the highest virtues? Is politics really founded on communion with God? Are libertarians really about liberty, or just licentiousness? Orestes Brownson has the answers to all these questions and more in his description of the nature of government! We discuss his description, beginning with the three ways man communes with God (religion, society, and property), through the idea of...

A new season, with a more optimistic topic! For this season, we'll be reading Orestes Brownson's 1865 work  The American Republic: Its Constitution, Tendencies, and Destinies . In this book, Brownson, a former socialist and Catholic convert, discusses what the nature of America really is and what it should be, as guided by providence and the truth. Brownson's words are especially pr...

Good riddance to George Lakoff's  Moral Politics ! In this season finale, we discuss the last section of Lakoff's book, in which he lays out his reasons for being a liberal. His reasons are of course based on his book-long characterization of conservatives as being stupid, crazy, and evil, so his stance is not exactly one we agree with. We also discuss what pieces of value we gained from...

This guy doesn't even know about federalism! Join us as we discuss George Lakoff's magnificent discussion on how he is confused by the concept of federalism, and how he divides up other varieties of liberals and conservatives. We also discuss how Lakoff fundamentally refutes his entire book, insinuates that conservatives are one step away from being violent extremists, and doesn't s...

At this point, our criticisms of Lakoff have even started boring even us, so in this episode, we use his brief (and incorrect) descriptions of liberal and conservative approaches to Christianity and abortion as jumping-off points for our own ideas. We discuss the necessity of a hierarchy within religion (such as in Catholicism), why separation of church and state does not mean what most people thi...

Is this our angriest episode yet? Possibly! Join us as we discuss George Lakoff's thoughts on some of the most controversial topics: affirmative action, gay rights, education, the environment, and much more! As always, we point out the issues with an overly simplistic description of the conservative point of view and try to describe the much deeper ideals behind conservative thought. By this...

As we all know, conservatives simply view the legal system in a very simple formula: more punishment = more good. Conservatives are certainly not concerned with a millenia-old theological, philosophical, legal, and moral tradition that argues for the responsibility of an individual's free will or anything like that. Join us as we discuss George Lakoff's theories on how conservatives and...

Ignoring his horrible takes on conservatism, George Lakoff actually does a decent job of explaining the liberal worldview on social programs and taxes. Maybe this shouldn't be surprising - he definitely agrees with the liberals on everything. Join us as we discuss his analysis of liberal and conservative approaches to economic and social problems, ranging from immigration to military spending...

George Lakoff is right about one thing: conservatives do  not  like Hillary Clinton. In this episode, we look at Lakoff's descriptions of how liberals and conservatives categorize the ideal and worst citizens. Do conservatives really just care about upholding the current authority? Are liberals the only ones who believe in virtues? Lakoff seems to think so, and we criticize him heavily! Follo...

In this episode, we actually give Lakoff some credit! He is embarking on a good project: analyzing liberal and conservative speech into a cohesive cognitive worldview. Unfortunately, he still can't seem to understand conservatives. We look at his descriptions of how liberals misunderstand conservatives (and his simplistic counters to those misunderstandings), how conservatives misunderstand c...

Despite not really understanding morality, Lakoff does accurately describe the views of the nurturant parent! Join us as we discuss his description of this moral system that believes that people who need help should be treated like children, that promoting your self-interest is a moral good, and sensuality is a virtue! We discuss what we think is wrong (and very briefly what is right) about this m...

Does George Lakoff understand nothing about conservative morality? Maybe! Join us as we discuss his idea of Strict Father Morality, a system that he thinks conservatives believe in, with respect only for authority and strict punishments for those who do wrong. Somehow, Lakoff misses the fact that conservatives tend to believe in an objective morality that exists beyond worldly authority, but that...

Which came first? Foundational moral thinking or metaphors that we use to express those foundations? George Lakoff seems to think the language came first! Join us as we try to figure out Lakoff's chicken-or-the-egg moral system as he outlines the metaphor of accounting and how morality is viewed as a system of transactions. Are we all really just trying to reach net zero in our moral obligati...

Our very first episode with a live studio audience! Join us as we discuss what linguist George Lakoff views as the worldviews of liberals and conservatives. In this episode, we examine what Lakoff thinks confuses liberals about conservative views (while also just attempting to refute the conservative opinion), the different words that people on the right and left use, and what he sees as the goal...

In this episode, we discuss George Lakoff's completely analytical, opinion-free, 100% objective explanation of what he views as the role of cognitive linguists in examining liberal and conservative worldviews. We discuss whether or not unconscious thoughts truly exist, the importance of categories, and Lakoff's ever-present idea of conservatives being a mysterious "gorilla in the mi...

In this first episode of Season 8, we look at the preface to our new book: George Lakoff's  Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think , which examines the different linguistic metaphors that liberals and conservatives use to shape their worldview. We discuss Lakoff's plan for the book, how he draws his conclusions, and the immense amount of biases that he presents just in the...

Is the sexual revolution the true cause of moral relativism, or are the two intertwined? In this final episode covering Peter Kreeft's A Refutation of Moral Relativism , we look at some of the biggest cultural issues in the world today, particularly contraception, abortion, and divorce. We also take a retrospective look at the book as a whole, discussing what we admire about Kreeft's wri...

We were always destined to publish this episode, at least according to the crazy determinists! In this episode, we discuss the philosophical assumptions that one must make in order to be an absolutist, particularly regarding metaphysics and epistemology. We look at flawed theories such as nominalism, determinism, materialism, and more, all while we go on endless tangents! Follow us on Twitter! htt...

Do you want to hear our thoughts on Bryan Fiel's 1990 play Dancing at Lughnasa , a story of five sisters in 1936 Ireland? Do you want to hear our thoughts on the arguments in favor of moral absolutism? Luckily for you, we have those exact things in this episode! Join us as we discuss how language proves absolutism correct, the poor track record of relativism, and how relativists only extend t...

What does hemlock taste like, and if drank in a small enough dose, can we find out? This important question and much more is discussed in this episode of Unlimited Opinions, as we examine where the philosophy of relativism came from.  We talk about how reductionism has led to a complete lack of acceptance of anything beyond the physical world and how this has impacted morality, and especially how...