The drug war and indirect reparations

So, like many people, I was pretty amazed by Ta-Nehisi Coates’ article in The Atlantic, The Case for Reparations. It’s powerfully and elegantly written. It seems to be well-researched. And the cumulative case that it builds, while not all that explicit, was one that I found pretty potent. Like others, however, I am skeptical of financial reparations for the many atrocities of black subjugation. (Before I continue, it should be noted that Coates isn’t really arguing for that, title notwithstanding.) In this post, I’ll briefly discuss my two objections to straightforward financial reparations, and then an idea I have which seems like an improvement.

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Thoughts on Wallace and the realism constraint

I recently read Jay Wallace’s The View From Here, in which he discusses the tensions which arise in our moral psychology when trying to affirm anything in our lives unconditionally. In this post, I’ll try to resist some of Wallace’s claims which, he thinks, require us to have a very ambivalent attitude about our own lives and our place in world history.

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Ahoy

Welcome to The Persistent Seeker, a blog focused on philosophy, fitness, nature, Christianity, history, politics, and whatever else strikes my fancy. I’m Rick, sole proprietor. I’m a graduate student in philosophy, an animal lover, a Marine vet, and generally equal parts exasperating and amusing. I started this blog because I thought it was high time the costs of my opinions being expressed were externalized beyond my long-suffering family and friends.

I recommend ale for coping with my opinions, ale for coping with my writing, and ale for coping with me in general. (That’s how I cope with those things. It’s best if we’re on the same page.)