tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83713066503916004532011-07-31T00:42:48.882-05:00The purpose of 'The Social Utilitarian' blog is to explore the dynamics of human social systems, interaction and behavior through discourse and discussion.The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.comBlogger221100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-62660006147134785222009-06-22T12:55:00.001-05:002009-06-22T13:51:20.128-05:00

She brought it up. Somehow the topic of a class in Logic had come to the front of the discussion and she presented the idea of utilitarianism as "the greatest good for the greatest amount of people." The conversation proceeded something like this:'You know, the funny thing about 'utilitarianism' is how much that concept is already at play right now.''How do you mean?''Take our presidential

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-13979301123698284542009-05-24T21:22:00.007-05:002009-05-24T21:27:36.976-05:00

"Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom."-Aristotle

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-18881694813057663892009-05-21T20:42:00.003-05:002009-05-21T21:32:35.913-05:00

When the topic is brought up people sometimes ask me, "What did you do to lose weight?" From experience I know they're expecting an answer from among the following:-stopped drinking soda-reduced fat intake-tried the Atkins plan-gastric bypass-acupuncture-diet and exerciseWhile these are all methods people have used to achieve weight loss, none of them are the answer to the generalized question:

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-73531971248343616972009-05-07T23:15:00.010-05:002009-05-26T01:20:46.182-05:00

It was National Armed Forces Day 2005, the cafeteria neatly adorned with regalia. Flanking the entrance were tri-fold displays dedicated to each particular branch of the service. At the table were myself, a good friend enrolled in the Air Force ROTC* and several proud civilians. One of them, who wasn't aware of our military presence, had several choice words about the subject as well as the

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-79554255849621933022009-03-31T19:44:00.007-05:002009-03-31T20:03:51.685-05:00

"All great ideas are dangerous."-Oscar Wilde

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-89404972617301055272009-03-27T10:32:00.003-05:002009-03-27T10:59:47.365-05:00

'Only an asshole would park like this.'That is a bumper sticker attached to my friend's refrigerator. I like to think it's waiting to be met with that special car out there--somewhere. Maybe you've seen it. Jutting awkwardly into the lane at your local co-op. Occupying two spaces like a corpulent airline passenger. Several feet over the line into the spot in front of it. Oh, if only people

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-36690455895889362362009-03-18T11:13:00.004-05:002009-03-18T13:26:30.649-05:00

I want to begin with the preface that the post you are about to read concerns volatile topics in our world. I have taken great care in approaching these issues and expressing myself objectively where possible. While this certainly won't prevent any reader from feeling strongly about the material I humbly beseech you to read and evaluate my thoughts--and your own--carefully.The aim of this blog

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"Thanks to TV and for the convenience of TV, you can only be one of two kinds of human beings, either a liberal or a conservative."-Kurt Vonnegut

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-13767097327576397692009-03-09T16:46:00.007-05:002009-03-09T18:52:12.957-05:00

A society could be judged on the merit of its average individual.mer•it -n: 1. claim to respect and praise; excellence; worthWe've acknowledged the commonalities of people in general. Assuming good health all can perform some degree of manual labor at their base level. Every individual can lift and carry an object from point A to point B or dig a hole from here to there. In a simple agricultural

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Think about it. "I am an American" generally says I live somewhere in the western hemisphere not Greenland, Iceland or Africa. South Americans take some grievance with our claiming and parading of the title. After the '90s it seems our social impulse is to re-define everything.I wouldn't brag about being a U.S. citizen for the same reason I disassociated myself from Christianity when I was a

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-49919049400555039402009-02-28T23:59:00.001-06:002009-03-13T19:15:08.977-05:00

"You haven't seen a tree until you've seen its shadow from the sky."-Amelia Earhart

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~Wisdom~~Courage~ ~Justice~~Moderation~Presenting the four cardinal virtues. Also known as the chief western virtues. No doubt voiced in part by Socrates and certainly enumerated by Plato. Part of me is glad there isn't much active consideration these days, otherwise they could be thrown away with things like the ten commandments in the trash of obsolete, broken wisdom. Thankfully they have no

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-54058565073370267242009-02-19T18:15:00.002-06:002009-02-19T18:54:06.690-06:00

Whenever I assess the value of something, there are a few key thoughts that go through my mind. I now call this processthe utility test:   1.) Observe something; an object, person or entity.   2.) Determine a purpose†.   3.) Evaluate how well it performs this function.In simpler language there are two questions to answer:What does it do?How well does it do it?Example [Object]: A tool is built to

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"And if god is great and god is good,why can't he change the hearts of men?Maybe god himself is lost and needs help.Maybe god himself he needs all of our help.Maybe god himself is lost and needs help.He's out upon the road to peace."-Tom Waits, "Road to Peace" (From Orphans: Brawlers)

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"He who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man."-Samuel Johnson~~~¤~~~    Humans are animals. This means:        +You must eat        +You must generate offspring        +You must rest        +You must fear    Humans are mammals. This means:        +You want to be around others like you        +You want to be warm        +You want to be solitary periodicallyHomo sapien : "

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"And the life of man, solitary, poore, nasty, brutish and short."-Thomas Hobbes(also in Tom Waits' song 'Come On Up to the House') was describing the natural state of mankind from the year 1651. Things haven't changed much. A "war of all against all" is another way of saying "every man for himself." Before the human was Social, it was belligerent. Unfortunately the former does not eclipse the

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-49044671062346116272009-01-27T15:56:00.007-06:002009-03-13T19:18:30.734-05:00

"There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky;there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul."-Victor Hugo

The Social Utilitarianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09605008338838124625noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8371306650391600453.post-38999758241051470042009-01-25T19:04:00.001-06:002009-03-11T19:37:45.461-05:00

It seems a natural impulse for a person to define and establish their presence in life*; who they are, how they view the world, where they fit in and what their purpose is. For many a foundation is built on religion and early childhood conditioning, augmented with personal beliefs (which are not always consistent with the former) and eventually a political perspective is drawn. Opinions vary

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_time____effort___money__food____objects__land______?____The exchange of resources* is the hallmark of human social interaction. The concept of 'give' is not generally expressed in the "animal kingdom." Family units always take care of each other but you don't see much trade occurring. The human mind necessitated the concepts of value and gain. Basic animal behaviors dictate self-preservation

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"I always liked to hear about the old-timers. Never missed a chance to do so. You can't help but compare yourself against the old-timers. Can't help but wonder how theyd've operated these times. There was this boy I sent to the 'lectric chair at Huntsville Hill here a while back. My arrest and my testimony. He killt a fourteen-year-old girl. Papers said it was a crime of passion but he told me

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Social networking. When you go to compose your profile they ask you about two things among many others: Political Views and Religious Views, accepted as a generalization of someone's outlook and world perspective. I think there is something missing here, an important factor not accounted for.I'm making the argument for a third field: Social Views. Come along, if you will. Given a person's

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Bipedal, incapable of flight. Exhibits many common mammalian characteristics and behaviors; social (pack forming, maintains selective inter-species relationships), sense-oriented with a practiced emphasis on sight and sound as opposed to smell, limited aquatic maneuverability, moderate diversity among subjects. Subjects possess a relatively thin coat over a smooth skin compared with other

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