Super busy today - tearing stuff out of one house to make storage space for stuff from another house my mom is moving out of, so I can get ready to help her move to a smaller one. (Fuck embodiment. I want the life of the mind back.) But that's all to say that I only have a few things to offer. There is way way more on this theme, and I've just not got time to track it down. But others have been so wonderful at adding selections to my themes, I trust it will be filled out in no time.
The idea here is that while it is common - among undergrads, political hacks, and novelists - to suggest that morality requires God and that losing belief is tantamount to giving up on moral projects. In fact, of course, nothing about moral outlook follows from the rejection of such a metaphysics. And from a psychological point of view, one can find the rejection of supernaturalism freeing and empowering.Here are two of my favorite expressions of this point.
Ani (fwiw, I first saw this performed, sitting in a food court area of Georgetown University with about 8 other people. It was my first year at GU, and I saw a sign for a benefit concert for a potential Women's Center. It featured some 18 year old singer I'd never heard of. Showed up to a really depressing turn-out. And this shy awkward kid comes up and plays this whole album with almost no commentary. By the end I was as close to actual shock as I've ever been rendered by a performance. I went up to her then-girlfriend who was kind of running everything. In addition to buying everything they had - since I felt guilty about the turnout - I said something like "um, she's going to be a fucking star." GF said "oh, really? You think so? I mean we all think she is great." Next show in DC was in a nice 750 seat venue. A year later she sold out a huge outdoor venue in 15 minutes.)
And this is a rare non-angry piece by Phil Ochs, here performed beautifully by Allison Crowe
Recent Comments