Michael Huemer is a professor of philosophy at the University of Colorado Boulder and the author of Ethical Intuitionism, The Problem of Political Authority, and more six books. He is known for his clarity, rigor, and no-nonsense philosophical reasoning and is in my opinion one of the best philosophers alive, follow Mike on Twitter
We talk about the logic of free will, the illusion of the self, moral responsibility, philosophical anarchism, and how rationality might still matter in a deterministic universe. Topics are outlined in the timestamps below.
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Timestamps
00:00 – Intro
03:22 – Is the bias for determinism just another historical mistake?
06:44 – Deliberation presupposes freedom
10:06 – On truth, imperfection, and rational discourse
13:28 – Is Huemer’s argument for free will a deductive proof?
16:50 – Robots, compatibilism, and why freedom needs alternatives
20:12 – You didn’t create yourself — but can you still be free?
23:34 – The no-self doctrine and what it really means
26:56 – Unconscious influence and degrees of freedom
30:18 – Who gave the government the right to rule?
33:41 – Philosophical vs political anarchism
37:03 – Why most people misunderstand both government and anarchy
40:25 – Defunding the police, private courts, and anarchist reform
43:47 – Why civil disobedience is rare (and should happen more)
47:09 – Can we have progress without chaos?
50:31 – Moral progress and the abolition of slavery
53:53 – What’s changing now and what’s next
57:15 – Why being rational might be a moral obligation
1:00:37 – One philosophical idea everyone should understand
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