About this Blog

Can a blog read like a book?
I hope so, by making good use of My Index page, where I will organize posts into a Table of Contents, and identify Updates.

Blog Topics:   Ideas, Philosophy

You already have a view of the world ... a way of approaching your own issues. You already have a philosophy, whether you are an expert or a novice. Still, I wish to explore philosophical and some psychological ideas ... with you ...   through posts, comments and updates.

Ideas are physical is a loaded expression. I will discuss that idea -- that ideas are themselves physical -- over time. The blog as a whole is something of a journey, without having to lay out a detailed map of how I plan to develop my ideas. Not having a detailed map doesn't mean I have no map. Unlike writing a book, which I might do later, the format of a blog allows flexibility ... and change.

By change I simply mean that comments, feedback and re-examinations may lead me to change my beliefs and thoughts. That is a good thing. So not only am I not trying to sell you on a particular approach, I'm not trying to sell myself on one. I'm looking for one.

Commitments:

In philosophy the word, commitments, usually refers to the things which must exist for a theory or statement to be true.

In ordinary language it refers more often to pledges someone makes. Here I just wish to make these commitments:

- to shoot as straight as I can (be truthful)
- to honor any reasonable view (be respectful)
- to expose hidden assumptions (be thorough)
- to remain open-minded (be logical; be inquisitive)

Who am I?

First, I am not an expert in philosophy. I like to think of myself as a skilled amateur, or an educated hobbyist. I use the name c emerson in my blogs, but my full name is c emerson talmage. I'm a retired attorney, with an undergraduate degree in chemistry, and what I call minors in physics and philosophy. I have a B.A. 1971 from Harvard University; and a J.D. 1994 from the Law School at the University of Notre Dame. I also took some non-credit courses in philosophy and colonial history at Notre Dame. In law school I published a Comment in the Notre Dame Law Review, entitled "Do Survival Values Form a Sufficient Basis for an Objective Morality? A Realist's Appraisal of the Rules of Human Conduct", 69 Notre Dame L. Rev. 893 (1994). I intend to discuss that paper in this blog, at a later time. Prior to going to law school I worked in both government and private industry. My philosophical interests date back to high school. During one part of my life, prior to law school, I thought seriously about the priesthood in the Episcopal Church. Today I consider myself, for blog purposes, anyway, to be a critical realist, subject to change. Exploring all that is the purpose of this blog. Peace.