Idle Talk 11 08 13 Do we have free will?

This week we try and tackle the somewhat scary question of whether or not we have free will. If you subscribe to the idea of cause and effect then everything happens as a result of a prior cause. This must apply to us so are Read More …

Idle Talk 14 07 13 Email and the alienation of the worker

Nicola @nicola_patten joins @rhodders for another week of philosophical talk and odd silly side track This week we talked  about Carl Marx’ idea of alienation. Defined in the simple terms as a feeling of being our of sorts with ones self and the world. Carl Read More …

Idle Talk 07 07 13 Can Films be Philosophical?

Catch the show live by following @rhodders on twitter or Facebook- http://facebook.com/thisisrhodders This week the  topic is can films be philosophical?  We argue over how suitable the medium of film is in articulating philosophical questions and ideas when compared to books. Are films better than Read More …

Idle Talk 30 06 13 What is beauty?

This week’s topic is What is beauty? Everybody thinks they have an idea of beauty, they can point out a beautiful person, a beautiful painting etc but where do we get this conception of beauty from?  why is it we can call a landscape and Read More …

Idle Talk 23 06 13 Charity and effective altruism

This week’s topic is charity and effective altruism. In an age where many charities are run in the same way as commercial businesses we question whether it is even possible to give to charity effectively. We explore a possible solution to this problem, the idea Read More …

Idle Talk 19 05 13 Is free riding wrong?

This week’s topic is the free rider problem. “A free rider, in economics, refers to someone who benefits from resources, goods, or services without paying for the cost of the benefit”. We try and workout if someone who avoids paying tax, yet still takes advantage Read More …

Idle Talk 05 05 13 What is the best form of Government?

What is the best form of government? Should it be any dictatorship, democracy or something else? One way of answering this question is to examine our human nature, find out what we’re really like and find a type of government that suits our inclinations and Read More …