Rational Animal

Discrimination and public life

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy When Mississippi passed House Bill 1523, they legalized discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. They also legalized discrimination against unwed mothers, sexually-active senior citizens and women who wear pants. Similar laws were proposed in North Carolina, in which it was passed, and Georgia, in which it Read More

Moral sympathy and terror

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy This past week the world experienced another horrific terrorist attack that killed dozens of civilians. I am, of course, talking about the suicide bombing in Lahore, Pakistan last weekend. At least 65 people, mostly women and children, were killed. This attack came just days after another terrorist attack that Read More

Systematic problems and solutions

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy As soon as the nominees for the Academy Awards were announced, people noticed that there were no nominees of color among the four acting categories. A number of people noted this disparity, the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite was created to highlight the situation and soon some actors announced that they were Read More

Bevin’s flawed performance funding

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy What may be even more problematic than the monetary cuts in Gov. Matt Bevin’s budget proposal is his proposed shift to performance funding. Performance funding involves tying some of the state contribution to performance metrics. One common and largely uncontroversial version involves increased funding for increased enrollment. More involved Read More

All hands on deck

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy Gov. Matt Bevin’s proposed budget has sent a shock wave through the Murray State community. His proposals could be devastating to Murray State, but there are actions that we can take. The proposed budget is hitting Murray State in three ways. First is a 4.5 percent reduction in revenue Read More

Explore your options

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy How many times has a fellow student asked you “What’s your major?” It’s an easy icebreaker when meeting people around campus. How many times have you been asked “Why did you choose that major?” It is a follow-up question that requires some reflection and information. Unfortunately, it is also a Read More

Baby with the bath water

Column by John Muenzberg, Lecturer of philosophy After major terrorist attacks the most common reaction is fear. Individuals become fearful for their lives, governments fear instability and disorder, investors fear monetary losses. Actions taken while in fear are rarely based on facts or sound policy. They are usually designed to assuage our emotions regardless of the Read More

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