Favorite Western Philosopher

[Bluth Corporation]

Machiavelli

was a political scientist, not a philosopher.

My answer: Nino Cocchiarella, and John Rawls.

[Tmutarakhan]

My personal favorite is Nietzsche.

As with Ayn Rand, I think Nietzsche is the kind of author who seems most impressive if you encounter him at the age of 14.

[Soheran]

John Rawls.

Wait, seriously? You are a Rawls fan?

[Farnhamia]

George S. Patton Jr.

Why am I not surprised?

Patton was an excellent field commander. I would put him in command of any unit from an army on down. I would not have in general command of a campaign, however, and I would certainly not look up to him as a philosopher. He had a knack for putting his foot in a great steaming pile by shooting his mouth off.

[San Ivanna]

Albert Camus

[Bluth Corporation]

John Rawls.

Wait, seriously? You are a Rawls fan?

Yes. John Rawls, despite being wrong, is quite effective at making his arguments and has a wonderful writing style, among other reasons.

Remember, the topic is "favorite," not "greatest."

[Soheran]

As with Ayn Rand, I think Nietzsche is the kind of author who seems most impressive if you encounter him at the age of 14.

No, Nietzsche is actually a profound and interesting thinker; he's just very nearly incomprehensible.

[Aggicificicerous]

I too am quite fond of Nietzsche, though I have never heard any goths talking about him. In fact, I haven't really heard of anyone talking about him lately. I have the feeling Hitler is partly to blame for this, although it could just be that he intimidates people.

[Lizardiar]

George S. Patton Jr.

Why am I not surprised?

Patton was an excellent field commander. I would put him in command of any unit from an army on down. I would not have in general command of a campaign, however, and I would certainly not look up to him as a philosopher. He had a knack for putting his foot in a great steaming pile by shooting his mouth off.

http://www.military-quotes.com/Patton.htm

[Farnhamia]

I too am quite fond of Nietzsche, though I have never heard any goths talking about him. In fact, I haven't really heard of anyone talking about him lately. I have the feeling Hitler is partly to blame for this, although it could just be that he intimidates people.

It's the mustache ...



Scares the heck out of me.

[Farnhamia]

George S. Patton Jr.

Why am I not surprised?

Patton was an excellent field commander. I would put him in command of any unit from an army on down. I would not have in general command of a campaign, however, and I would certainly not look up to him as a philosopher. He had a knack for putting his foot in a great steaming pile by shooting his mouth off.

http://www.military-quotes.com/Patton.htm

Those are snappy epigrams, not philosophy. I'll take back the last sentence in my post, okay? George had a way with words but he wasn't a philosopher.

[Aggicificicerous]

The moustache is an entity unto itself.

[Farnhamia]

George S. Patton Jr.

Why am I not surprised?

Patton was an excellent field commander. I would put him in command of any unit from an army on down. I would not have in general command of a campaign, however, and I would certainly not look up to him as a philosopher. He had a knack for putting his foot in a great steaming pile by shooting his mouth off.

http://www.military-quotes.com/Patton.htm

Snappy quips, not philosophy.

Maurepas, Military Philosopjy? Is there such a thing?

[Maurepas]

Those are snappy epigrams, not philosophy. I'll take back the last sentence in my post, okay? George had a way with words but he wasn't a philosopher.

I think he could be considered a Military Philosopher...I think it would depend on what kind of Philosophy you were talking about...

[Greed and Death]

My personal favorite is Nietzsche.

As with Ayn Rand, I think Nietzsche is the kind of author who seems most impressive if you encounter him at the age of 14.

I used to have an aversion because of the 14 year old Nietzsche fans. reading his works again at the age of 28 has shown me the 14 years olds were almost always totally wrong on what he was trying to get at.
The problem is 14 year old read his shocking statements like god is dead, and never bother reading the less shocking parts to figure out what he meant or why he said it.

So I would say anyone under 21, or a maturity level under 21 should not be allowed to read Nietzsche.

[Greed and Death]

Those are snappy epigrams, not philosophy. I'll take back the last sentence in my post, okay? George had a way with words but he wasn't a philosopher.

I think he could be considered a Military Philosopher...I think it would depend on what kind of Philosophy you were talking about...

If you think he is , I am not going to argue with you.
However to be a Philosopher you really need a whole system of how to live.

[Parthenon]

Machiavelli

was a political scientist, not a philosopher.

My answer: Nino Cocchiarella, and John Rawls.

Machiavelli was certainly a philosopher. "Machiavellianism" is school of thought in both political science AND psychology.

[Greed and Death]

Machiavelli

was a political scientist, not a philosopher.

My answer: Nino Cocchiarella, and John Rawls.

Machiavelli was certainly a philosopher. "Machiavellianism" is school of thought in both political science AND psychology.

The wiki says he is a Philosopher so that's good enough for me.

[The Naacal]

I too am quite fond of Nietzsche, though I have never heard any goths talking about him. In fact, I haven't really heard of anyone talking about him lately. I have the feeling Hitler is partly to blame for this, although it could just be that he intimidates people.

Strangely enough, the Nazis are complete proof of "In seeking to destroy monsters, see to it in the process you do not become a monster yourself. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes into you".

[Greed and Death]

I too am quite fond of Nietzsche, though I have never heard any goths talking about him. In fact, I haven't really heard of anyone talking about him lately. I have the feeling Hitler is partly to blame for this, although it could just be that he intimidates people.

Strangely enough, the Nazis are complete proof of "In seeking to destroy monsters, see to it in the process you do not become a monster yourself. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes into you".

If Nietzsche and Hitler met and Hitler tried to tell Nietzsche that Nietzsche's writings is where he got his ideas from. Nietzsche would have called him an imbecile, with no understanding of what he was writing about.

[H N Fiddlebottoms VIII]

My personal favorite is Nietzsche.

As with Ayn Rand, I think Nietzsche is the kind of author who seems most impressive if you encounter him at the age of 14.

How many thinkers can mix philosophy and one-liners so effectively as the Nietzschster? No one, that's who.

Still, I've more a liking for the early 20th century existentialists. Heidegger was brilliant, except for the whole Nazi thing. Although, you could almost see that as a plus in his case, as so few philosophers have provided such an easy case study about what could go wrong with their line of thinking.
Sartre, however, wins it for me. Brilliant man, and his fiction was pretty good too.

However, if in the company of other philosophy minded people, I'm inclined to site Jonathon Davis ("Just fucking do it, dammit," "Please just let it go; all our heads are blown. Let's just take the stage, and remember what we play for") or warrior-poet-philosopher Christopher Wallace ("[Persons] bleed just like us, picture me being scared of a [person] breathe the same air as me," "Mo Money, Mo Problems," "My shit is deep, deeper than my grave, G. I'm ready to die, and nobody can save me," "I'm a piece of shit, it ain't hard to fucking tell," "So you wanna be hardcore ... but I can't feel that hardcore," "Slugs in his back, but that's what the fuck happens when you sleep on the street.") There are few things more amusing than attempting to extrapolate an entire philosophy off a rapper or metal vocalist.

[Xin Han]

Personally, I am more a fan of Eastern Philosophy, which would include the Middle East. I view Christianity as a philosophy and a religion.

Confucius, Laozi and Zhuangzi, as well as the Legalist thinkers (Han Feizi was the most famous).

Sorry for thread-jacking.

[Pope Joan]

Albert Camus

I am for existentialism as well, but I'll go for the original,

Soren Kierkegaard