The #philosophy Review Nov 29, 2016

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The #philosophy Review is a survey of posts in #philosophy. Learn more here!

There were many great works in Metaphysics, Ethics, and Political philosophy this week! A common theme among all of this week's selections is to be careful about how you define familiar concepts. Natural? Good? Violence? Self? Consciousness? These are all words we throw around regularly, but to what do they really point?

Selections for Nov 29, 2016:

When Can We Call Something Natural?
@martin-stuessy
https://steemit.com/nature/@martin-stuessy/the-boundary-between-nature-and-synthesis
@martin-stuessy investigates the fuzzy line between natural and artificial. In the end this seems like a "I know it when I see it" situation, but the question about exact definition remains.

There Can Be No Good
@baerdric
https://steemit.com/philosophy/@baerdric/there-can-be-no-good
@baerdric 's article is not as bleak as the title suggests. This is a clear discussion of good vs bad. We can define 'bad' based on harm and discomfort, but can we positively define Good? Nihilists and Stoics will identify with the thesis, but all will benefit from the investigation of "The Good."

Voluntary Japan: The Borders Debate, Settled.
@kafkaanarchy84
https://steemit.com/anarchy/@kafkanarchy84/voluntary-japan-the-borders-debate-settled
This is a timeley article about the open/closed border debate. @kafkanarchy84 takes a voluntaryist approach to this question and frames border restriction as a form of violence.

The Simple Secret
@clains
https://steemit.com/philosophy/@clains/an-ontological-argument-from-conscious-elementals
I won't spoil the joy of reading the syllogism at the heart of this ontological essay on consciouness. The simple secret builds on our concepts about fundamental particles to make a profound statement about existence.