Welcome! My purpose for this site is to encourage critical thinking, and its application to contemporary problems in America and those places affected by America. My audience is family, friends, students and strangers. As a teacher and philosopher, my path is guided by the tag: ‘Once a thinker, always a thinker …’
The blog – LetsDiscussIt – will include short and long posts. I intend that all posts should be provocative, or pose questions, on a variety of topics related to education, popular culture, religion, morality, public policy, economics, the arts, language learning, local, national and international events, travel and, of course, social problems. These issues and questions invite comments and ‘answers,’ from readers. Some posts will be my critical view of such topics. Others may be from other bloggers. All posts will encourage comments and discussion.
To submit pieces for inclusion, or to discuss the development of the site, send an email to justin
This website – justinswebsite.org – is not about Justin. It bears my name because it’s an invitation for you to join me on a journey towards … what? Well, towards wisdom. At least that is what philosophy is about: the search for wisdom. It requires critical thinking about important questions, which is not comfortable or easy; and it demands guiding our lives by what that search reveals, which is not natural. I didn’t initiate this journey. No one person did; and no one will end it. It’s a human project – in fact the human project. The path is heavily trodden in some places and almost invisible in others. It has changed direction many times. I’m sure there are countless fascinating side tracks, some of which I’ve traveled. Like the picture that heads this website, the destination is not visible, but the way directly ahead seems peaceful and inviting, at least for the moment. If we take time to look around, and walk slowly enough to take in our surroundings, even though we don’t know the end, it will be lovely – especially if we can find a few good companions on the way.
The website bears the suffix ‘.org’ instead of ‘.com’ for good reason. Not wanting to sound pretentious, I hope this will be the work of many people coming together out of genuine curiosity, and for good purposes. Although the community can expect to profit from its efforts, it certainly is not aiming at commercial ends.
As you can see by the menu items across the top, the site will deal with diverse topics: essays, books, travel, arts and money. Since my view seeks big picture awareness and criticism, there is nothing forbidden from discussion. Money matters and government fiscal policies greatly influence the arts, cultural trends and social conditions.