Coyle’s Comments (group member since Dec 08, 2008)

Coyle’s comments from the Philosophy group.

Glen said "I think the love of power trumps politics or philosophy. Circumstances of the individual (or country) will determine if politics or philosophy comes first."

True enough. I like how Hobbes said it: "I put for the general inclination of all mankind, a perpetual and restless desire of power after power, that ceaseth only in death."
But, aren't your statement and Hobbes' philosophical statements? And doesn't that imply that philosophy has to come first?

"You can't talk about politics and philosophy without talking about psychology, socialology, economics and other fields."
Well, you can, but you probably shouldn't :)
Actually, I would make the same argument about these other fields that I would about politics: politics is just your individual philosophy applied to the community. And in the same way, economics is just your individual philosophy applied to wealth, and the same with the other fields. (With the possible exception of certain aspects of psychology that deal with the hard science of the chemistry of the brain, not so much with the softer side of that field.)

The Nazi question is interesting, I tend to like Peter Viereck's take on it: Metapolitics From Wagner and the German Romantics to Hitler. Fascism is the idea that man is basically good and ought to be allowed to do as he pleases mixed with German romantic nationalism (especially from Nietzsche and Wagner).

Interesting question! As someone who studies/teaches political philosophy, I think I lean towards the position that philosophy has to come first. Without some underlying philosophy, you couldn't have a politics.