Abstract
This paper examines three logical fallacies namely: Begging the Question, Hasty Generalization and Appealing to Emotion. It presents examples of such fallacies in contemporary society and ties them into the concept of critical thinking.

From the Paper
"The Appeal to Emotion fallacy is committed when someone manipulates peoples' emotions in order to get them to accept a claim as being true (Labossiere, 1995). This is very common in politics and it serves as the basis for a large portion of modern advertising. Most political speeches are aimed at stirring and steering feelings in people to get them to vote or act a certain way. In the case of advertising, the commercials are aimed at evoking emotions that will influence people to buy specific products."

Tags:freedom, of, speech, media, prejudice

Abstract
In the philosophy of law, two competing factions each offer compelling arguments as to the basic nature, origin, authority and responsibility of law. These two theories are known as Natural Law Theory and Legal Positivism. This paper shows that while there are many disagreements between the two theories, at the heart of the argument is the questionable relationship between law and morality. The paper examines how Natural Law Theorists argue that there is an essential and innate overlap between law and morality, while Legal Positivists argue that while the decisions of law and morality do occasionally overlap, there is no natural relationship between them.

From the Paper
"Legal Positivists rely on a sovereign to legislate law; this sovereign,
whether it be a monarch, an aristocracy, an elected parliament, or any other person or body that writes the law for a society. For a sovereign to be considered as such, most, if not all, of the population must follow the sovereign's laws, and there must be a threat of force to enforce the law. If either of these conditions are not met, the leader cannot claim to be a true sovereign entity. Also, the sovereign cannot be subject to another sovereign's authority, such as God; if a sovereign is to be the head of a society and the maker of laws, she must be invulnerable to persuasion or else she is not a sovereign."

Tags:Judeo-Christian, John, Stuart, Mill, Jeremy, Bentham, Hobbes

Abstract
Discusses problems of thinking and problem solving. Basic methods of thinking (logical, analytical, scientific, ratiocinative, emotive, intuitive). Major forms of thinking processes. The logical thinker. The critical thinker. The counterfactual thinker. Barriers to achieving high levels of critical thinking skills. How people acquire, structure and process information.

From the Paper
"Critical Thinking Styles and Forms of Influence

Introduction
An excellent thinker is a person who can approach an analysis with an open mind; one who can digest the information presented, separate the relevant from the irrelevant, and come to logical conclusions regardless of any prior knowledge about a situation or any perceptions, pet ideas, or biases" (Altier, 1999). This quote from William Altier,in his book, The Thinking Manager s Toolbox, defines the challenge of providing a concise guide to the problems of thinking and problem solving.

There are, says Altier, as many ways of thinking and analyzing problems as there are people. Some of the basic methods of thinking are logical, analytical, scientific, ratiocinative, emotive, intuitive, and so on. However, there are certain ..."

Abstract
This paper is an intriguing philosophical approach at solving the problem with evil. It discusses the conversations and writings of Philosopher Swinburne and the antitheodicist. Arguments are presented between Swinburne and the antitheodicist and an attempt is made to answer the question; does Swinburne succeed in solving the problem?

From the Paper
"There shouldn't be any evils that are not caused by men, such as plagues, earthquakes, natural disasters, AIDS, cancer, and disease to name some of them. Swinburne explains that these tragedies and misfortunes allow men to do noble acts. The September 11th tragedy is a classic example. The entire city of New York came together and sacrificed lives, money, time, and effort to help others. Their crime rates dropped to the lowest ever of that city."

Tags:evil, paper, philosophy, problem, swinburne

Abstract
This paper is an examination of Descartes book, "Meditations on First Philosophy." The author examines the steps that Descartes took in order to prove his hypothesis that God is a deceiver. He examines three different proofs and shows how Descartes comes to these realizations only after a careful and logical thought process in which he tears down and rebuilds everything that he believes in.

From the Paper
"Now he bases the rest of his proof off of these three observations. Because he has been convinced that something comes from something, the idea he has of God had to have been created by something, either himself or something else. He then states that he is finite and imperfect, and thus he cannot have an idea of the infinite and perfect on his own. He, being finite and imperfect, is not as powerful as the thought he has of an infinite and perfect God. Therefore, because he is not powerful enough to create this idea, it must have come from some other source."

Tags:descartes, god, proof, existence, logic, argument, observations, definition

Abstract
A critical analysis of the philosophies of Socrates. The author discusses Socrates' ideas and concepts about true happiness and pursuing God's will. It includes criticism and application to today's society.

From the Paper
"Socrates' philosophy has existed since before the birth of Jesus Christ. He recorded his thoughts concerning personal and political issues, giving his detailed and amazingly well thought out positions on each. He questioned everything around him, and discussed them with his friends and students, an exercise known as philosophizing. Socrates deemed that a truly happy man does not require material goods. He argued that it would be in one's best interest to consult a wise person before making an important decision, and that we should each comply with God's intentions above all others?. These arguments have been debated for centuries by many, and should be considered still, since they are important and relevant today, more than 2,000 years later."

Tags:apology, ethic, ethical, history, literature, moral, philosophy, plato, republic, western, wisdom, greek

Abstract
This paper details Descartes's philosophical attempt at an ontological "proof" for the existence of God. Included is an outline of the intellectual and political times in which Descartes wrote, with a brief discussion of the possible impact this had on Descartes's arguments and focus. The history of ontological arguments and their validity is also discussed, as are the criticisms of such arguments.

From the Paper
"Rene Descartes was born in 1596 during a period of great scientific and religious upheaval. Scientific theories which had stood at the very core of society for over thirteen hundred years were being challenged by scientists such as Nicolaus Copernicus and Galileo Galilei. They argued against the traditional Ptolemaic model of the Universe proposing instead a heliocentric model which suggested the Earth was not central but, along with other celestial bodies, circled the sun. Not surprisingly, this theory directly conflicted with Church doctrines which propagated the centrality of mankind in God's eyes and, consequently, a wide-spread conflict ensued between religion and science. The implications of this conflict led to a rise in speculation during these times regarding man's place in the world and God in relation to man."

Tags:cartesian, circle

Abstract
What is existence? This essay categorizes existence, with reference to the conceptions of reality made by Aristotle and Sartre. The paper asks if existence of something unknowable is possible? Is metaphysics a legitimate enterprise based on an authentic order to the world? The paer shows that existence is to be examined as whole and all encompassing, and that reality and non-reality are necessary components for experience.

From the Paper
"When we consider our experience, and the "place" in which it occupies, many questions come to mind. What is this experience? Is what I experience all that exists? Do things out there exist? Why does this exist? And so on. It is my contention that all of these questions, and many others of a similar nature are all related in a fundamental way to the question of infinity. Naturally enough, when we think of infinity, we think of it pertaining to something, as a property of something. It is this question of whether a thing is finite or infinite that comes before all others, even whether it has the "property" of existence. This is due to the fact that finity and infinity define two possible values of existence. Finite existences have a subset of properties that establish its nature. Infinite existences, or possible existences, also have another subset of properties that establish its nature. It is my further contention that infinity represents an ultimate logical impossibility in the establishment of existence, and threatens the "wholeness" that establishes a reality. With that in mind, we can rule out the subset of properties associated with infinite existences, as they turn out to be the very properties of non-existence, which, as I will show, if a fundamental aspect to a reality itself. In short, this essay will systematize reality from non-reality, existence from non-existence using the notion of absolute finitude as a touchstone."

Tags:epistomology, existentialism, infinity, logic, metaphysics, philosophy

Abstract
This paper answers these questions from a philosophical point of view: How can we know of the existence of Paris at this very moment unless we are sensing Paris? When we examine our world, we are testing our knowledge of the world. But if our knowledge arises from the world around us, and the world around us alone, how could we possibly think testing it against the world would lead to truth? The paper concludes that what is needed is a systemization of truth, reality and knowledge, through the concept of possible worlds.

From the Paper
"Heidegger once stated that the central question for metaphysics was why there was something rather than nothing. Existentialism bases its philosophy squarely on this question, or, as Sartre might have put it, on the negation of this question. The critical issue at hand here, is the position of man as being-in-the-world in Heidegger as opposed to Descartes view of man as being in and of itself. The concept of existence has changed. It was once a view of an outside observer peering into the world, using knowledge to poke and prod reality, forcing it to come forth. This is the view Kant emphasized in his brilliant Critique of Pure Reason. Heidegger paints a much different picture of reality and knowledge. Reality is the creator of all, but an unusual creator. No longer is the creator totally separated from the created. Man becomes the maker of himself. Reality becomes intertwined with knowledge in such a way that the word paradox does not even begin to describe it. Heidegger's world is a much more complex and subjective one than Kant imagined. Where man's "prodding" at the world is a prodding at his very reality. This blur of self and world, this modern idea of knowledge and reality intertwining is of great importance in metaphysics and epistemology, and the relationship between knowledge, reality and order must be further understood."

Tags:truth, reality, kant, heidegger, metaphysics

Abstract
This is a short assessment of Gilbert Ryle's "Concept of Mind". Ryle stands as one of analytic's philosophy's pioneers in the field of philosophy of mind, and critiques Rene Descartes' claims of the mind as immaterial "thinking thing". Ryle's critique through the use of his "Category Mistake", forms a prototypical example of analytic philosophy's reassessment of traditional philosophical issues and warrants investigation.

From the Paper
"The problem of mind has been one of great importance to philosophy throughout its history. In his work The Concept of Mind, Gilbert Ryle establishes his perspective on this issue. Ryle contrasts his conclusions with French philosopher Rene Descartes, accusing Descartes of what he calls a "category mistake". Ryle's justification for this judgement comes from what he identifies as differences in logic between mental and physical words. The concepts we use in our language represent the reality of the mental and physical world in different ways. It is because of this conclusion, that Ryle asserts that the mind is not in fact a substance. In this essay, I will examine Ryle's understanding of the logic of mental words and the category mistake. Then, we must see how this criticism fares against Descartes "substance model" of mind. Finally, Ryle's own behaviorism must be checked for any errors that would cause it to be a poor alternative to the dualist model of mind. Only then can we determine if Ryle has been successful in his critique of Descartes."

Tags:analytic, category, linguistic, mistake, philosophy