Dementia Behind Bars

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2012/02/25/health/100000001367225/dementia-behind-bars.html

Hello everyone,
I'm sorry to inform you that I am cancelling Philo Club today due to illness. Club will meet next Monday, November 7th at our the usual 1:00 meeting time in room 1659.
Sorry for any inconveniences.

Urban Beach Weekend

In a recently published article in the Miami New Times (link above) about the "Urban Weekend" held over Memorial Day weekend on Miami Beach, a number of problems were discussed: over 200 gun confiscations in just two years, over 4,000 arrests in the past decade, deaths, illegal drug use, fights, and countless other crimes. One question which has come up is whether these problems are inevitable. While some mayoral candidates want to eliminate Urban Beach Weekend altogether, Luke and Mayor Bower in the article are attempting to come up with a way to change it for the better without seeming racist. Even though Miami Beach is known as one of the most diverse cities in the world, Luke points out that many view the word "Urban" as just another way of saying "Black." It is very difficult to find a solution to this problem, when Miami Beach also receives enormous economic benefits from the weekend long event. In my opinion people are tip toeing around these issues to avoid being seen as racist. The fact of the matter is many locals feel afraid to stay in their homes and leave during the event or avoid South Beach all together. Is it possible to address the issues involved in Urban Beach Weekend without affecting the rights and freedoms of  Blacks? Are there cases in which minority rights should be curtailed for the greater good? How would you propose to either eliminate or alter Urban Beach Weekend?

Good morning! I would like to thank everyone who has been coming to the Miami Dade Wolfson Philosophy Club! In case you all didn't know we are holding the meetings at 1:00 on Mondays in room 1659. Also the week there are tests we will be holding a review on those Mondays. Hope to see you soon.

Should math be tought in school?

Failure: Does it Build You Up, or Tear You Down?

Friedrich Nietzsche, a famous philosopher, once quoted "That which does not kill us makes us stronger."  Many find this quote inspiration and true. Failure can be an important thing. It teaches us life lessons, makes us grateful, and pushes us to do better. It makes us empathetic, and makes it possible to achieve happiness. But on the other hand failure tests us. Failure certainly has the ability to tear us down. It can cause depression, poverty , and homelessness. What do you think about failure? Do you think Nietzsche's quote holds to be true?

Is the Death Penalty an Ethical Punishment?

Troy Davis Denied Clemency

Today many people are calling for the clemency of "police killer" Troy Davis, who has been on death row for 20 years. This case raises the question of whether the death penalty is an ethical punishment. How and when do you think the idea that it was appropriate to punish humans by putting them to death, emerged in society? Although we have left behind the barbaric methods of stoning, hanging, the firing squad, and nailing people to crosses in the United States, we continue to take the lives of convicted criminals. Is the death penalty a punishment or merely a solution? Some claim it is a punishment, which raises the question of whether humans have the ethical right to put another to death, while others claim it is a preventive measure. Does an eye for an eye make the whole world blind? Many who defend the death penalty will claim the only reparation for a lost life is the taking of one, but you do not often hear these people proposing a rapist getting raped or a robber getting robbed. Is taking the life of another justified when they have have taken a life themselves? How are we even able to determine, in a moral sense, whether putting a person to death is right or wrong? And if there is no way to determine this, should we do it? As a preventive measure, it seems to not make much sense. If one is so demented as to commit a serious crime worthy of this punishment they would probably not be thinking of the future consequences. They may either be in a blind rage, or planning a crime while knowing the punishment, but hoping they do not get caught. Would there be any way to console a family who had a member put to death, if later evidence proved their loved one was innocent? What do you think about the death penalty as a form of punishment?