4/

The Philosophers’

Magazine

21 Parkhurst Road London, N22 8JQ United Kingdom Tel: 020 8889 7041 Fax: 0870 125 3783

editor@philosophers.co.uk www.philosophers.co.uk

Editor Dr Julian Baggini

Online Editor Dr Jeremy Stangroom

Events Directory Co-ordinator

Mitch Hodge

Subscriptions UK: 020 7538 8288 North America: 1-800 444 2419 ext.1

See page 41 for full details

Contributors Les Burwood, Stewart Candlish, Peter Cave, Joseph Chandler, Simon Collinson, Steve Deery, Margaret Goord, Wendy Grossman, Mitch Hodge, Mathew Iredale, Sue Johnson, Alex Klaushofer, Tim Lebon, Brian Leiter, Lyn May, Christian Perring, Aidan Rankin, Matthew Ray, Bart Schultz, Steve Schwartz, Paul Snowdon, Kathleen Wilkes, Peter Williams

Cartoons Shaun Williams, Ham Khan, Marianne Kolbuszewski

Cover illustration Robin Turner

Graphics Jerry Bird

With Thanks to Laura Charland, Susannah Gill, Lori Fells, Steve Palmquist, Bernard Stangroom, Pam Swope

UK Book Trade Distribution by Central Books, 99 Wallis Road, London E9 5LN Tel: 020 8986 4854

North American Distribution by Ingram Periodicals Inc., 1240 Heil Quaker Blvd., La Vergne, TN 37086-7000 Tel: (615) 793 5522

Printed by Redwood Books, Kennet Way, Trowbridge, Wilts BA14 8RN Tel: (01225) 769979

Contributors Notes Prospective contributors should contact the editor for further information or to submit ideas. Please do not send unsolicted manuscripts, except when open submissions are specifically invited.

All views expressed in The Philosophers’ Magazine represent those of the authors of each article and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors or publishers.

Philosophers’ The

Magazine issue twelve • autumn 2000

contents

News and Features 6 NEWS HOUND A revealing new poll, a Sartre revival and e-philosophy

8 OPINION Brian Leiter’s regular column plus guest comment

9 MEDIA WATCH Philosophy and philosophers in the mass media

11 METAPHYSICAL MOVIES Joseph Chandler Films for the pensive: Krasny and The Matrix group rights p15

13 INDEPENDENT’S DAZE Julian Baggini The hard life of the independent philosopher Essays 15 GROUP RIGHTS Aidan Rankin How group identities are threatening liberalism

17 NEGATIVE FACTS Stewart Candlish When something which is not becomes something that is Discussion 23 OPEN DEBATE: WHY IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO BE MORAL Steve Schwartz Schwartz responds to readers’ criticisms of his pardoxical argument

Hole lotta logic, p17

29 DISCOURSE: A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE... The dangers, or lack of them, of dabbling in philosophy Conference Briefing 31 THE JOINT SESSION Why philosophers really go to British philosophy’s biggest gathering

ISSN 1354-814X

ThePhilosophers’Magazine/Autumn 2000