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Philosophy, or rather what it represents and symbolizes, seems more necessary today than ever. It could be said that we live in anti-philosophical times and this in more ways than one. The desire to know is not fashionable. The opposite prevails, the cult of hoaxes and lies. The miracle workers that Kant denounced in ‘The Conflict of the Faculties’ triumph everywhere by deceiving the people with absurd and contradictory lies that they call alternative facts and post-truths.
Far from promoting coexistence and dialogue, which are the very spirit of philosophy, polarization is promoted. Superstition and prejudice prevail in all fields. Scientific evidence and verified data cannot compete with brutal misinformation that colonizes the networks, also contaminating traditional media.
As Cassirer rightly pointed out in very turbulent times almost a century ago, the philosophical and cultural climate determines the political configuration of the moment. A society that idolizes economic factors above all things and leaves citizens in second place, treating them as mere instruments and not as people, eliminates access to a minimum material well-being and the enjoyment of cultural goods, cutting off the existence of homogeneous opportunities. The effort is made up for by the tricks and shortcuts of the careerist.
We are losing our empathy and collaboration that made us evolve as a species
Distinguishing between losers and winners reveals a social pathology of immeasurable magnitude. Of course, it dehumanizes the discriminated group and at the same time it does the same with those who discriminate against it. We are losing our empathy and collaboration that made us evolve as a species. We are becoming robots that follow protocols and algorithmic instructions, but do not question anything at all.
Kant warned that we must think on our own, without entrusting ourselves to the paternalism of messianic guides who seek to manipulate us. We have to know how to adopt the perspectives of others to reach consensus and seek joint solutions. It is urgent to vindicate the multiple legacies that philosophy has given us and that have been integrated into the collective imagination of our cultural heritage. Terms such as ethics, democracy or polis must be appropriately revalued.
The moral disposition must come first over our talents and the gifts of fortune
We have to learn to form our own criteria, above all, without uncritically subscribing to any nonsense that comes to us. Nor can we transfer our responsibility to others by throwing the ball out, because by doing so we renounce our fundamental trait as human beings. We need to encourage our natural curiosity and be clear that only we can solve our moral dilemmas. The moral disposition must come first over our talents and the gifts of fortune.
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