I would definitely be up for a reading the Republic. Or the Timaeus. To be frank I read it a couple of years ago, but I never really discussed it with anyone. I still kick myself for that. I luckily stumbled upon a collection of Plato's dialogues in a book trading store. I promptly traded my copy of...

Your discussion got me thinking about protectionism. The truth is I've been thinking about it a lot, mostly because I'm from Perú, I guess. Is there some instances where protectionism makes sense? Can it be a good thing to protect sub-optimal local business against strong external competition? Liste...

Penelope wrote:Oh! That long ago!!! A whole twelve years!! :garden:

Well come on it does represent almost half my life span xD. Still, I get what you mean. I get shivers every time I realize kids these days don't know what thundercats are. Or that Blue's Clues is over a decade old.

I'm glad you found the Emerson essay worthwhile, and if you have any favorites of your own, please share. Actually, now that you mention it, there are a couple of books that I love that have to do with the meaning of life. "The Social Animal" by David Brooks. It's great because it present...

DWill, Penelope: Thank you for the great reading material :). The Emerson essay was very interesting, and I'll probably be reading it a few times over. I liked his take on how our frame of reference conditions what we experience and do. The metaphor about the kid in a candy shop really struck a cord...

I think the best answer is also the easiest one to give: Each person gives his or her life meaning. And I'm not talking about believing in god here, or sitting down, reading a book about it and then thinking real hard. Your actions, your ambitions, your fears and your beliefs within the context defi...

The best of novelists should be able to make the story virtually swallow the reader, and make him/her feel as if they are actually experiencing the events in a novel. I always imagine myself in the novel-world of the book I'm reading.. I can't help it xD. But the only time this has happened to me w...

I'd have to go with Twilight on this one... it's just so much dribble. Actually, I've always thought Alice in Wonderland is a bit overhyped... so many of the jokes and winks depend on your knowledge of victorian england that they either fly right over you... or your reading it with a lot of annotati...

I'm a movie pragmatist... I'll watch pretty much anything, to the obvious disgust of my friends and girlfriend. Some of my favorite movies include: Gladiator, Requiem for a Dream, Irreversible, The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, X-Men 3, Shrek, Finding Nemo, Evangelion Rebirth series, Lord o...

Thank you Katelyn for telling us about yourself! That lastpost is probably more valuable than the rest of this entire thread put together, simply because it's honest and direct and curious... As to this: Why do you not believe in God? Well you see, my family has always jumped around a lot, mostly on...