Message from @Airman Zeno
Discord ID: 693303404344377353
Existentialism/Post Modernism also believes that everything is relative, but it sais to create your own reality.
Nihilism is a paradoxical belief. It argues that nothing matters, but yet anyone who holds to that violates its principle because without exception, they themselves value that belief.
That aside, it is also used predominantly as a get-out-of-jail-free card in debates. The so-called nihilist's argument is easily refuted, so he simply declares that it doesn't matter anyways.
It has interesting implications if taken very lightly, however. It can be used to say that value only comes from within oneself, and as such can be used to create values of deeper significance to an individual than a pre existing "traditional" system would. This, however, is not something anyone ever uses it for.
It's sort of a philosophical jellyfish
that's a weird description of post-modernism
the word you're looking for is relativism, or subjectivism
If nothing matters, that in itself also doesn't matter, so just belief wtf you want. @Airman Zeno
short version👍
I'd say it falls under the family of relativism.
you haven't really defeated nihilism though
you're appealing to the consequences of nihilism if it is true, but you haven't disproved it
The proof or value of a philosophy exists purely in its results
what predictions does philosophy allow us to make?
What
well you said the value exists in the results, but what predictions does philosophy allow us to make?
or are you arguing that ethics, when applied to a society, can improve it?
because that's true of many different contradictory ethical frameworks
You can predict the results of a philosophical system on a society based off of how well it conforms to natural moral law
All successful human societies have lived by some form or another of NML
How do you determine natural moral law?
Easy
1. Self preservation
2. Have children
3. Educate children
4. Maintain functional society
5. Worship God
how do we arrive at these 5 points?
Short answer, Aquinas
how did Thomas Aquinas
yes how does he arrive at these 5 ways?
or wait
Give me a sec to switch to computer
these aren't the five ways
Aquinas arrived at NML by finding what individual threads ran consistent throughout societies
You cannot have a functional society without all 5 of those things
?
Let's go through this one line at a time
these haven't existed in all societies
unless by worshipping God you mean worshipping literally any God or gods
Your society cannot continue to exist if it does not require its members to self preserve
wait before you start
(yeah thats what i mean, any religious practice counts)
all of these are basically tautology except the last one
societies have been functional societies isn't really much of a claim
Your society cannot continue to exist if its members do not have children, and educate them in what it means to be a part of that society
and this really then boils down to a descriptive claim, not a perscriptive one.