Ted Tillich-Farris
@tillichfarris.bsky.social
Philosophy of self-interest. Proprietor of the literary rights of Paul Tillich. International corporate finance attorney. Mean Old Meanie Substack https://bit.ly/4sMPBZL
Every individual is different in drive, ability, intelligence, knowledge, appearance, goals and energy. So how is it unfair that people have different levels of income? Is there some universal moral principle that everyone should be equal in wealth? tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
September 26, 2026 at 4:26 PM
Every individual is different in drive, ability, intelligence, knowledge, appearance, goals and energy. So how is it unfair that people have different levels of income? Is there some universal moral principle that everyone should be equal in wealth? tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
No two people are alike and every person is separate from every other. We are all born unequal in appearance, energy, intelligence, ambition, sociability, personal goals and drive. So how is it that inequality of income or wealth is in itself "unfair?" tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
September 26, 2026 at 4:17 PM
No two people are alike and every person is separate from every other. We are all born unequal in appearance, energy, intelligence, ambition, sociability, personal goals and drive. So how is it that inequality of income or wealth is in itself "unfair?" tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
Soft spoken, tousle-haired Christopher Hoyt spent this entire conversation without making a single definitive statement about anything. He says absolutely nothing about religion. I'd guess he's religious as Hoyt thinks religion should be protected from charges of falsity & myth making and should be
In episode 1059, I talk with Dr. Christopher Hoyt about Wittgenstein, #Philosophy of mind, and religion.
youtu.be/Gq7yj0TINDw
youtu.be/Gq7yj0TINDw
#1059 Christopher Hoyt: Wittgenstein, Philosophy of Mind, and Religion
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
September 20, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Soft spoken, tousle-haired Christopher Hoyt spent this entire conversation without making a single definitive statement about anything. He says absolutely nothing about religion. I'd guess he's religious as Hoyt thinks religion should be protected from charges of falsity & myth making and should be
People who claim that equality is our biggest problem have no idea what it means.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
Why Everyone Claims to Want “Equality” Until They Understand What it Means
Be Careful What You Wish For
tedtillichfarris.substack.com
September 14, 2026 at 3:35 AM
People who claim that equality is our biggest problem have no idea what it means.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-everyo...
There's more than meets the eye to calls by OpenAI & Anthropic CEOs for a slowdown of AI development, namely unsustainable cash burn rates & delayed IPOs. Claiming to be an existential threat to humanity isn't the greatest fund raising pitch. Or is it? tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-open-a...
Why OpenAI and Anthropic CEOs are calling for an AI Slowdown While Racing to Accelerate AI and Go Public
Or How I Learned to stop Worrying and Love AI
tedtillichfarris.substack.com
September 13, 2026 at 10:12 PM
There's more than meets the eye to calls by OpenAI & Anthropic CEOs for a slowdown of AI development, namely unsustainable cash burn rates & delayed IPOs. Claiming to be an existential threat to humanity isn't the greatest fund raising pitch. Or is it? tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-open-a...
TRIX are for kids. But leave collectivist utopias, hive minds, global brains and communitarian super-organisms for termites, ants, bees and other eusocial insects. They aren't for adult humans. tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-commun...
Why Communitarian Utopias Are for the Birds, the Bees and the Termites
The Dangerous Utopian Belief in a Hive Minded Collectivist Super-Organism
tedtillichfarris.substack.com
September 2, 2026 at 12:55 PM
TRIX are for kids. But leave collectivist utopias, hive minds, global brains and communitarian super-organisms for termites, ants, bees and other eusocial insects. They aren't for adult humans. tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-commun...
Important insightful article on the genome. Genomes are not like blueprints, algorithms or computer software, they are complex dynamic systems that interact with the environment, and in the case of the human genome with culture, to produce beings that are in each case uniquely individual. This has
Do you agree that this stuff is fascinating? Do you wish pop sci outlets wrote about it more? 😉
In the meantime, here’s a piece I wrote for Quanta about the complexities of the genome.
/end
www.quantamagazine.org/why-the-huma...
In the meantime, here’s a piece I wrote for Quanta about the complexities of the genome.
/end
www.quantamagazine.org/why-the-huma...
Why the Human Genome’s Tangled Physicality May Confound AI | Quanta Magazine
Our genetic heritage is not a blueprint or an algorithm, as many biologists have imagined, but something else entirely.
www.quantamagazine.org
August 30, 2026 at 12:30 PM
Important insightful article on the genome. Genomes are not like blueprints, algorithms or computer software, they are complex dynamic systems that interact with the environment, and in the case of the human genome with culture, to produce beings that are in each case uniquely individual. This has
There has never been the slightest doubt about insect sentience.
Just try catching a fly in your hand. It'll evade your clumsy efforts over 90% of the time.
There is no theory or hypothesis for how insects could not be sentient. But it's nice that science can figure out what is self-evident.
Just try catching a fly in your hand. It'll evade your clumsy efforts over 90% of the time.
There is no theory or hypothesis for how insects could not be sentient. But it's nice that science can figure out what is self-evident.
Adding to the case for insect sentience - new research shows flexible self-protective behaviour in injured crickets
doi.org/10.1098/rspb...
doi.org/10.1098/rspb...
Flexible self-protection as evidence of pain-like states in house crickets
Abstract. The possibility that insects experience pain is a frontier question at the intersection of behaviour, cognition and philosophy of mind. Interest
doi.org
August 30, 2026 at 12:04 PM
There has never been the slightest doubt about insect sentience.
Just try catching a fly in your hand. It'll evade your clumsy efforts over 90% of the time.
There is no theory or hypothesis for how insects could not be sentient. But it's nice that science can figure out what is self-evident.
Just try catching a fly in your hand. It'll evade your clumsy efforts over 90% of the time.
There is no theory or hypothesis for how insects could not be sentient. But it's nice that science can figure out what is self-evident.
If you think you have had a transcendent mystical or spiritual experience that has taken you out of your body or self, think again. You cannot transcend yourself you can only be yourself.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-transc...
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-transc...
Why Transcendence is a Meaningless or Paradoxical Conception
The cheapest product to sell has always been something that doesn’t exist.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com
August 25, 2026 at 4:59 PM
If you think you have had a transcendent mystical or spiritual experience that has taken you out of your body or self, think again. You cannot transcend yourself you can only be yourself.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-transc...
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/why-transc...
Marxist utopian piffle. Wills tries to rescue Marxism from oblivion by arguing for its Ethical Vision. The problem with Marxism is that the forces of historical materialism Marx regards as articles of faith, the alienation of labor, class struggle & the idea of a proletariat with common interests,
In episode 1104, I talk with Dr. Vanessa Wills about her great book, Marx's Ethical Vision. #Philosophy #ethics
youtu.be/7zgIvuUkePE
youtu.be/7zgIvuUkePE
#1104 Vanessa Wills: Marx's Ethical Vision
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
August 25, 2026 at 2:01 PM
Marxist utopian piffle. Wills tries to rescue Marxism from oblivion by arguing for its Ethical Vision. The problem with Marxism is that the forces of historical materialism Marx regards as articles of faith, the alienation of labor, class struggle & the idea of a proletariat with common interests,
Chinchilla Persian Mutzie Putzie watched every episode of the English Version of #RickyGervais #AlleyCats and is now anxiously awaiting the cat language version. Meow!!
August 23, 2026 at 1:33 AM
Chinchilla Persian Mutzie Putzie watched every episode of the English Version of #RickyGervais #AlleyCats and is now anxiously awaiting the cat language version. Meow!!
This very informative talk with @wiringthebrain.bsky.social is worth more than one listen. Mitchell demystifies the current hype around epigenetic and explains how it actually works. The talk also shows the limitations of claims about the modularity of minds and touches on other important issues.
Learn about psychological epigenetics and other fads in #Neuroscience in my second interview with Dr. Kevin Mitchell (@wiringthebrain.bsky.social). #Science
Full interview: youtu.be/6Ugbm6HJko4
Full interview: youtu.be/6Ugbm6HJko4
#486 Kevin Mitchell: Psychological Epigenetics, and Other Fads in Neuroscience
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
August 21, 2026 at 9:05 PM
This very informative talk with @wiringthebrain.bsky.social is worth more than one listen. Mitchell demystifies the current hype around epigenetic and explains how it actually works. The talk also shows the limitations of claims about the modularity of minds and touches on other important issues.
According to Dr. Lehmiller sex fantasies tend to be focused on cultural taboos. He says religious people have higher levels of homosexual sexual fantasies. Republicans on average have fantasies about adultery, threesomes and multi partner sex. Democrats on average fantasize more about power
In episode 1176, I talk with Dr. Justin Lehmiller about the #Science of desire, and the most common sexual fantasies, with a focus on his fascinating book, Tell Me What You Want. #Psychology
youtu.be/RVjSMnwqs6M
youtu.be/RVjSMnwqs6M
#1176 Justin Lehmiller: The Science of Desire, and The Most Common Sexual Fantasies
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
August 21, 2026 at 8:59 PM
According to Dr. Lehmiller sex fantasies tend to be focused on cultural taboos. He says religious people have higher levels of homosexual sexual fantasies. Republicans on average have fantasies about adultery, threesomes and multi partner sex. Democrats on average fantasize more about power
Even if a universal objective morality existed, no one would have any means of knowing what it was. tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/the-fairy-...
The Fairy Tale of Universal “Objective Morality”
One of the most reliable sources of philosophical nonsense is the idea that somewhere floating in the heavens just out of view is a pristine set of universal rules for objective moral truth.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com
August 17, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Even if a universal objective morality existed, no one would have any means of knowing what it was. tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/the-fairy-...
Why is altruism is so elusive? Because it doesn't exist.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/the-myth-o...
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/the-myth-o...
The Myth of Altruism--Why Altruism is a Scam, a Fraud, and a Mockery of a Sham
Debates over altruism pervade moral philosophy, politics and social groups.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com
August 11, 2026 at 5:41 PM
Why is altruism is so elusive? Because it doesn't exist.
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/the-myth-o...
tedtillichfarris.substack.com/p/the-myth-o...
Omer Bartov's remarkable interview on Israel and how it transformed from a refuge for Europe's Jews into an authoritarian etho-nationalist state. Bartov gives the facts in the context of the history in clear and convincing manner. Despite sometimes immoderate language, he is right on target.
New episode (1288), with Dr. Omer Bartov. We talk about his new book, Israel: What Went Wrong? #History #Politics
YouTube: youtu.be/SjQPt6GMUvg
Podcast: bit.ly/4wybBcJ
YouTube: youtu.be/SjQPt6GMUvg
Podcast: bit.ly/4wybBcJ
#1288 Omer Bartov - Israel: What Went Wrong?
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
August 3, 2026 at 11:50 PM
Omer Bartov's remarkable interview on Israel and how it transformed from a refuge for Europe's Jews into an authoritarian etho-nationalist state. Bartov gives the facts in the context of the history in clear and convincing manner. Despite sometimes immoderate language, he is right on target.
Superb talk by @davidsloanwilson.bsky.social a staunch but thoughtful advocate of the importance of multilevel selection (including group & cultural selection) in evolutionary biology. His view of group selection ties in with his views on altruism (effectively, in his view, pro-social behavior).
Learn about the extended evolutionary synthesis in my first interview with Dr. David Sloan Wilson. #Biology #evolution #Science
Full interview: youtu.be/I3YQVV02MwI
Full interview: youtu.be/I3YQVV02MwI
#123 David Sloan Wilson: Evolution, Contextual Behavioral Science, Religion, and Group Selection
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
August 3, 2026 at 9:54 PM
Superb talk by @davidsloanwilson.bsky.social a staunch but thoughtful advocate of the importance of multilevel selection (including group & cultural selection) in evolutionary biology. His view of group selection ties in with his views on altruism (effectively, in his view, pro-social behavior).
People are neither rational or irrational. They act based on subjective self-interest, not rationality. As I explain clearly in the attached substack, people do what they want in the moment based on their own preferences whether they be personal or cultural.
open.substack.com/pub/tedtilli...
open.substack.com/pub/tedtilli...
August 1, 2026 at 2:56 PM
People are neither rational or irrational. They act based on subjective self-interest, not rationality. As I explain clearly in the attached substack, people do what they want in the moment based on their own preferences whether they be personal or cultural.
open.substack.com/pub/tedtilli...
open.substack.com/pub/tedtilli...
Kemp seems to thing that "civilizational collapse is a good thing" because it gets rid of old leaders and elites. Quite a harsh verdict. But sometimes civilizations collapse from external forces like invasions/migrations. Rome destroyed Carthage and the Sea Peoples invasion & migration destroyed
Is our current global Goliath collapsing? What will its collapse look like? Watch my interview with Dr. Luke Kemp about his fantastic book, Goliath's Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse. #History #Anthropology #Science
Full interview: youtu.be/QfCP0DgWPIU
Full interview: youtu.be/QfCP0DgWPIU
#1285 Luke Kemp - Goliath's Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
July 29, 2026 at 9:33 PM
Kemp seems to thing that "civilizational collapse is a good thing" because it gets rid of old leaders and elites. Quite a harsh verdict. But sometimes civilizations collapse from external forces like invasions/migrations. Rome destroyed Carthage and the Sea Peoples invasion & migration destroyed
This is an interesting take on the Odyssey. But A Wilkinson of #nytimes misses Nolan's suggestions that Greeks returning from Troy were the "Sea Peoples" who raided other civilizations bringing the collapse of the Bronze Age. This is historically inaccurate as the
www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/m...
www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/m...
In ‘The Odyssey’ and ‘Oppenheimer,’ Nolan Knows Civilization Is at Stake (Gift Article)
In very different films, the director’s penchant for playing with time is in service to a larger concern about human bonds across eras.
www.nytimes.com
July 25, 2026 at 2:56 PM
This is an interesting take on the Odyssey. But A Wilkinson of #nytimes misses Nolan's suggestions that Greeks returning from Troy were the "Sea Peoples" who raided other civilizations bringing the collapse of the Bronze Age. This is historically inaccurate as the
www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/m...
www.nytimes.com/2026/07/24/m...
Very interesting talk with Tomasello correctly identifying the origins of morality in interdependence, self-interest & the need for cooperation. But his belief that humans/mammals are unique in coordinated pro social behavior is wrong. He baldly asserts that fish & reptiles (& by Implication birds)
In episode 422, I talk with Dr. Michael Tomasello about interdependence, shared intentionality, culture, and morality. #development #Psychology #Biology #Science
youtu.be/yt9eS0pCsgo
youtu.be/yt9eS0pCsgo
#422 Michael Tomasello: Interdependence, Shared Intentionality, Culture, and Morality
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
July 18, 2026 at 2:59 PM
Very interesting talk with Tomasello correctly identifying the origins of morality in interdependence, self-interest & the need for cooperation. But his belief that humans/mammals are unique in coordinated pro social behavior is wrong. He baldly asserts that fish & reptiles (& by Implication birds)
Dixon @daisydixon.bsky.social tries for a nuanced & fair minded approach to "depraved" or dangerous art. But curiously she is a moral objectivist. While her personal feminist values are evident, it is very unclear what objective morality could even mean, when there's no way to find out what it is.
Should there be absolute freedom of artistic expression? Watch my interview with Dr. Daisy Dixon about her great book, Depraved: The Story of Dangerous Art. #Philosophy #ethics
Full interview: youtu.be/w5PgGGzVmR8
Full interview: youtu.be/w5PgGGzVmR8
#1276 Daisy Dixon - Depraved: The Story of Dangerous Art
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
July 8, 2026 at 4:09 PM
Dixon @daisydixon.bsky.social tries for a nuanced & fair minded approach to "depraved" or dangerous art. But curiously she is a moral objectivist. While her personal feminist values are evident, it is very unclear what objective morality could even mean, when there's no way to find out what it is.
A superb review of the biggest problems in cosmology and physics with @phalpern.bsky.social covering everything from
the origins of the universe, inflation, accelerating expansion of the universe, string theory, multiverse theories and much much more. Listen to it and then listen again.
the origins of the universe, inflation, accelerating expansion of the universe, string theory, multiverse theories and much much more. Listen to it and then listen again.
In episode 909, I talk with Dr. Paul Halpern about his fascinating book, The Allure of the Multiverse: Extra Dimensions, Other Worlds, and Parallel Universes. #Physics #Science
youtu.be/10hTMxOWZGY
youtu.be/10hTMxOWZGY
#909 Paul Halpern: The Allure of the Multiverse
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
June 30, 2026 at 6:50 PM
A superb review of the biggest problems in cosmology and physics with @phalpern.bsky.social covering everything from
the origins of the universe, inflation, accelerating expansion of the universe, string theory, multiverse theories and much much more. Listen to it and then listen again.
the origins of the universe, inflation, accelerating expansion of the universe, string theory, multiverse theories and much much more. Listen to it and then listen again.
Four authoritarian Nationalist leaders control over 40% of the World's population. Xi, Modi, Putin and Trump. The dangers are manifest.
In episode 1190, I talk with Dr. Eric Storm about his fascinating book, Nationalism: A World History. #History
youtu.be/xSCMXeQODCM
youtu.be/xSCMXeQODCM
#1190 Eric Storm - Nationalism: A World History
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
June 12, 2026 at 3:29 PM
Four authoritarian Nationalist leaders control over 40% of the World's population. Xi, Modi, Putin and Trump. The dangers are manifest.
Great talk with Dutch Nationalism expert Eric Storm of Leiden University on the history & resurgence of nationalism. Storm shows a clear relationship between Nationalism, racism, religion, anti-immigration & imperialist national policies, and culturally exclusionary political policies. Insightful.
In episode 1190, I talk with Dr. Eric Storm about his fascinating book, Nationalism: A World History. #History
youtu.be/xSCMXeQODCM
youtu.be/xSCMXeQODCM
#1190 Eric Storm - Nationalism: A World History
YouTube video by The Dissenter
youtu.be
June 12, 2026 at 3:22 PM
Great talk with Dutch Nationalism expert Eric Storm of Leiden University on the history & resurgence of nationalism. Storm shows a clear relationship between Nationalism, racism, religion, anti-immigration & imperialist national policies, and culturally exclusionary political policies. Insightful.