Things that are quintessential of the American spirit: indulgence, the working class, and of course patriotism. The ambience of the nation after World War two included a kind of unwavering loyalty to ones country that seemed as obvious a thing to adopt as it might be to get your polio…

Mathew Humphrey writes on the possibility of environmental direct action in a just democratic state. He recognizes this issue as part of a larger, and longer standing narrative that finds its home in any democratic state. This issue is “The possible conflict between the deeply held beliefs of an individual…

Gandhi’s approach to civil disobedience, specifically of the non-violent sort, is called Satyagraha. This action differs considerably from other models we’ve seen proposed as possibilities for just protest. …

John Rawls’ “A Theory of Justice” depends heavily on two ideas. These are his principles of fairness and the original position. Upon both of these is his idea of a just society or “mutually beneficial just cooperative scheme” predicated. In sections 51–59 Rawls explores why civil disobedience is not only…

In our class discussions on Tuesday and Thursday began to unpack the nature of civil disobedience. This turned out to be an exercise in making ones perspective flexible in order to really comprehend a text. Before I begin my thoughts on the content of the pieces I’m interested in discussing…

On Crito and Reasons to Obey In his last days, Socrates is implored by a dear friend to flee Athenian jail and avoid his impending death (for however long one may do that). This compatriot of Socrates’, a wealthy man by the name of Crito, comes to the cell of…