What Would Aristotle Do?

The power of reason.

by Elliot D. Cohen, Ph.D.

Coming Out

I am an Afro-Caribbean whose wife is of the same cultural and national background. The challenge here is, I consider myself a lifelong atheist and she identifies strongly as a Christian. I am concerned about developing the art of living my atheism within predominantly religious, particularly Christian social environments. Read More

Are You Your Own Person?

To be happy, said John Stuart Mill, you need to be your own person. But what exactly does this mean? And how do you personally measure up? These are questions I want to address in this blog. Read More

How Good Are You at Loving?

You can get better (or worse) at loving someone. It is also possible to rank how well you are doing at loving someone. In fact, I will provide a “love inventory” that will help you to determine just how good you (or your significant others) really are at loving. Read More

Is Your Own Happiness Really Irrelevant?

I waste so much of my life being unhappy that I feel like I am running out of time to be happy. Then I remember that the purpose of my life, of any of our lives, is not to be happy but rather to survive, to serve, to breed.... How do I seek comfort in life knowing that my happiness is totally irrelevant? Read More

Why Are 99 Percent of Americans Fed Up? A Video Tells All

I have written extensively about the human rights concerns that are now driving the “occupy” movement. But this time, I have attempted to capture the gravity of several of these concerns in a new video production. Read More

Stealing from the Rich

Would it be morally acceptable to steal food from a wealthy agricultural corporation if your intentions were to give it to the poor? Read More

Does It Pay to Be a Selfish SOB?

We all know people who have gotten quite far in their lives and careers through underhandedness, back-stabbing, dishonesty, and related manner of unethical behavior. But is it worth it in the end? Read More

Are Evil People Crazy?

Most of us have our lists of people whom we regard as profoundly evil. And a number of us also think that the people on our lists are mentally ill, deranged, insane, or crazy. But is being evil really a mark of mental illness? Can moral character determine mental health? Read More

Is it Okay to Feel Guilty?

While some occasional guilty feelings can be a spur to making constructive changes, excessive, chronic guilt can destroy the quality of your life. Paying careful attention to the factors discussed in this blog can be an important start to overcoming your irrational guilt. Read More

Some Tips on Overcoming Sexual Performance Anxiety

Many partners who fail to reach a climax during sexual intercourse have no underlying physical problem. Instead, the problem may be due in part or whole to worrying about not being able to perform. In such cases you may need a bit of old fashioned reason rather than a Viagra pill! Read More

The Fear of Losing Control

This fear will not go away even when you are inebriated or tranquilized; for there is always the future, with its uncertainty, which bleeds through the flimsy veneer of all such makeshift, temporary hiding places. Tranquility is not an option unless you let it be. Read More

For Moms Who Worry a Lot

It is a good thing to want your kids and other members of your family to be happy and to want to be there for them. But a problem with many moms who worry a lot is that these wants or desires do not stay at the level of wants or desires. Read More

Is Perfection even desirable?

In a recent interview with the Chicago Tribune, I was asked about the desirability of striving for perfection. Do you have to be the perfect mom, perfect employee, spouse, and so forth? Read More

Are You a Dutiful Worrier?

Do you tell yourself that you must worry and then feel guilty if you try not to worry? If so, you may be engaging in a guilt-driven form of chronic worrying called dutiful worrying. Read More

Is it ethical to euthanize your dog?

Sadly, most often, our family pets grow old and die before we do. Yet, even in their advanced years and on their death beds, they remain our babies, depending on us for their nurture. Read More

Follow Your Dream

I have a big dilemma. I've applied and been accepted to both a history PhD and a psychology undergraduate degree. I'm really not sure which to do. My head tells me I should pursue history. But my heart tells me to pursue psychology. Read More

Join INFO on Facebook!

The mission of the Internet Neutrality Freedom Organization (INFO) on Facebook is to stop the big ISPs such as Comcast from demolishing the free and democratic architecture of the Net. Read More

A Gentle Reminder from Aristotle

What would Aristotle tell you to do if you could help stop giant corporations from obstructing a major pathway to knowledge and truth? Read More

Go Offline Between 2-3 PM EST New Year's Day!

How would you like to pay every time you downloaded something from You Tube or spent a while surfing the Net to find an answer to a health question you had? What if your favorite political website moved so slowly that it was near impossible to get to it? Read More

Crime, Conspiracy, and Wikileaks

The Greatest threat to National Security is Silencing of the Free Press Read More

Beyond ‘1984’: New Frontiers of Mass Surveillance

No Longer Science Fiction! Read More

Why Do Some People Take Things So Personally?

They must not care about me! Read More

Siblings and Self-Esteem

You can't just lie down and be a doormat. Read More

Mass Surveillance and State Control: The Total Information Awareness Project

In a world that is under total surveillance, freedom to speak or think would be freedom to speak or think what the authorities permit. Read More

"I was always a chubby fat kid"

Why does society hate fat people so much? Why is fat considered unattractive? I hate being fat. Yeah, yeah, tell me to exercise and eat less and stop making excuses. Tell me something I don't know. Read More

You Are a Social Animal

I don't involve myself in romantic relationships because I am happy the way I am right now....or so I think. Either way is this type of focus on oneself too much of an extreme to better oneself? I want to have more fun than what I'm having but am not able to afford it at the moment. Is this type of extreme detrimental or is it even an extreme at all? Read More

Can Philosophy Make You Cold?

Based on what you say, it appears that your boyfriend has discovered the potential of philosophical thinking to expose irrational ideas and to overcome irrational emotions and behavior. However, he seems to want to use philosophy to overcome all emotions, even healthy ones. This is an extreme that no philosopher (or psychologist) could competently recommend.

It is not that the tension of keen competition is a bad thing. It is rather that feeding the needless stress of faulty thinking (especially, the self-defeating syndrome of demanding perfection/self-damnation) is a bad idea for a coach bent on winning. Read More

Why Do Some Athletes and Other Performers Choke Under Pressure?

Learning to navigate in a metaphysical sea of life characterized by uncertainty and imperfection is one of the biggest challenges many performers face. Read More

How Can We (or Should We) Set Priorities on Key Aspects of Living?

In the following request for philosophical insight, a very astute 18-year-old raises a life problem that can strike a chord with any of us. Read More

Elliot D. Cohen, Ph.D., is President of the Institute of Critical Thinking and one of the principal founders of philosophical counseling in the United States.

more...