The hottest Philosophy Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Philosophy Topics

Yes, speech is often violence or morally on par with it

Philosophy bear • 121 implied HN points • 15 Nov 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics Political theory Morality Communication Social justice
  1. Speech can be as harmful as violence, especially when it leads to negative actions like war or unjust policies. If someone argues for a harmful action, they share in the moral blame for its consequences.
  2. Even when people argue for policies they believe are justified, those discussions can still be seen as participating in violence, given the potential for real harm. The intention behind the argument doesn't fully absolve the speaker from responsibility.
  3. Words can cause significant emotional and psychological harm, often comparable to physical violence. Speech has power, and we should be careful and considerate with how we use it, recognizing its potential impact.

Five Flavours of Betweenness

The Joyous Struggle • 711 implied HN points • 27 Oct 23
📖 Philosophy Cultural Metaphysical
  1. The concept of permacrisis suggests a long period of instability and insecurity resulting from prolonged catastrophic events, impacting society's historical transition.
  2. There are five significant shifts taking place in society: cultural change, systems change, paradigm change, ontological change, and metaphysical change, each requiring different kinds of work and engagement.
  3. This period of transition is compared to historical turning points like the Axial Age, indicating a profound shift in collective consciousness, pointing towards a new paradigm in understanding reality and existence.

Morality works without absolute moral truths

Optimally Irrational • 77 implied HN points • 09 Dec 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics Metaethics Moral Psychology Social Philosophy Political Philosophy
  1. There are no absolute, universal moral truths; moral claims are not objective facts that exist independently of people.
  2. Morality is a human-made system—a "theory of the Seemly"—made of rules that evolved and stabilize because they help people coordinate and cooperate; these rules act like equilibria in social games and are self-enforced by expectations and sanctions.
  3. Moral statements can be true or false within a group's rules, so the moral ‘ought’ is conditional on playing the social game, and our moral feelings are proximate, evolved mechanisms that help us follow those rules.

the puer and puella aeternus

Midnight Musings • 59 implied HN points • 14 Jul 24
📖 Philosophy Self-awareness Archetypes Psychology Responsibility Personal Growth
  1. The puer and puella aeternus represent the idea of staying childlike and avoiding responsibility. This can lead to a life where people are stuck in a cycle of fun but don't achieve their true goals.
  2. People often chase happiness through pleasure without recognizing it might hold them back. Creating a reality based on fantasies can stop personal growth.
  3. To move forward, it's important to be aware of these childish tendencies and commit to meaningful work that requires responsibility and discipline. This helps create a more fulfilling life.
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Relevance Realization, Cerebral Hemispheres, and the Reconciliation of Science and Mythology

Intimations of a New Worldview • 766 implied HN points • 05 Apr 23
📖 Philosophy Culture Science Mythology Religion Worldview
  1. The left and right hemispheres of the brain are involved in different cognitive styles, such as precision and generalization.
  2. There is evidence for the significant and systematic differences between the cerebral hemispheres, influencing how attention is allocated and relevance is realized.
  3. The conflict between science and mythology can be seen as analogous to the differences in cognitive styles between the left and right hemispheres, emphasizing the importance of integrating different approaches.

Please take my weird moral puzzles quiz

DYNOMIGHT INTERNET NEWSLETTER • 468 implied HN points • 17 Jun 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics Morality Logic Existentialism Metaphysics
  1. A survey is created to gauge people's moral beliefs on unusual scenarios that challenge common ethics. It involves questions about difficult decisions we might face.
  2. The scenarios include serious topics like abortion and euthanasia, but also quirky ideas involving advanced AIs and future societies. This mix aims to provoke thought about morality.
  3. Participants are encouraged to respond honestly and intuitively, with the creator assuring no tricks are involved in the survey.

How a Philosopher You've Never Heard of Predicted The End of The World

OK Doomer • 422 implied HN points • 02 Jul 25
📖 Philosophy Communication Reality Society Culture Politics
  1. Communication is key to understanding each other, but today, people are talking at each other without really listening. This makes it hard to find common ground.
  2. Our biggest problems come from a few greedy people, not from things like terrorism or immigration. If we don't address this, our society might fail.
  3. In today's world, people live in their own bubbles and reject facts that don't fit their beliefs. True solutions require us to share a single reality, but many aren't willing to do that.

the puzzle of authority when no one is really in charge

Brain Pizza • 331 implied HN points • 28 Jul 25
📖 Philosophy Authority Cognition Leadership Structure
  1. Authority can be confusing when no one person is clearly in charge. It's hard to know who to turn to for decisions or guidance.
  2. The way organizations are structured affects how power and responsibility are shared. A balanced structure can help everyone work better together.
  3. Questions about leadership can highlight gaps in communication within large groups or systems. Finding clear lines of contact is important for success.

Full Automated Palestinian Luxury Communism from the River to the Sea?

Philosophy for the People w/Ben Burgis • 299 implied HN points • 04 Mar 24
📖 Philosophy Political theory
  1. The article discusses various political ideas such as worker's control of production, police and prison 'abolitionism', and fully automated luxury communism.
  2. It mentions the concept of a single democratic state in Israel/Palestine with equal rights 'from the river to the sea'.
  3. The post is only accessible for paid subscribers.

The Psychopathic Perspective

Fake Noûs • 418 implied HN points • 28 Jun 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics Psychology Social theory Behavioral Science Cognition
  1. Psychopaths lack empathy and see others as tools for their own gain. They cause harm without caring about the pain they inflict.
  2. Social predators are hard to change because they view people as non-player characters in a game. They don't form real connections and thus, therapy usually doesn't work on them.
  3. It’s important to create rules in society that prevent predatory behavior and to avoid interacting with known predators. Reporting their actions is often the best response.

BEWARE of Occam's Razor

Insight Axis • 731 implied HN points • 08 Oct 23
📖 Philosophy Macroeconomics Theory Objects
  1. Occam's razor is a tool for finding the best explanations, not a one-size-fits-all solution. It should only be used in specific situations where competing explanations are equally valid.
  2. Good explanations are deep, broad, and hard to vary - not necessarily simple. Choosing simplicity over accuracy can lead to wrong conclusions, like favoring Newton's theory over Einstein's theory of relativity.
  3. Occam's razor can transfer complexity from explanations to objects, but doesn't always eliminate complexity. It's important to apply it correctly by selecting the explanation that avoids unnecessary complexity.

The easiest person to fool

Tolu’s Newsletter • 11 implied HN points • 11 Feb 26
📖 Philosophy Epistemology Critical Thinking Rationality Skepticism Decision-making
  1. Question your default beliefs and the views you pick up from the people and place around you; decide for yourself what to accept.
  2. Don’t let what you want to be true drive your conclusions — check if your beliefs make logical sense, consider who benefits from a claim, and look for reliable sources and supporting implications.
  3. Write down your beliefs and revisit them so you can spot mistakes, admit when you’re wrong, and update your views over time.

The Subjective Grounds the Physical

Ethics Under Construction • 25 implied HN points • 25 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Metaphysics Epistemology Consciousness Mind Aesthetics Language
  1. Physicalism assumes the physical is primary, but subjective experience actually grounds and makes physical facts intelligible; you can’t fully describe phenomena like color or pain without the first-person perspective.
  2. Experiential facts are a distinct, irreducible class: what it is like to see red or feel pain is constitutive of those facts and can’t be captured by wavelengths or neural descriptions alone, as thought experiments like Mary’s Room and the Chinese Room illustrate.
  3. There is no neutral “view from nowhere” — all knowledge is mediated by subjects, and objectivity is best understood as a shared, structured map built from and dependent on subjective experience.

The Braindead War on Perry Hendricks

Going Awol • 319 implied HN points • 20 Feb 24
📖 Philosophy Bioethics Abortion Ethics Race Academic writing
  1. Some academics criticized Perry Hendricks without fully reading his work, showcasing the importance of engaging with content before forming opinions.
  2. Hendricks presented a conditional argument about abortion being wrong and its potential benefits in preventing morally questionable actions.
  3. While controversial, Hendricks' views touch on complex ethical debates such as moral luck and the historical context of organizations like Planned Parenthood.

Morality as respect for a social contract

Optimally Irrational • 55 implied HN points • 22 Dec 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics Political Philosophy Social Philosophy Moral Psychology Social contract
  1. Morality is best understood as a social contract or set of conventions that evolved to help people coordinate and cooperate, not as a set of absolute, universe-level truths. These rules are meaningful because they define how to be treated within social games, not because they exist independently of human agreement.
  2. Saying morality is conventional does not mean anything goes: moral norms must be self-enforcing equilibria shaped by incentives, sanctions, and the structure of social interactions, so only certain rules can persist and be widely followed. Violating these norms risks loss of cooperation, punishment, or exclusion, which gives them practical force.
  3. Our moral intuitions and feelings (guilt, duty, blame) are evolved proximate mechanisms that track risks, benefits, and the likelihood of sanction, which explains why we feel bad about cheating even when unobserved. These feelings don’t establish absolute moral laws; they support the social contract by motivating cooperation and enforcement.

The Future of Peace (3/4)

The Joyous Struggle • 375 implied HN points • 24 Jan 24
📖 Philosophy Peace War Society Technology Spirituality
  1. Peace is a vital challenge of our time and a necessary condition for a well-governed world.
  2. There are three possible futures: two lead to global conflict, while the third envisions a more positive, evolving society.
  3. Modern-day equivalents of 'Death Stars' like nuclear weapons and Moloch symbolize threats to peace that need to be addressed to secure a peaceful future.

If the doctrine fits, ...

In My Tribe • 1002 implied HN points • 20 Dec 24
📖 Philosophy Ideology Political theory Ethics History Human behavior
  1. Some ideologies, like Communism, can attract people who seek power and control, often leading to oppressive regimes. This happens because the ideology allows leaders to justify cruelty in pursuit of a supposed utopia.
  2. Certain belief systems can be appealing to individuals with violent tendencies, while others attract more peaceful people. This means that personality can shape which doctrines someone might follow.
  3. The way people interact with each other, such as cooperating or competing, is influenced by their personal traits. People usually lean toward beliefs that match their nature, which affects how societies function.

The State, the Demon

Tessa Fights Robots • 29 implied HN points • 14 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Political Philosophy Social Philosophy Ethics Existentialism Personal Identity
  1. A childhood in the disintegrating USSR is remembered as a time when the State solemnly promised to take care of people, offering a clear identity, purpose, and meaning.
  2. That promise demanded payment: loyalty and self-sacrifice were expected in exchange for the state-sponsored clarity about who people were.
  3. Believing in that kind of political fiction carries a real price—personal freedom and autonomy get traded away for the comfort of a ready-made identity.

To tell the truth

Random Minds by Katherine Brodsky • 46 implied HN points • 02 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics Epistemology Moral Psychology Social Philosophy Trust Truth
  1. Telling the truth is the foundation of trust; lies weaken that foundation.
  2. If a friend tells a real lie you might forgive them, but a residue of doubt remains and rebuilding trust takes effort.
  3. If a stranger lies you’ll likely not trust them again because there’s no reason to forgive them, and if someone you already dislike lies it simply confirms your contempt.

Michael Shermer LIVE with Coleman Hughes!

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 32 implied HN points • 14 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Epistemology Skepticism Logic Political Philosophy Public Discourse
  1. Experts will explore how skepticism, evidence, and reason help us tell truth from falsehood amid conspiracy theories, deepfakes, and post-truth politics.
  2. There’s an intimate live conversation and a casual post-show meetup in New York where attendees can ask questions and argue in good faith.
  3. Access is limited and behind a paywall — paid subscribers get exclusive presale ticket access, and there are monthly and annual subscription options.

The Inner Development Goals on Trial

The Joyous Struggle • 671 implied HN points • 05 Oct 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics Humanity Critique Progress
  1. The Inner Development Goals (IDGs) were created in response to the failure to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and aim to enhance human capacity.
  2. The IDGs are challenged for their perceived emphasis on personal growth as a means of achieving goodness, their modernist perspective, and their alignment with existing power structures.
  3. Critics question whether the IDGs are truly disruptive and transformative or if they reinforce immunity to change by not addressing systemic risks and structural injustices.

David Hume—Why we change our mind

Ralph Ammer • 668 implied HN points • 02 May 23
📖 Philosophy Empiricism Rationalism Induction
  1. David Hume believed that our knowledge comes from outside through observation, not from within through reason.
  2. Empiricists trust that the material world has structure through cause and effect, but Hume questioned the certainty of this trust.
  3. Deductions provide logical certainty, while inductions offer general rules based on probability.

Mixing Mental Arts

Polymathic Being • 56 implied HN points • 21 Dec 25
📖 Philosophy Stoicism Mental models Mindfulness Practical philosophy Virtue ethics Epistemology Agency
  1. Slowicism blends Stoicism and Taoism: tame your emotions with reframing and use Wu Wei, or intentional non-action, to stop automatic reactions.
  2. Slowing down and refusing to react to every outrage or piece of information clears space to think more deeply and prevents cascading bad outcomes.
  3. You need steady practice because these habits build flow, restore your agency, and create compounding improvements that make life calmer and more effective.

This Chinese philosopher reformed politics in one generation

The Novelleist • 923 implied HN points • 27 Dec 24
📖 Philosophy Political theory Ethics Social reform Chinese Philosophy Humanism
  1. Mòzǐ believed that political corruption in ancient China came from leaders acting in their own self-interest. He thought that if everyone cared about the community instead of just themselves, society would improve.
  2. He started a movement called 'inclusive care' that focused on helping others and making decisions for the benefit of all. This idea gained support among the middle class, leading to initiatives that helped the poor and promoted social welfare.
  3. Mòzǐ's efforts led to changes in government where more community-minded leaders emerged. His teachings inspired reforms that improved society, but ultimately Confucianism became the dominant philosophy in China.

Power, Speed and Centralisation

The Commonplace • 824 implied HN points • 23 Jan 25
📖 Philosophy Modernity Consumerism Power Technology Society
  1. We live in a fast-paced world where everything moves quickly, but it often leaves us feeling stressed and unfulfilled. Speed can make us feel busy without achieving true progress.
  2. The relentless push for speed and efficiency leads to a centralization of power and control. As technology advances, those who control the speed of communication gain more influence over our lives.
  3. Sometimes, it’s important to just stop and reflect. Taking a moment to slow down allows us to think critically about what we really want and question who benefits from our constant rush.

Most ideas fail, and that's fine

inexactscience • 79 implied HN points • 18 Jun 24
📖 Philosophy Existentialism Humanism Ethics Meaning Absurdism
  1. Most ideas don't succeed, and that's normal. It's common for businesses and projects to fail, so we shouldn't feel bad about it.
  2. Understanding failure rates can help us plan better. Knowing that failure is typical helps give a clearer picture of what's possible and can keep expectations realistic.
  3. The process of trying is valuable, even if we don't succeed. Like the myth of Sisyphus, finding meaning in our efforts makes the journey worthwhile, regardless of the outcomes.

Social norms as classifiers

normality’s Substack • 39 implied HN points • 25 Jul 24
📖 Philosophy Ethics Morality Cognition Social norms Cooperation
  1. Humans create social norms to help detect and punish cheating behavior. These norms act like classifiers that help separate honest mistakes from dishonest actions.
  2. The Knobe effect shows that people often see bad actions as intentional, while good actions are viewed differently. This can lead to inconsistencies in moral judgment based on our understanding of intentions.
  3. It's important to continuously review and update our social norms. When norms fail, they can harm innocent people, so we need to make sure they are fair and effective.

No, religion isn't required for morality

Optimally Irrational • 85 implied HN points • 21 Nov 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics Metaethics Moral Psychology Social Philosophy Political Philosophy
  1. Human moral intuitions likely evolved before formal religions and often shaped religious teachings rather than the other way around.
  2. People (including children) treat basic moral rules as independent of divine commands and will reject the idea that something is right just because a god says so.
  3. Evolutionary and game‑theoretic forces explain fairness and reciprocity (like the Golden Rule) as tools for long‑term cooperation, and religions that moralize behavior helped stabilize and spread those cooperative norms.

The psychology of evil

Building the Builders • 19 implied HN points • 28 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics Moral Psychology Virtue ethics Self-deception Political Ethics Personal Growth
  1. Evil often grows from self-deception: when anger and grievance get untethered from real values, people justify rumination and victim narratives that can escalate into destructive behavior.
  2. The key choice point is what you do when you notice you’re spiraling — either honestly examine your motives and reorient toward constructive aims, or rationalize and double down, and those repeated choices determine whether you heal or become corrosive.
  3. The antidote is to reorient toward building real values: take responsibility, calibrate your feelings to the facts, limit rumination, and pursue constructive solutions instead of getting energy from others’ downfall.

Ultrafinitism as arithmetic potentialism

Infinitely More • 25 implied HN points • 12 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Logic Mathematics Metaphysics Epistemology Language History
  1. Ultrafinitism can be fruitfully seen as a form of potentialism, which clarifies its philosophical commitments and lets us give a formal treatment of ultrafinitist theories.
  2. Models of finite arithmetic naturally extend step by step to larger models (M+, M++, and so on), presenting arithmetic as a growing structure even without committing to a single completed limit model.
  3. The potentialist view highlights that mathematical truth can depend on how a theory develops, and it provides a natural framework for discussing and adjudicating different ultrafinitist positions about mathematical existence.