On Richard Rorty
I learned today that Richard Rorty passed away a few days ago. I never interacted with him directly, and I disagreed with at least 75% of what I read from him, but in many ways he’s probably responsible for what I’ve done with my life for the last eight years. His work helped revive interest in John Dewey within American philosophy, even if many people subsequently disagreed with his interpretation of Dewey – and I was certainly one of them. And Rorty’s repeated claims that there are no ways to philosophically justify a belief in democracy were one of the major motivations for me to attempt to do exactly that – an effort that led to the creation of this site. So in a way, Rorty’s the reason you’re here, too. Not a bad legacy to leave behind, and people will be arguing with the texts he left behind for decades. I’m sure he wouldn’t have it any other way.
About Dave Thomer
Born and raised in Philadelphia. Studied philosophy at Fordham University in the Bronx, where I made many great friends and met my wonderful wife. We moved back to Philadelphia, where I studied philosophy some more and became a teacher. Online and off, I'm looking for ways that we can be better citizens and build stronger communities.