Philosophical Currents: Recent Episodes

Prairie Public

Jack Russell Weinstein, host of Why? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life, joins Main Street to discuss the philosophical aspects of current events.

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Philosophical Currents: Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein explores the philosophy of community and connection, examining the meaning of human relationships in a digital world.

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Being wrong - exploring the nature of human fallibility, examining why we make mistakes, how we can learn from them, and the ethical implications of embracing error.

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Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein is a Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, Director of the Institute for Philosophy in Public Life. He discusses Politics as Sport.

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In "Philosophical Currents," Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein discusses aging, societal attitudes, social structures, technology, and ethical responsibilities towards the elderly.

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In their final "Philosophical Currents," Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein and Ashley Thornberg reflect on the segment's origins, their journey, and valuable lessons from exploring philosophy in daily life.

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With Memorial Day right behind us, it is officially the summer travel season. But if you have your cell phone with you and your cell phone is connected to your work email and your Facebook and your Insta and it's constantly dinging and you're constantly checking or maybe you're one of those people who brings a laptop on vacation or calls into the office.

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NPR's Uri Berliner published an article calling into question some of NPR's reporting. In it, he says he fears NPR over-valued diversity in staffing, resulting in programming that alienates conservative listeners. For this month's Philosophical Currents, we talk with philosopher Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein about DEI, and the many layers of language.

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The evolution of celebrity, the role of gossip, and our societal fascination with public figures in this insightful "Philosophical Currents" conversation.

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With Jon Stewart back in the host chair on Mondays for The Daily Show, we discuss the role of satire in politics with philosopher Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein.

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For this month’s Philosophical Currents, we ponder human robot relations with Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein, Chester Fritz Distinguished professor of philosophy at the University of North Dakota.

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Dr. Weinstein discusses justice in Philosophical Currents, exploring how cultures and experiences shape its meaning.

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On this month’s Philosophical Currents, Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein talks about the war between Israel and Ham

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UND philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein joins Ashley Thornberg for a discussion about the role of language when it comes to cultural preservation and other social issues.

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We get a philosophical take on the decline of newspapers. Eight more newspapers went out of business in North Dakota this month. What does the loss of local papers mean for society?

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Did you dress up and go to Barbie on opening weekend? Are you vehemently opposed to seeing this film? Why is a movie about a doll, and what we project onto it, controversial? It’s time for Philosophical Currents with Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein.

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What is progress? Where do our ideas about progress come from? How come progress looks different from one person to the next? We explore the topic in this month's Philosophical Currents with philosopher Jack Russell Weinstein.

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Jack Russell Weinstein joins us for a Philosophical Currents episode, where we discuss current issues of interest. Today’s theme deals with the importance of responsible news reporting.

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While there's recently been a lot of talk about being "woke," the word has actually been around for a long time. We discuss the concept in this month’s Philosophical Currents conversation with philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein.

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Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Main Street's Craig Blumenshine about the Metaverse — a virtual world facilitated by the use of virtual reality headsets.

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For this month’s topic, Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein talks with Main Street's Ashley Thornberg to explore academic freedom and the role of tenure.

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Anti-Semitic attacks are on the rise. Ashley Thornberg visits with Philosopher Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein.

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Monday, November 28, 2022 - Philosopher Dr. Jack Russell Weinstein joins Ashley Thornberg for this month’s philosophical currents as he discusses affirmative action. This in light of the case before the United States Supreme Court concerning affirmative action and the higher education admission process.

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Jack Russell Weinstein is here for our monthly episode of Philosophical Currents, an opportunity to take a philosophical dive into a current topic. Today he reflects on Halloween, specifically the curious behavior as people adopt alternative personas behind the masks. He visits with Ashley Thornberg.

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Our monthly “Philosophical Currents” conversation touches upon timely topics as we visit with UND professor of philosophy Jack Weinstein. Today he visits with Main Street's Ashley Thornberg about the Venezuelan migrant crisis and a recent death of a teenager in North Dakota. How are those two events tied? Is it ever okay for politicians to gain from someone else's personal tragedy.

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In a conversation during the Main Street show, UND professor Jack Russell Weinstein tackles a rich topic: equal protection under the law.

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UND philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Ashley Thornberg in a conversation first airing on Prairie Public's Main Street show.

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UND philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Alicia Hegland-Thorpe in a conversation first heard on the Main Street radio show.

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One issue that touches on the divide between us, and affects numerous topics, is the reluctance or inability for people to change their minds.

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For this month’s Philosophical Currents, Jack Russell Weinstein talks about male emotion and the importance of community.

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In this month’s Philosophical Currents, Jack Russell Weinstein puts a philosopher’s spin on “the slap” from the recent Oscars.

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For this month’s Philosophical Currents, Jack Russell Weinstein talks about what’s happening in Ukraine.

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Monday, January 17, 2022 - On this Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, a discussion of race and the importance of holidays.

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Tuesday, December 28, 2021 - Jack Russell Weinstein joins us for a look at self care as we go into a new year.

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For this month’s “Philosophical Currents,” we discuss the philosophical significance of holidays. We have a new one, in Juneteenth. And like some others, there's a tinge of controversy -- even Christmas has its detractors. Is a holiday a way to cement a component of life into a nation's culture? And once you create a holiday, it’s hard to ditch it! Columbus Day, for example, has been fading.

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UND philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein is here with another episode of Philosophical Currents as we look at issues through a philosophical lens.

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UND philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein visits with Ashley Thornberg on the topic of socialism.

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Monday, August 30, 2021 - Are safety and freedom really at odds with one another? Philosopher Jack Russell Weinstein joins us for Philosophical Currents.

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For this month’s episode of Philosophical Currents, UND philosophy professor Jack Russell Weinstein tackles the topic of critical race theory.

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Monday, April 26, 2021: UND philosophy professor Jack Weinstein joins us for another episode of “Philosophical Currents,” when we look at current issues through a philosophical lens. This month's topic involves the racially charged events in Minneapolis, and how watching them from afar changes our experience of them and what they mean to us.

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March 29, 2021: Today we begin a new monthly conversation with UND professor Jack Russell Weinstein called “Philosophical Currents.” Once a month Jack will join us for a philosophical discussion about current matters facing society. Our topic for the first episode is the impulse to hate people of another ethnicity.