Philosophy Book Feedback

[sirphooey]

My roommate from college has asked for help in getting some feedback on a philosophy book he has written. He is looking for anyone with an interest in philosophy, history, law, politics/government or intellectual discussions. His book was written as a successor to Plato’s Republic, so if you ever read that book, you would likely enjoy this one. It is a Socratic discourse on the nature of superior government, justice, happiness and freedom. His main thesis (which comes from Plato’s Republic) is that freedom and justice are antithetical. A government may be free, or it may be just, but it cannot remain both for long. A free society will inevitably degenerate into injustice as the people lose their virtue. On the other hand, while totalitarian governments in the past have been grossly unjust, a virtuous government must veer in that direction in order to remain Just. I believe he may be a secret boglehead as he has written a multi-page exposition about the injustice of tipping at American restaurants.

He has arranged for the book to be given away as a free download through Amazon starting Friday 12/13 until Sunday 12/15 for anyone who might be interested in reading.

I read it myself and thought it funny, entertaining, and insightful. The book title is The Philosopher Kingdom. If anyone you know might be interested, please pass the information along.

https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... B0CVR5HKXB

[Tycoon]

A successor to Plato's Republic? Plato's Republic was written some 2400 years ago. It's proposed that people will be reading this book 2400 years from now? That's a bold prediction.
I'll give it a shot if I can read it for free.

[gatorking]

I got a laugh out of this:

About the Author
Jaqueisse is known as "The Singing Janitor" and "The Screaming Gardener." He thinks his boss an idiot but he is self-employed. Never mind the babies, he takes candy away from adults but he does spare the very elderly. He thinks mankind's greatest inventions are fire, the wheel, and expandable waist dress pants. At the office party he is served last but he invokes the eternal law "Age before Beauty." His signature move is the Chicken Dance with Kicks. He promises mediocrity and keeps his word. He swims with the Chosen but is not one of them. He offers free haircuts but only those without vanity accept. His favorite animal is the hippopotamus since it can crunch a watermelon or pumpkin in a single bite.

[Sandtrap]

My roommate from college has asked for help in getting some feedback on a philosophy book he has written. He is looking for anyone with an interest in philosophy, history, law, politics/government or intellectual discussions. His book was written as a successor to Plato’s Republic, so if you ever read that book, you would likely enjoy this one. It is a Socratic discourse on the nature of superior government, justice, happiness and freedom. His main thesis (which comes from Plato’s Republic) is that freedom and justice are antithetical. A government may be free, or it may be just, but it cannot remain both for long. A free society will inevitably degenerate into injustice as the people lose their virtue. On the other hand, while totalitarian governments in the past have been grossly unjust, a virtuous government must veer in that direction in order to remain Just. I believe he may be a secret boglehead as he has written a multi-page exposition about the injustice of tipping at American restaurants.

He has arranged for the book to be given away as a free download through Amazon starting Friday 12/13 until Sunday 12/15 for anyone who might be interested in reading.

I read it myself and thought it funny, entertaining, and insightful. The book title is The Philosopher Kingdom. If anyone you know might be interested, please pass the information along.

https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... B0CVR5HKXB

There might or might not be some pervasive influences in this author from, "Rules for Radicals" by Saul Alinsky and other "meanderings" along that social psychology muse.
No obvious parallels to "bogleheads" thematically unless "looked for" per cognittive bias and so forth.
IMHO:
A more timely read philosophically (not ideology or theology nor religious).
Author: greek/athens long long ago: "Seneca". The Shortness of Life.
Very thin. All cake. little frosting. minimal authorial intrusion.
amazon. hardocover.
https://www.amazon.com/Shortness-Life-R ... 190&sr=8-5

j

[SevenBridgesRoad]

.....
He has arranged for the book to be given away as a free download through Amazon starting Friday 12/13 until Sunday 12/15 for anyone who might be interested in reading.

......

https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... B0CVR5HKXB

Reporting: The free Kindle download at Amazon worked perfectly. I've added this to my stack and will get to it over the next week or so. Intrigued.

[sirphooey]

That's a bold prediction.

Worthy successor or merely a sequel? Sequels aren't always better than the original, but they're still sequels and count as such. I suppose this could also be seen as a re-make! The reader will decide.

Confer X-men 3, Pride and Prejudice with Zombies, any of the indiana jones movies after the last crusade, John Wick 3 onwards, The Matrix 4, The Rings of Power, Godfather 3, the list goes on and on...

[yankees60]

My roommate from college has asked for help in getting some feedback on a philosophy book he has written. He is looking for anyone with an interest in philosophy, history, law, politics/government or intellectual discussions. His book was written as a successor to Plato’s Republic, so if you ever read that book, you would likely enjoy this one. It is a Socratic discourse on the nature of superior government, justice, happiness and freedom. His main thesis (which comes from Plato’s Republic) is that freedom and justice are antithetical. A government may be free, or it may be just, but it cannot remain both for long. A free society will inevitably degenerate into injustice as the people lose their virtue. On the other hand, while totalitarian governments in the past have been grossly unjust, a virtuous government must veer in that direction in order to remain Just. I believe he may be a secret boglehead as he has written a multi-page exposition about the injustice of tipping at American restaurants.

He has arranged for the book to be given away as a free download through Amazon starting Friday 12/13 until Sunday 12/15 for anyone who might be interested in reading.

I read it myself and thought it funny, entertaining, and insightful. The book title is The Philosopher Kingdom. If anyone you know might be interested, please pass the information along.

https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... B0CVR5HKXB

Just reading this now, four days past the time to get the free version. Pass on to him best wishes for successful sales.

[sirphooey]

Just reading this now, four days past the time to get the free version. Pass on to him best wishes for successful sales.

My friend said that there will be a free download this Saturday 1/11/25 (midnight to midnight PST) if you missed the previous one. Feel free to share with anyone philosophically inclined.

https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... 0CVR5HKXB/

A more timely read philosophically (not ideology or theology nor religious).
Author: greek/athens long long ago: "Seneca". The Shortness of Life.
Very thin. All cake. little frosting. minimal authorial intrusion.

My friend has a podcast on mindfulness which includes stoic philosophy. He said that he found Seneca a little flowery for his taste. Among the Stoics he preferred Epictetus. If Seneca was cake with no frosting, Epictetus would be steel cut oats. His own philosophy he would describe as garbage plate. Great variety and value at bottom dollar. If anyone is curious, he said the first four episodes were useful for most people.


The Nature of Suffering https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... /a-a6t6uq8
Mindfulness of the Present Moment https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... nt-e1a94hh
Dealing with the Past, Anger, Regret https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... /a-a6toc24
Dealing with the Future, Anxiety, Impermanence, Death https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... /a-a6tqcpd

[SevenBridgesRoad]

Just listened to his "Mindfulness of the Present Moment". Well done. Content is excellent. He gets style points from me for pausing frequently. Too many podcasters (and presenters in all formats) talk fast and never give the listener a chance to absorb.

[BrooklynInvest]

That's a bold prediction.

Worthy successor or merely a sequel? Sequels aren't always better than the original, but they're still sequels and count as such. I suppose this could also be seen as a re-make! The reader will decide.

Confer X-men 3, Pride and Prejudice with Zombies, any of the indiana jones movies after the last crusade, John Wick 3 onwards, The Matrix 4, The Rings of Power, Godfather 3, the list goes on and on...

My favorite - Hamlet 2.

[SevenBridgesRoad]

The Philosophers Kingdom reached the top of my stack and I finally sat down to read it. I can see why the author says it's a successor to Plato's Republic: he's written a modern discussion of society ruled by all-powerful philosopher kings, as told through a dialogue between a student and a master. I will admit, I'm a bit of a fan of books describing the various ideas for organizing people into a functioning group. I've read many, from Marx (Das Kapital, Communist Manifesto) and Stalin (Leninism), to Hayek (The Road to Serfdom), Rand (Capitalism) and Jefferson (US Declaration of Independence). Books like Heaven on Earth (Joshua Muravchik) and The Tyranny of Experts (William Easterly) and Pol Pot (Philip Short) share stories of trying to perfect society and I think are worth reading. There are many others.

The book didn't persuade me away from Hayek, Jefferson and Easterly, who I've come to believe offer the winning arguments. A debate of the book's merits is beyond the scope of BH and probably would end up in violation the forum rules. But I can say the read was interesting, if not persuasive. Anyone who enjoys the genre might also find it interesting. I wish your friend success.

[sirphooey]

A debate of the book's merits is beyond the scope of BH and probably would end up in violation the forum rules.

My friend said he is definitely interested in any feedback you might have! Since many of the topics will be against forum rules you may either post it as a review on Amazon so others can see or send me it by DM privately. He said that many of the people to whom he gave the book only responded with vague and polite comments which left him unsure if they actually read it or not. Most did not have much of philosophy/history/theory background that you mentioned which is why I thought of posting to bogleheads.

He said that if you listened to the podcast, that writing nice book reviews counts as a good deed. If you already performed a good deed, he suggests that you to listen to more episodes so you will have more good deeds to discharge. He said to make sure not to skip The Nature of Suffering, since it has a good deal of Stoic philosophy within and is more useful than the title suggests.

I am personally curious what you thought of his tipping diatribe, since this perennial boglehead topic was thoroughly dissected with philosophy.




Reminder to any who have a background/interest in history/politics/philosophy/government/law/international relations that the book is free for download today.
https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... B0CVR5HKXB

[SevenBridgesRoad]

A debate of the book's merits is beyond the scope of BH and probably would end up in violation the forum rules.

My friend said he is definitely interested in any feedback you might have! Since many of the topics will be against forum rules you may either post it as a review on Amazon so others can see or send me it by DM privately. He said that many of the people to whom he gave the book only responded with vague and polite comments which left him unsure if they actually read it or not. Most did not have much of philosophy/history/theory background that you mentioned which is why I thought of posting to bogleheads.

He said that if you listened to the podcast, that writing nice book reviews counts as a good deed. If you already performed a good deed, he suggests that you to listen to more episodes so you will have more good deeds to discharge. He said to make sure not to skip The Nature of Suffering, since it has a good deal of Stoic philosophy within and is more useful than the title suggests.

I am personally curious what you thought of his tipping diatribe, since this perennial boglehead topic was thoroughly dissected with philosophy.




Reminder to any who have a background/interest in history/politics/philosophy/government/law/international relations that the book is free for download today.
https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... B0CVR5HKXB

Ah, tipping. Yes, I agree with Phil that tipping is unjust. And yet unavoidable in US culture. The dialogue in the book on this is well done...I didn't think of it as a diatribe at all. In fact, throughout the book I kept thinking, wouldn't it be nice to have fascinating conversations like this with real people, where everyone is open to learning something.

Yes I will leave an Amazon review.

Thanks for introducing your friend to the neighborhood.

[Valuethinker]

A successor to Plato's Republic? Plato's Republic was written some 2400 years ago. It's proposed that people will be reading this book 2400 years from now? That's a bold prediction.
I'll give it a shot if I can read it for free.

https://www.fantasticfiction.com/m/walt ... bowitz.htm

Greek philosophy was lost to the West in the "Dark Ages" and early medieval period.

Via the Byzantine (successor Roman Empire in Constantinople, Greece, Asia Minor) empire and contact with the Arabs (particularly via the Crusades) & Persians later medieval civilisation rediscovered the great Greek and Roman authors.

So if we have a St. Leibowitz, as Walter Miller describes (the novel became an official Roman Catholic "great book" -- so designated by the Pope), then it will survive whatever apocalypse succeeds us.

[SevenBridgesRoad]

Posted the following review on Amazon. Apparently it can take up to several days to appear.

"The Philosophers Kingdom uses a conversation between a young student and a modern day philosopher (a friendly guy named Phil) to dive deeply into a wide range of modern headline topics. Phil uses ideas from Eastern and Western philosophical thinking, pulling on Socrates, Confucius, Mencius, Plato and others. What makes this unique and better than many works of philosophy is the conversation: it feels very realistic and understandable to a normal person living in 2025. Phil is more like the nice, smart neighbor than a Zen master saying "young grasshopper". He definitely knows his stuff and is intellectual, but I would have a beer with this guy.

Topics include governance and government (how best to organize ourselves for greater happiness and effectiveness), crime, economics, education and others. The dialogues between Phil, the student and a few other interesting characters occurs in the local coffee shop, a restaurant, a park and other familiar places. The discussions are incredibly interesting and overall offer a reevaluation of outdated ideas. Prepare to have your thinking challenged.

In summary, The Philosophers Kingdom is an entertaining thought-provoking read, providing philosophical solutions to modern problems. You will come away thinking more deeply about today’s societal issues. And wishing you had a friend like Phil to hang out with."

[biscuit5]

feels like a backdoor SPAM thread - friends book sales, podcasts etc.

[SevenBridgesRoad]

feels like a backdoor SPAM thread - friends book sales, podcasts etc.

Books and podcasts get discussed all the time here. I don’t know the author or his friend and have no ties whatsoever. If providing an opinion and insights gained from a book is a violation then the mods should be consistent and shut it down, along with any other threads with books and opinions. But I honestly think BHers could benefit from philosophy and reading and sharing is part of learning.

[yankees60]

Just reading this now, four days past the time to get the free version. Pass on to him best wishes for successful sales.

My friend said that there will be a free download this Saturday 1/11/25 (midnight to midnight PST) if you missed the previous one. Feel free to share with anyone philosophically inclined.

https://www.amazon.com/Philosopher-King ... 0CVR5HKXB/

A more timely read philosophically (not ideology or theology nor religious).
Author: greek/athens long long ago: "Seneca". The Shortness of Life.
Very thin. All cake. little frosting. minimal authorial intrusion.

My friend has a podcast on mindfulness which includes stoic philosophy. He said that he found Seneca a little flowery for his taste. Among the Stoics he preferred Epictetus. If Seneca was cake with no frosting, Epictetus would be steel cut oats. His own philosophy he would describe as garbage plate. Great variety and value at bottom dollar. If anyone is curious, he said the first four episodes were useful for most people.


The Nature of Suffering https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... /a-a6t6uq8
Mindfulness of the Present Moment https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... nt-e1a94hh
Dealing with the Past, Anger, Regret https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... /a-a6toc24
Dealing with the Future, Anxiety, Impermanence, Death https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/w ... /a-a6tqcpd

This time missed it by only 12.75 hours! Maybe next time I will see your post in time (provided there is a next time).

[yankees60]

Posted the following review on Amazon. Apparently it can take up to several days to appear.

"The Philosophers Kingdom uses a conversation between a young student and a modern day philosopher (a friendly guy named Phil) to dive deeply into a wide range of modern headline topics. Phil uses ideas from Eastern and Western philosophical thinking, pulling on Socrates, Confucius, Mencius, Plato and others. What makes this unique and better than many works of philosophy is the conversation: it feels very realistic and understandable to a normal person living in 2025. Phil is more like the nice, smart neighbor than a Zen master saying "young grasshopper". He definitely knows his stuff and is intellectual, but I would have a beer with this guy.

Topics include governance and government (how best to organize ourselves for greater happiness and effectiveness), crime, economics, education and others. The dialogues between Phil, the student and a few other interesting characters occurs in the local coffee shop, a restaurant, a park and other familiar places. The discussions are incredibly interesting and overall offer a reevaluation of outdated ideas. Prepare to have your thinking challenged.

In summary, The Philosophers Kingdom is an entertaining thought-provoking read, providing philosophical solutions to modern problems. You will come away thinking more deeply about today’s societal issues. And wishing you had a friend like Phil to hang out with."

That was a TREMENDOUS review! Definitely tilted me towards wanting to read it. Thanks!

[yankees60]

feels like a backdoor SPAM thread - friends book sales, podcasts etc.

Books and podcasts get discussed all the time here. I don’t know the author or his friend and have no ties whatsoever. If providing an opinion and insights gained from a book is a violation then the mods should be consistent and shut it down, along with any other threads with books and opinions. But I honestly think BHers could benefit from philosophy and reading and sharing is part of learning.

100% with you on this.

[sirphooey]

Posted the following review on Amazon.

My friend thanks you for your kind words.

Maybe next time I will see your post in time

The next free download will be Feb 8th Sat. Hopefully this is adequate advance notice!

feels like a backdoor SPAM thread - friends book sales, podcasts etc

The book is being given away for free, he is not asking anyone here to buy it. The podcast has no ads and therefore generates no revenue for my friend. A good deal of the podcast carries information from Eastern philosophy/religion, where there is a taboo on "selling the teachings." At the same time, many of these traditions have a policy that the teachings should not be given away for free, but given only as part of an exchange. My friend navigated this paradox by asking listeners to pay it forward and to do one good deed for each episode that they listen to. Counting a book review as a good deed is actually a sort of mercy---if you are ever in the strange circumstance of having to perform a certain number of good deeds, you may actually find it more difficult than you think, as opportunities are not always present. Someone could certainly add a condition like "the good deed may not involve money" to make it especially difficult!