Kirby writes: "I'd say already more core philo goes on in television today than most analytic philosophers have seen to remark on, a ding to future relevance perhaps." I'm in San Francisco, chairing a Law and Language panel (among others). http://convention3.allacademic.com/one/lsa/lsa11/index.php?click_key=1&cmd=Multi+Search+View+Program+Load+Box+To+View&program_box_id=100323&PHPSESSID=223488b9f5efddacfd4a0c932abfce2a Today was interesting, because just about every member had taken a critical stance toward analytic language games. One, in particular, had taken a particular dislike of Hohfeldian analytic terms (which function in law worse than "bachelor" in the hands of these fools). But, his method of showing this was akin to a proof: sort of like saying, "that because of the Pope, 'bachelor' as an arithmetic had to fail." I had to remind him of what a good Wittgensteinian would say: that when one erects a volley-ball net in an open field, the net isn't invalid; it's merely home to whatever use a field with a net has for that moment (that activity). His complaint wasn't with "bachelor," of course, it was with Hohfeldian formality: http://academic.regis.edu/jriley/Hofeldian%20Terminology.htm ;. His central premise was that every duty became a power,therefore invalidating Hohfeldian-speak. My point was that the fact that he could say that very sentence was proof that Hofeldian grammar could be understood and used in the language game, and that, as such, it was useful for making sentences just like that. Analytic definitions aren't invalid; they are toys. It's no different than whether you get at something with a spoon or a fork. Whatever gets it done. Anyway, my real point to you is this: analytic formalism received a rather severe beating today at the legal conference. And Wittgenstein dominated the news. I take great pride in showing people Wittgensteinian maneuvers -- especially lawyers and political scientists -- because I believe it helps spread the word. Yours, rambling over nothing. Dr. Sean Wilson, Esq. Assistant Professor Wright State University Personal Website: http://seanwilson.org SSRN papers: http://tinyurl.com/3eatnrx Wittgenstein Discussion: http://seanwilson.org/wiki/doku.php?id=wittrs _______________________________________________ Wittrs mailing list Wittrs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx http://undergroundwiki.org/mailman/listinfo/wittrs_undergroundwiki.org _______________________________________________ Wittrs2 mailing list Wittrs2@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx http://undergroundwiki.org/mailman/listinfo/wittrs2_undergroundwiki.org