Polytheism and the Euthyphro

In this reading of the Euthyphro, Socrates and Euthyphro are seen less in a primordial conflict between reason and devotion, than as sincere Hellenic polytheists engaged in an inquiry based upon a common intuition that, in addition to the irreducible agency of the Gods, there is also some irreducible intelligible content to holiness. This reading is supported by the fact that Euthyphro does not claim the authority of revelation for his decision to prosecute his father, but rather submits it to elenchus, and that Euthyphro does not embrace the ‘solution’ of theological voluntarism when Socrates explicitly offers it. Since the goal of this inquiry is neither to eliminate the noetic content of the holy, nor to eliminate the Gods’ agency, the purpose of the elenchus becomes the effort to articulate the results of this productive tension between the Gods and the intelligible on the several planes of Being implied by each conception of the holy which is successively taken up and dialectically overturned to yield the conception appropriate to the next higher plane, a style of interpretation characteristic of the ancient Neoplatonists

Transformation and Individuation in Giordano Bruno's Monadology

The essay explores the systematic relationship in the work of Giordano Bruno (1548-1600) between his monadology, his metaphysics as presented in works such as De la causa, principio et uno, the mythopoeic cosmology of Lo spaccio de la bestia trionfante, and practical works like De vinculis in genere. Bruno subverts the conceptual regime of the Aristotelian substantial forms and its accompanying cosmology with a metaphysics of individuality that privileges individual unity (singularity) over formal unity and particulars over substantial forms without sacrificing a metaphysical perspective on the cosmos. The particular is individuated as a unique site of desire, continually transforming but able to entrain itself and others through phantasmatic ‘bonding’, the new source of regularity in Bruno’s polycentric universe. Bruno thus tries to do justice to the demands of intelligibility as well as transformative eros. The essay concludes with a note on Bruno’s geometry as it relates to his general conception of form

Plotinian Henadology

Plotinus’ famous treatise against the Gnostics (33), together with contemporary and thematically related treatises on Intelligible Beauty (31), on Number (34), and on Free Will and the Will of the One (39), can be seen as providing the essential components of a Plotinian defense of polytheism against conceptual moves that, while associated for him primarily with Gnostic sectarians overlapping with Platonic philosophical circles, will become typical of monotheism in its era of hegemony. When Plotinus’ Gnostics ‘contract’ divinity into a single God, they not only devalue the cosmos for its multiplicity and diversity, but also multiply intelligible principles unreasonably. This is because they have foreclosed the distinction, which is to become increasingly explicit in the later antique Platonists, between the intelligible and that which is given existentially, the domain belonging to Plotinus’ indeterminate multiplicity of ‘intelligible Gods’, as opposed to the dialectically determinate number of intelligible principles. Plotinus is prescient in recognizing that incipient monotheism threatens to erase the distinction between philosophy and theology, and between both of these and psychology, the final outcome of which can only be solipsism or nihilism. The defense of polytheism is seen in this fashion to be essential to the preservation of the space for philosophical discourse

The Smut Rakers: A Report in Depth on Obscenity and Censors. By Edwin A. Roberts, Jr.

The Smut Rakers, by Edwin A. Roberts, Jr., subtitled, A Report in Depth on Obscenity and the Censors, published by the National Observer, as a NEWSBOOK, offers a generalized discussion of obscenity. Written without scholarly pretense, and in nonlegal language, this collection of articles serves as the point of departure for an inquiry into the nature of obscenity and all of its ramifications

The college-going choice in Virginia: A study in the demand for higher education

The purpose of the research was to model student choice behavior in order to gain a better understanding of the choices students made (a public four-year college, a private four-year college, or a public community college) and the variables which influenced those choices. The probability of selecting any one educational option was assumed to be a function of variables which reflected costs, income, and tastes and preferences. A logistic form of the demand equation was used which measured the effects of the independent variables on the likelihood that an educational option was chosen.;The study used a cross-sectional design, studying enrollment demand for 1985. The unit of analysis was the local political jurisdiction, either a Virginia city or county.;Financial burden (the ratio of tuition and required fees to median income) was found to have significant positive effects on the probability of choosing a private four-year college, and significant negative effects on the probability of selecting a community college. Local wage rates and unemployment rates were found to be significantly and positively related to choosing the community college option. The local educational completion rate for adults proved to be significantly and positively related to the probability that either a four-year private or the four-year public college was chosen.;The coefficient of determination was highest for the public four-year college option. The community college option, however, had the greatest number of statistically significant independent variables, and appeared to be most in harmony with human capital theory.;Future research can be directed in three areas. First, the effects of the independent variables on full and part-time students should be examined separately, to explore the degree to which the ability of part-time students to work and attend college influences their choices. Second, additional research is needed to confirm and explore why the probability of selecting a private college increases as financial burden increases, and to what extent this is due to substitution of public colleges for private colleges at lower levels of financial burden. Third, future research should explore and refine the concept of the educational options open to the students, perhaps initially by characterizing college options along institutional selectivity and price dimensions. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)

Predicting loyalty in clubs through motivation, perceived value, satisfaction, and place attachment

Club members are the lifeblood of the private club business, and yet member research is lacking in literature because of the private nature of the business and lack of recognition of studying members’ behaviors in clubs. The research investigated the relationship between motivation of joining factors of members in clubs, perceived value, satisfaction, place attachment of members to the club, and member loyalty. The study hypothesized that motivation of joining factors positively influences members\u27 perceived value in a club. The perceived value of the club as described by members positively influences satisfaction. Satisfaction in the club positively influences place attachment of members to the club. Finally, members\u27 place attachment positively influences member loyalty. The study produces a model that predicts 64% of member loyalty. It is critical for clubs to be sustainable by recruiting and retaining club members. By identifying the relationships among members\u27 motivation of joining factors, perceived value, satisfaction, place attachment, and member loyalty to the club, the study will help the club business to understand members and predict their loyalty. A typical club replaces 5-10% of its members each year, and thus recruiting new members is important for clubs to be sustainable. The study identified a second order construct for motivation and satisfaction, while perceived value, place attachment, and loyalty used existing constructs modified for the club business. The sample for the research was members who belong to CMAA managed clubs in the United States. Through a collaboration with club research companies, a web-based survey using Qualtrics was conducted. Data collection occurred over a two week period in September of 2015. This study included over 900 valid responses from nine clubs in diverse, geographic regions of the United States. PLS-Structural equation modeling was conducted to examine the hypothesized relationships. The measurement model represented a good model fit into the data with adequate reliability and validity. The structural model indicated the relationships among motivation of joining factors, perceived value, satisfaction, place attachment, and loyalty were statistically significant. Motivation of joining factors had a significant direct effect on perceived value. Perceived value had a significant direct effect of satisfaction. Satisfaction had a significant direct effect on place attachment. Place attachment was found to have a significant direct effect on loyalty. The model predicted 64% of the variance for member loyalty. The study provided information on one of the most important aspects of clubs, member behavior. The study represents new current members\u27 perspective, reflecting the recent trends in the club industry. Additionally, the survey helps to fill the literature gap that exists in the club industry and focuses on responses by members. The study is among the first research to investigate member\u27s motivation, developing a scale that expands the application of push and pull theory. Further, the study developed a satisfaction scale based on theory based research in addition to industry research. The study examined place attachment through four dimensions of place identity, place dependence, place affect, and social bonding, highlighting the significance in regards to loyalty. Finally, and more importantly, this study successfully presented a holistic model to predict loyalty, through PLS-SEM modeling. The study utilized all second-order constructs, examining the dimensions of each construct as applied to the club business