It's easier to focus on belief than it is to take up a new practice of living. Perhaps both are ideological distractions that mystify the nature of reality and what knowledge is. What if we admit that we are neither believers nor atheists: Does...

It's easier to focus on belief than it is to take up a new practice of living. Perhaps both are ideological distractions that mystify the nature of reality and what knowledge is. What if we admit that we are neither believers nor atheists: Does that mean we're nothing? Philosophy aims to help us understand the world without appealing to something beyond. It's considered to be rooted in the search for eternal truths, and when the truth is unclear, philosophy is expected to embrace modesty and have a willingness to say "I don't know." Rejecting the false dialectic of God/atheism will help us recognize that the world is our construction and our responsibility so long as we are here. Drawing on Georg Lukacs and Max Horkheimer, the author argues that belief in God and atheism are both ideological distractions. They are both forms of immaturity that can only be transcended through action. The real good news is that we can do away with belief in the supernatural, but it will take more than non-belief; it will take philosophical action. He takes us on a journey through our philosophical practices to purge ourselves of mystified notions. The journey is long, but at least the path is strewn with the charm of Socrates, Descartes, Marx, and Sartre. In short, Prof. Donovan says, "Nothing exists but this world, our world... Nothing is beyond God and atheism. Why not become nothing? Make yourself and those who matter proud."

Rejecting a negative label, an anti-label, can create new possibilities. For example, someone might label you anti-social or rude because you don t like parties and loud events and activities. But you are not anti-social; you are not rude. You are an introvert. When we let extroverts control the discourse, we miss the deeper beauty and sophistication that lives inside the introvert. Introverts don t need the world to entertain them; introverts don t need to be loud and don t need to be...

Rejecting a negative label, an anti-label, can create new possibilities. For example, someone might label you anti-social or rude because you don t like parties and loud events and activities. But you are not anti-social; you are not rude. You are an introvert. When we let extroverts control the discourse, we miss the deeper beauty and sophistication that lives inside the introvert. Introverts don t need the world to entertain them; introverts don t need to be loud and don t need to be the center of attention. Introverts have a rich world within themselves. But if others are constantly labeling you as anti-social or rude because you are not a clown, it will distort the inner richness that only an introvert appreciates. It depends on context, but sometimes the answer is to control the term, or come up with a new term, and sometimes it is best to completely reject any term. Sometimes no label is correct.