What we’re about
Why human life makes sense: The ultimate answers for the ultimate questions
The purpose of this meetup group is to discuss the fundamental nature of human life. Any such questions are welcome, and you can get a feel for what the group will be like by exploring my Seattle group.
I’m Philip Bitar, and I will facilitate the discussions. After earning a doctorate in computer science, I spent 10 years developing a comprehensive theory of human life.
My disposition is that of an engineer: define a problem clearly and then solve it decisively. I believe that I’ve achieved this in my comprehensive theory. I believe that the theory makes sense of human life in all of its ramifications and that these results are consistent with modern science and with the deepest longings of the human spirit for meaning and purpose.
If you enjoy discussing questions about the fundamental nature of human life, I invite you to join us! And if you’ve ever wondered if such questions can be decisively answered, I believe that you will be fascinated to discover that they can be.
Published books
Why Human Life Makes Sense, Edition 5 (2023) – Comprehensive theory of human life
The Second American Revolution, Edition 2 (2022) – Governance and antebellum history
Why? In Pursuit of the Ultimate Answer (2008) – Comprehensive theory of human life
Meetup handouts
Link
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Meeting plansMarysville Library, Marysville, WA
Hi Everyone!
I am posting this message as a meeting because the Meetup message system isn't working properly.
I recently completed a new edition of each of my main books:
- Why Human Life Makes Sense, Edition 5, 2023, 818 pages (6x9 page size)
- I refer to this book as Human Life.
- The Second American Revolution, Edition 2, 2022, 692 pages (6x9 page size)
- I refer to this book as Revolution.
Click here to see my Amazon.com author page.
I will hold meetings in the Marysville Library on Saturday afternoons, but I will use Zoom to allow remote viewers to participate.
I recently posted topics that pertain mostly to new ideas in the books. Here are the topics thus far posted. (Note that the posted dates are dummy values because the Meetup system now requires dates for meeting proposals.)
Governance
Why does a modern democratic government tend to become profligate and oppressive?
What is the most egregious flaw in the United States constitution?
What is the greatest missed opportunity in American history?
Three tragic ironies that largely explain the reasons for the Civil War
Mob rule: The cause and the cure
Why a minimum wage is irrational
How does fiat money work?Human life
Why the idea of the afterlife dichotomy is irrational
Life without the possibility of suffering and death would be meaningless
What is a religion?
Is a human naturally good, bad, or neutral?
How do we develop ethical principles?
Does the existence of God matter to human life?These topics pertain to governance theory as presented in Revolution — with special attention to the antebellum period. These topics also pertain to a number of topics in Human Life. The material that I will present at a given meeting will be drawn from the book indicated in the meeting description. The number of possible topics is vast, as you can ascertain from the chapter summaries on the websites for the books:
If you are interested in any of the posted topics and wish to meet to discuss them, please indicate your interest by registering to attend the respective meeting. Please also let me know of a new meeting topic that interests you.
I will set the date for a given meeting to try to accommodate people who register to attend the meeting. If you plan to attend in person, please register at the Marysville meetup site. In setting a meeting date, I will give priority to people who plan to attend in person.
Meeting format
An in-person meeting at the Marysville library will normally start on the hour, with the first 15 minutes allocated for personal intros and relevant conversation. After personal intros are done, I will start the main meeting, opening the meeting to online participants.
During the first 20 minutes or so of the main meeting, I will present the main ideas of the topic, using the whiteboard in the meeting room for making written notes and diagrams. I will then open the meeting to discussion. A main meeting will last one or two hours, but you can leave whenever you wish. Interested people can also stay longer to continue discussing or conversing, if desired.
Organizational questions
If you are interested in attending meetings of the foregoing nature on Saturday afternoons, please send me email at content@philipbitar.com or via Meetup messaging and answer the following multiple-choice questions:
Meeting length How long would you like to spend at a meeting? 1hr 2hr
Meeting time What time would you prefer to meet? 2pm 3pm 4pm
Meeting frequency How often would you generally like to meet? 1/month 2/month
First meeting date When would you like the first meeting to occur? June 8 June 15 June 22
Thank you!
Philip
- Why does a democratic government tend to become profligate and oppressive?Marysville Library, Marysville, WA
(The date and time are dummy values to be updated when the meeting is scheduled.)
Why does a modern democratic government tend to become profligate and oppressive?
275 years ago in 1748, French theorist Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) published The Spirit of the Laws. In this book, Montesquieu presents a triad theory of government based on his conceptualization of the structure of the British government: legislature, executive, judiciary.
As far as I know, Montesquieu's theory of government influenced the structure of all democratic governments created during the period of revolution against colonial rule in the 1700s-1900s. As a result, Montesquieu's theory evidently became the most influential theory of government in the history of civilization, informing free peoples everywhere how to structure their governments.
In my work, I reveal a major flaw in Montesquieu's theory: he fails to see that the citizens have an essential role to play in governance by checking the government. I quote Montesquieu, showing where his reasoning goes astray, thereby contributing to his failure to see the essential role of the citizens. In the absence of citizen checks, a democratic government will tend to become profligate and oppressive.
I reconceptualize the theory of checks and balances as the theory of autonomous power centers — APC theory. In APC theory, the citizenry constitutes the foundational power center of a democratic government, while the three branches of government constitute additional autonomous power centers. This conceptualization embraces Montesquieu's affirmation that the sovereignty of a democratic nation lies in the citizens. Thus, according to APC theory, there are four basic autonomous power centers in a democracy:
- Legislature, executive, judiciary, citizenry
Each power center can check each of the other three.
APC theory completes Montesquieu's theory of checks and balances with two citizen checks on government: a citizen fiscal check and a citizen power check. A well-designed citizen fiscal check should solve the most intractable problem in democratic governance, namely, excessive growth in government cost and size. A well-designed citizen power check should solve the problem of excessive growth in government regulatory power. In short, with well-designed citizen checks in place, the citizens should check a government's propensity to become profligate and oppressive.
Since the United States constitution is structured according to Montesquieu's triad theory, the United States government suffers from the deficiencies of Montesquieu's theory. But with the addition of a well-designed citizen fiscal check and a well-designed citizen power check on the federal government, the natural dynamics of governance should produce a limited, decentralized system of government without a serious threat that it will become profligate and oppressive.
In the meeting, I will present these ideas for discussion.
Reference: Philip Bitar, The Second American Revolution, Edition 2 (2022), chapter 9
Meeting times and locations
Time is PST or PDT, depending on time of year, X = TBD:
X:00 pm in-person — Marysville Library, 2nd meeting-room door on LHS of entrance hallway
X:15 pm online — link to be posted here before meeting
If you plan to attend in person, when you register, please add a comment "Plan to attend in person" to help me in preparing room accommodations.
- What is the most egregious flaw in the United States constitution?Marysville Library, Marysville, WA
(The date and time are dummy values to be updated when the meeting is scheduled.)
235 years ago in 1789, James Madison wrote a draft of what would become amendment 10 of the United States constitution. Amendment 10 vests the states with powers not delegated to the federal government, but amendment 10 provides the states no means for checking federal expansion into these powers.
I show that, in making this draft, Madison ignored principles for checks that he had expressed in Federalist articles during the prior year of 1788. I show that Madison's own Federalist principles imply that Madison's draft of amendment 10 would be useless in achieving the goal of preventing the federal government from encroaching into state powers.
I propose an amendment that provides an effective state check on federal power.
Madison's failure in drafting amendment 10 is the reason that Texas is legally powerless to contend with the federal government over keeping illegal aliens out of the state.
In the meeting, I will present these ideas for discussion.
Reference: Philip Bitar, The Second American Revolution, Edition 2 (2022), article 13.1
Meeting times and locations
Time is PST or PDT, depending on time of year, X = TBD:
X:00 pm in-person — Marysville Library, 2nd meeting-room door on LHS of entrance hallway
X:15 pm online — link to be posted here before meeting
If you plan to attend in person, when you register, please add a comment "Plan to attend in person" to help me in preparing room accommodations.
- What is the greatest missed opportunity in American history?Marysville Library, Marysville, WA
(The date and time are dummy values to be updated when the meeting is scheduled.)
In his Dred Scott opinion of March 1857, Chief Justice Roger Taney affirms the equality of blacks, thereby delegitimizing southern secession and portending the end of slavery. Had Republicans been astute, they would have put Taney's equality affirmation to strategic use in a relentless campaign for the next four years, possibly preventing secession and war.
But no one bothered to read Taney’s opinion with sufficient care, so the most famous quote of Taney to this day is a slanderous misquote that reverses his original meaning. In fact, the public paid little attention to the Dred Scott rulings until Republicans advertised them in 1858 and 1860 in order to run against them in the elections of these years.
In the meeting, I will present these ideas for discussion.
Reference: Philip Bitar, The Second American Revolution, Edition 2 (2022), article 12.1
Meeting times and locations
Time is PST or PDT, depending on time of year, X = TBD:
X:00 pm in-person — Marysville Library, 2nd meeting-room door on LHS of entrance hallway
X:15 pm online — link to be posted here before meeting
If you plan to attend in person, when you register, please add a comment "Plan to attend in person" to help me in preparing room accommodations.