Tag Archives: Philosophy

Rousseau’s just-so story

Posted on November 19, 2025 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

Yesterday, I transcribed three separate passages from Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Second Discourse, and I then asked: why would someone like Adam Smith have singled-out those three specific selections in his 1756 letter to the Edinburgh Review? For reference, Smith’s translation of … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged adam-smith, division-of-labor, History, just-so-story, Philosophy, rousseau | 2 Comments

J. S. Mill’s effete and elitist rescue operation

Posted on November 9, 2025 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

How can we preserve individual liberty while at the same time protect public health and safety? In my previous post, we saw a new type of solution to the paradox of politics: replace liberty with utility. On this view, which … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Art, Books, Morality, Philosophy | 1 Comment

Das Problem des Reichtums: What does Adam Smith mean by wealth in The Wealth of Nations?

Posted on August 19, 2025 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

Below is an excerpt from Chapter 1 of my forthcoming survey of Adam Smith problems with Salim Rashid: “’Wealth’, in the words of Robert L. Heilbroner, ‘is a fundamental concept in economics—indeed, perhaps the conceptual starting point for the discipline.’ … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Economics, History, Philosophy, Politics | Leave a comment

Friday funnies: Kant on Evidence

Posted on January 17, 2025 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

That is the title of my very brief “Hypothetical Reply to Professor Orin Kerr“, which I have also cut-and-pasted below: “Some years ago my colleague Orin S. Kerr concluded in these pages that ‘it appears very likely that [Immanuel] Kant … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged History, immanuel-kant, metaphysics, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Why not probabilistic interpretation?

Posted on November 7, 2024 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

A new article in the Columbia Law Review titled “Reasons for Interpretation” by Francisco J. Urbina (see here) brought to my mind my 2016 paper “Probabilistic Interpretation“. For his part, Professor Urbina presents a “systematic analysis of the different kinds … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged best-choice-secretary-problem, interpretation, Law, Mathematics, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Adam Smith and the Countess of Boufflers

Posted on September 18, 2024 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

(Author’s note: below is Part 3 of my series of blog posts on Adam Smith’s second visit to Paris.) I never saw so much wit, grace, and beauty united in one person. Mme de Boufflers, at the age of thirty, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged adam-smith, comtesse-de-boufflers, History, Philosophy, pre-revolutionary-paris | Leave a comment

World Truth League White Paper

Posted on July 3, 2024 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

Is it possible to test the truth-values of popular or entrenched conspiracy theories without resorting to censorship? To this end, Steve Kuhn and yours truly have just posted our new “World Truth League White Paper” to SSRN. In brief, we … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged conspiracy-theories, Economics, Philosophy, Politics | Leave a comment

The Friedman Doctrine Revisited

Posted on April 4, 2024 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

That is the title of my latest work-in-progress — a compilation of some of my previous blog posts on business ethics, along with some new material. Below is the abstract: In a brief digression in his best-selling book Capitalism and … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged adam-smith, milton-friedman, Philosophy | Leave a comment

REVISED TABLE OF ADAM SMITH PROBLEMS

Posted on March 12, 2024 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

I presented “DIE ADAM SMITH PROBLEME” at the Adam Smith Tokyo Conference yesterday (11 March 2024) and got lots of feedback. (Shout outs to the International Adam Smith Society for inviting me to present my work, to Waseda University for … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged adam-smith, Economics, History, music, Philosophy | Leave a comment

Table of Adam Smith Problems

Posted on March 7, 2024 by F. E. Guerra-Pujol

Below the fold is a summary in table form — revised and corrected on 8 March 2024 — of my work-in-progress DIE ADAM SMITH PROBLEME” (with Salim Rashid):