Podcast
WHY? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life
Hosted by Jack Russell Weinstein / Prairie Public · EN
Join us each month as we engage in philosophical discussions about the most common-place topics with host Jack Russell Weinstein, professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at the University of North Dakota. He is the director of The Institute for Philosophy in Public Life.
20episodes
Episodes
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WHY? Celebrates 200 Episodes
1w ago01:09:40Tap to summarizeThe 200th episode of “Why? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life” premieres this Sunday. Ahead of the milestone, Erik Deatherage sits down with host Jack Russell Weinstein and his wife, Kim Donehower, a professor in the University of North Dakota’s Department of English. Friends and colleagues also join the celebration as we turn the tables on Jack and ask him questions, and give those he has impacted a chance to tell him “Why?” it all matters.
Transcribe →How do philosophers talk about suicide
Jul 1201:12:28Tap to summarizeHost Jack Russell Weinstein welcomes philosophers Michael Cholbi and Paolo Stellino for a conversation on one of the most difficult subjects: suicide.
Transcribe →A Philosophical Look at Addiction
Jun 1401:21:50Tap to summarizeJack Russell Weinstein sits down with philosopher and neurobiologist Owen Flanagan to examine addiction through the lenses of philosophy, psychology, neuroscience, and lived experience. Owen discusses responsibility, recovery, social influences, and the challenges of confronting addiction.
Transcribe →What is Agriculture For?
May 1001:17:25Tap to summarizeIn this episode of WHY: Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life, host Jack Russell Weinstein explores one of humanity’s oldest and most consequential questions: What is agriculture for?
Transcribe →Is Freud Still Relevant?
Apr 1201:18:06Tap to summarizeIn this episode of Why? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life, host Jack Russell Weinstein and guest Susan Sugarman explore the enduring legacy of Sigmund Freud, one of the most recognizable and controversial figures in psychology.
Transcribe →The Cost of Moving Up
Mar 1901:23:34Tap to summarizeDrawing from Jennifer Morton’s work on the ethical dilemmas faced by first-generation and low-income students, this episode examines the personal costs of pursuing higher education—fractured family ties, difficult tradeoffs, and the quiet loss of identity that can accompany social mobility. Together, they reflect on why we sometimes deny uncomfortable realities and what those choices reveal about who we are and who we hope to become.
Transcribe →What Things Are Worth Saving?
Feb 901:16:57Tap to summarizeHow do we place a value on the things we keep and pass down? Objects can be timeless and multi-generational or they can be a burden to bear. Jack Russell Weinstein and his guest, Wellesley philosophy professor Erich Hatala Matthes explore the question, why should we save for posterity?
Transcribe →Why Do People Deny Such Obvious Things
Jan 1101:14:12Tap to summarizeJack sits down with philosopher Adrian Bardon to unpack The Truth About Denial and our strange habit of rejecting what’s right in front of us. Together, they discuss why people deny obvious facts, how self-deception takes hold, and what denial reveals about our fear, identity, and the stories we tell ourselves to get through the world.
Transcribe →Privacy Isn’t What You Think It Is
Dec 1401:14:22Tap to summarizeJack sits down with scholar Lowry Pressly to discuss the provocative ideas behind his book The Right to Oblivion: Privacy and the Good Life. They explore what it means to protect our inner worlds in an age of constant exposure, why forgetting can be just as crucial as remembering, and how reclaiming privacy might be the key to living well.
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How Is It That Ordinary People Can Commit Such Overwhelming Evil?
Nov 1001:23:40Tap to summarizeJack sits down with Elizabeth Minnich, moral philosopher and author, to explore a haunting and urgent question: How is it that ordinary people can commit extraordinary evil? Together, they unpack Minnich’s idea of the evil of banality, a subtle, everyday corruption of thought and conscience that allows atrocities to unfold, and consider what it means for our moral lives today.
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