Sad Day

 

 

It’s a sad day, University of Houston philosophy professor and gallery-goer Leslie Marenchin was found dead yesterday after an apparent accident.

 

Maureen sez: 


I don’t know if anyone ever took Dr. Marenchin for Philosophy, if you didn’t you missed out on a great professor. He was found dead at his home yesterday and it looks like he fell down his stairs.

He was my all time favorite professor and I’m sad. Thought I’d let others know.

 

Here’s a quote from Dr. Marenchin:

On [Ben] Franklin as a philosopher:
"One of Franklin’s greatest contributions to American politics was his reconciliation of two seemingly
incompatible desires: unity and freedom. In order for the American Revolution to be successful, the
various diverse colonies would have to unite. But the greatest obstacle to unification was freedom.

The freedom to do, think or say (almost) anything is the most basic American value. So in order to
make a better America and resolve this conflict he, along with other Enlightenment philosophers,
promoted the separation of church and state. Therefore, the policies of the new republic were to be
derived from the dictates of reason alone and not from any particular dogma.

Franklin counseled
tolerance and humility. He enjoined us to think that we might be wrong and that maybe our neighbor is
right. He realized that even though we are free to be Christian, Moslem or Jew, that freedom does not
necessarily carry the truth along with it."