Michael Picard

Philosophy can transform your life. But the only philosophy that can save you is your own. Yet how do you find your own in an age of misinformation and unbridled spin, when truth is unfashionable and hype hyper-attractive. Where is the air needed to breathe the honest spirit of inquiry?How to Play Philosophy is a breezy array of lyrical, creative essays that explore timeless and timely ideas about who we are, how we live and what we think. MIT-trained philosopher Michael Picard gives airing to numerous philosophers from conflicting traditions and builds an intellectual background to enable readers to draw their own conclusions. Written in a spirit of free and playful inquiry, the essays were composed originally to support public participatory philosophy, or Café Philosophy, which the author has facilitated for decades. Subjects include Play it With Feeling (Desire, Stress, Anger); Games We Play (Intimacy, Loyalty, Betrayal) and Playing Fair (Values, Good, Integrity), alongside epistemological topics including Truth (Knowledge, Certainty, Objectivity) and the perennial metaphysical quandaries (Human Nature, The Sacred, God). Written for everyone interested in exploring age-old subjects in an age of disposable content, How to Play Philosophy offers playful provocations with the aim of enabling independent thinking and deeper public conversations.

The Notorious Crime Boss deals with the life of a young man who lived an impoverished existence in Central America until he starts to work for a cocaine-trafficking cartel. His dream of going to the United States comes true. The cartel he works for is ruthless in how it deals with its enemies and is headed by a notorious man who has served time in jail. Will the FBI apprehend him? Will his attempts to not use technology help to evade the long arm of the law? Or will the crime boss's heinous acts come back to haunt him?