Mary Midgley Misses the Point
In a recent issue of Philosophy Now, Mary Midgley, the venerable English moral philosopher well known for her attacks on creationists and evolutionists alike, let loose with ‘A Plague on Both their Houses’. Her argument, though profoundly flawed, is worth considering as a classic fallacy of moderation.
Is that a genome I see before me?
It’s often tempting to think that opposing extremes are best met with something comfortably in-between. Most commonly, the black and white of change and stability are moderated by gradual progress in a world made grey. But there is nothing intrinsically logical about this sort of balance – it’s an ideology, and it makes philosophy as a guide to the world a little mundane.
Posted by Mike Poole 
