The world we live is may be at a turning point. Western countries look to have lost a great part of the wealth they have built. The level of education has decreased. Moreover it looks that the economic crisis have cast a shadow on the european models. It looks that radicalism has invaded our societies, and that is the reason why we need to go back to anciant models.
Thinking can be a tool to prepare the future. It can encompass education, an access to new views like the abilility to reason, to imagine, to create links and to build new bridges. Philosophy and thinking can be a useful tool to this context. Defending some values like democracy, engaging to defend it looks to be important. The french former resistant Staphane Hessel wrote « engage yourself » because for him defending opinions is more than ever necessary today. That is the reason why we need to find again the values of culture, building in the long run, dialogue. In my opinion reformative ideas can bring approaches that can have a positive impact. This can be found as well as philosophy, in religious ideas, in economics or in political thought. This mentality can as well have a positive impact on how we consider scientific and technical progress.
Refomism can concern religion. To face radicalism that is spreading everywhere, we need to defend ideas that are too much in the decline. I belong to liberal protestantism views, but my goal is to advocate moderate and open minded ideas from all the religions. For instance it is so sad we mainly talk about salafism while mystical ideas as soufism are giving great tools to live our faith more confidently. Many articles of this newspaper will focus on ways to live religion a more « peaceful » way, and to promote dialog and a better understanding of different cultures.
This approach is concerning economics as well. This newpaper is defending keynesian views. We need to advocate a more active intervention of the state in the economy, when necessary. The figure of the entrepreneur and of monetary politicies can be important tools to defend this idea. But instead of thinking economics as a technical tool, we need to go back to the basics, ie econmics as a intellectual and for thinkers subject. The basis of this thinking concerns that. The newspaper will consider this subject under this approach, and try to quit this view as a techincal « science ». Economics is not a science, it has to be a matter of debate, and of confrontation of theories. The goal is to defend this approach.
Economics is strategic, but a focus on political and administrative culture looks necessary. We will make articles from researchs from parliament works, in depth debate. The goal is also to promote political engagement in the « noble sense ». It looks important for me to go out of the « spin doctors » debate in a society too much focused on communication and appearance.
But a thinking newspaper needs to keep an eye on scientific and technical progress. I am not a scientist, but we need to fight what Jacques Ellul called the « dictatorship of technicians ». Everyone can build its opinion on the impact of the new technologies for instance of our societies. This trend looks to be necessary to understand the impact of the new technologies in our lives.
But the basis of this newspaper will be philosophy. For me it can be a great tool to build viewpoints. As the feminist Judith Butler told, « philosophy is a great means to rebel, it is a marvellous tool ». The goal is not to rebel but to think about new models ; it has also the goal to rehabilitate old and forgotten theories. This newspaper wants to show philosophy can be useful in a great deal of situations.
The goal is to create debates and have a critical approach on daily news mainly using the tools of philosophy. The goal is also to create debates and to give various approaches. Videos will also be made to make the content more interrective. Last this newspaper will be made in English because I think ideas are more likely to be « efficient » if they are made in the international scale. As English won (by far) against French, the content will be in this language.
The observer 