If you’ve got millions of dollars to donate, don’t donate them to academic philosophy. Producing philosophical articles and books faces diminishing returns and diverts money and attention from more important causes. Many philosophy books and articles contradict each other; at best, only some can be correct. Philosophy classes are poor at instilling critical thinking skills. Resources that would be spent on philosophy would be better spent elsewhere.

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Jimmy Alfonso Licon is an assistant teaching professor of philosophy at Arizona State University. He works on issues in ethics, epistemology, and political economy.
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