The problem with philosophy

The problem with philosophy, as I see it, is as follows: Looking at philosophy to see how the world works is like trying to do geology with nothing but maps. The reality of the thing is not to be found in its representation.

Philosophy is ultimately and finally derivative. It will not and can not be more then the description of other things, even itself. All of philosophy reduces, from a god's perspective, to physics, just like everything else.

Philosophy is not the tool to make pronouncements with. No matter how good your map is, it is still not the earth and water it represents. Someone will always be able to find something that your map doesn't successfully describe, and why that missing element is important.

Human knowledge does not happen with just words, it happens with neurons, and neurotransmitters, and blood chemistry and a million other things. Liver disease can cause insanity,  so can social isolation, so can emotional trauma, and the exact same events aren't always traumatic to all people. What counts as knowledge is the functioning of brains, and any description of knowledge that does not reference the behavior of the knower is a failed project.

Foundational epistemology¹ is one of the most hopeless projects I have ever had to give a damn about. Using intelligence, keen observation, and clarity of thought to try and prove what knowledge is, without reference to the biological reality of thought, is one of the stupidest things I've ever seen done by my intellectual betters.

¹What I mean here is the project to provide an unassailable grounding of justified true belief. Or even any attempt to completely describe knowledge.