Melden, A. I. (1967). Ethical theories; a book of readings (2d ed.). Englewood Cliffs, N.J.,: Prentice-Hall. From these we might check out the "Problem of Evil" or consider modern medicine… "Thus the true cause of the blessedness of the good angels is found to be this, that they cleave to Him who supremely is. And [...]
Kant’s CI as a "Golden Rule" is sometimes a pet peeve of people who study Kant. From one of the buried discussions…A somewhat common interpretation of Kant is that his Categorical Imperative is an expression of the Golden Rule — Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This is not bad [...]
Another blurb for my students regarding M2A1. Remember that when we are working within virtue ethics, virtues are moral values. This is not necessarily the case in other moral theories. Do they come into conflict? This is somewhat of a debate in the academic literature. Traditionally Aristotle held that they cannot come into conflict because [...]
Some more quotes from Plato’s Republic for my philosophy students. Themes from these: Legal moralism Might makes right The concerns of the craftsman, including leaders and rulers Who is happier, the just or unjust person? Thrasymachus, "So this is what Socrates’ wisdom comes to! He refuses to teach, and goes about learning from others without [...]
Some notes for my students… Make sure to note that in the prisoners’ dilemma "cooperation" is between the prisoners, not between a prisoner and the police. That is, it is in each person’s best interest to stay silent and not ‘rat’ out the other. An example of PD reasoning… You and another person are accused [...]
Philosophy web-courses should contain a warning: Danger Brain My Explode. Invest in coffee, aspirin and find a hobby to relieve pressure. A good beginning for Aristotle Virtue Ethics: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle-ethics/ Some semi-random thoughts as I read through student posts… Acting “Out of character” sounds like something we would hear with respect to a virtue ethics. [...]
Melden, A. I. (1967). Ethical theories; a book of readings (2d ed.). Englewood Cliffs, N.J.,: Prentice-Hall. "To be useful, moral principles must be general; but, being general, their utility is inescapably limited. The future, however much it may resemble the past, provides its own novelties. A set of moral principles covering all possible moral eventualities [...]
I wonder how many people realize that without Judas…Jesus would not have died for their sins. Something to think about. I have no idea what this is about.
Like many others, I’m somewhat ecstatic that the Navy Seals killed Bin Laden. However, thinking about events over the years since 9/11 and the wide range of celebrations and comments on his death I have to wonder if, in the end, he actually achieved his twisted goals. Our nation seems more divided than ever between [...]
An interesting video claiming that focusing math education on learning statistics would be better than trying to get students into calculus. TED: Arthur Benjamin