Facebook’s infinite scroll led me last night to a video of a woman being unclothed in public by her boyfriend. But it was all very funny and just a harmless prank … wasn’t it? The scene is a beach and the boyfriend provides helpful commentary as he films his girlfriend on his phone. He has…
I have only just started to read Gil Bailie’s Violence Unveiled and have been challenged already to rethink the role of technology in relation to moral imperatives. Having read Jacques Ellul, I have largely accepted the thesis that technology imposes on us a drive towards a particular kind of “progress” beyond human control. In many…
In a recent conversation with me, Jim Longley contrasted the Anabaptist approach to theology and ethics to what he labelled the “defensive” approach adopted by much of the church. My experience of Christianity supports that categorisation. The institutional church, especially the Evangelical variety, and many individuals hold a position that is profoundly defensive. It is…
I stumbled across an article from 2008 by Bruce Wydick titled “Sex and Social Justice“. Although he makes a reasonably good case for the Christian ideal of sex within marriage, a key part of his case simply doesn’t match my personal experience. From his perspective as an economist, Wydick considers the act of sex as…
In a radio interview about her candidacy for the Australian Senate, Lin Hatfield Dodds claims that only 3 – 4% of Australia’s illegal immigrants arrive via the boats that we hear so much about. The rest fly in on normal commercial planes. If that’s true, it makes a mockery of the endless political wrangling about…
Recent research suggests that it is easier to blame someone than to praise them. Joshua Knobe shows this clearly in the following two thought experiments: Suppose that a vice-president goes to the chairman of the board and says OK, we’ve got this new policy. It’s going to make huge amounts of money for our company…
John Wyatt presented a neat introduction to Peter Singer’s moral philosophy on Hope 103.2 Open House recently. He summarises the foundation of Singer’s ethics thus: Instead of treating all human life as equal, recognise that the worth of human life varies. Value depends on an ability to choose. Take responsibility for the consequences of your…
Stephen Clarke proposes a neat distinction between Conservative and Liberal attitudes towards morality on the ABC’s Philosopher’s Zone. Liberals place high moral value on: Individual freedom/autonomy Fairness, equal opportunity Conservatives, while still holding to the above, place greater moral value on: Respect for authority Respect for sanctity / purity => typically some religious system Protecting…
Mark Rowlands talks about morality on the ABC’s Philosopher’s Zone (that site includes a complete transcript). Putting aside what seem to me irrelevant comments about his pet wolf, Rowlands introduces some basic concepts about morality very neatly: If you construe human morality on the basis of implicit contracts then at its base morality is about:…
