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Critical Discussions of recent articles in ethics and practical philosophy.Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ contemporary ethics and practical philosophy • moral discourse, virtue signaling, fanaticism • moral responsibility, blame, free will, AI harm • veganism, meat ethics, free‑riding • emotions, grief, well‑being • Confucian ethics, rituals • race, hope, democratic values • religion, human development • gamete donation, genetic identity • virtue, meaning, spiritualityThis podcast offers critical discussions of recent work in ethics and practical philosophy, using articles and books as springboards for analysis and debate with academic philosophers. Across episodes, the show examines how moral concepts operate in everyday social life and public discourse, including whether it is justified to dismiss others as “virtue signaling” or “grandstanding,” what norms should govern moral disagreement, and how judgments of character and motivation affect the possibility of productive conversation.
A recurring focus is moral responsibility and accountability: what it means to blame, when blaming is appropriate, and how these practices relate to questions about free will and determinism. These themes extend to contemporary issues such as whether harmful outcomes produced by AI systems warrant blame, and what point blaming might serve even if machines lack agency. The podcast also explores moral psychology and the role of emotions—anger, shame, grief, resentment—in ethical life, asking which emotional responses are malleable and which might be valuable or harmful in pluralistic societies.
Several conversations apply ethical theory to concrete domains: obligations regarding veganism and the ethics of meat-eating, and the morality of gamete donation, especially duties of disclosure and the value of genetic knowledge for identity. Broader traditions and social-political questions are also represented, including Confucian approaches to human nature, ritual, and well-being; debates about human development in religious and secular humanism; and philosophical resources for confronting racism while sustaining hope and democratic commitment. Overall, the show connects normative theory, moral psychology, and applied ethics through close engagement with contemporary scholarship.
| Episodes: |
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Virtue Signaling, Grandstanding, and Judging Others 2025-Sep-12 64 minutes |
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Should We Blame AI? 2024-Aug-19 45 minutes |
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Fanaticism, Devotion, and Nihilism 2024-May-28 45 minutes |
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Veganism and Free-riding 2024-May-07 42 minutes |
How to Do Things with Emotions: Owen Flanagan2022-Apr-05 55 minutes |
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Confucianism, Morality, and Well-being 2022-Mar-15 63 minutes |
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Ethics of Gamete Donation and the Value of Genetic Knowledge 2022-Feb-16 61 minutes |
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Prophetic Pragmatism: Cornel West, Hope, and the Philosophy of Race 2022-Feb-01 54 minutes |
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Grief: A Philosophic Guide 2022-Jan-13 56 minutes |
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Freedom, Resentment, and the Metaphysics of Morals 2021-Apr-21 67 minutes |
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Religion and Human Development (Jennifer Herdt) 2020-Jul-08 59 minutes |
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Virtue and Meaning -- an Interview with David McPherson 2020-May-05 73 minutes |