Everyday Ethics

Egoism is generally the view that human wants are in some way relevant to what humans do.  Not long ago, ethical egoism was defended as a scientifically consistent moral position that cohered with the reality of psychological egoism in humans.  Because of the similarity and compatibility between these two views, they are often confused and [...]

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I recently returned from a short vacation in Las Vegas with a new take on the role of culture in ethical decision-making.  Las Vegas is associated with a myriad of slogans that promote debauchery and immoral behavior, and the results of a zeitgeist like this are not surprising.  What is a surprise is the extent [...]

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A “stupid” job has many nuances  and qualities that make it what it is.  Often, stupid jobs are steeped in policies, rules and regulations, or other guidelines that cause the opposite of their intended goal to occur.  For example, I was recently a case manager for a public social program.  This program has the best [...]

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As the quagmire that is the Iraq war continues unabated, everyday Americans seem to be pushing strongly for a withdrawal with an enthusiasm that increases nearly every day.  We have now watched this misguided undertaking drag on for over five years, and despite the declaration of “mission accomplished” by our president, both Iraqis and Americans [...]

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I resisted the Facebook phenomenon as long as I could, but the lure of rekindling connections with long-lost friends proved to be too much to resist.  Now that I have joined “the Book,” I find myself somewhat troubled by certain types of posts that many individuals find perfectly acceptable, but that are reasonably worth questioning [...]

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As cliché as it may sound, there are basically two types of people in the world, those who are willing to offer criticism and those who would rather die than risk sharing their actual opinion.  The extreme versions of both positions are a bit tough to take, as the openly critical often come across as [...]

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Most of us don’t give much thought to the fact that many of our relationships with other people are defined by some degree of reciprocity.  To some extent, reciprocity is the very nature of human interpersonal relations.  Although these relationships can be extremely beneficial for the parties involved, it is important to be aware of [...]

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Selecting a graduate program in philosophy is a difficult task in itself, never mind the time-consuming nature of the actual application process.  There are a variety of helpful websites, particularly the Leiter report, which ranks philosophy graduate programs based on the quality of their faculty and that is widely regarded as the industry standard for [...]

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The application process for graduate programs in philosophy is rigorous, time-consuming, and not for the faint of heart, the disorganized, or the procrastinator.  It is difficult to get a straight answer regarding what good PhD programs in philosophy are looking for, and my own impression is that connections, unknowable intangibles, and a bit of luck [...]

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