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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):
➤ Ethical theory debates • virtue signaling and moral discourse • moral responsibility, blame, determinism, AI • fanaticism and moral emotions • veganism and free‑riding • Confucian flourishing • grief ethics • genetic identity in reproduction • race, hope, religion, meaningThis podcast features critical discussions of recent work in ethical theory and practical philosophy, often through interviews with philosophers about new articles and books. Across episodes, conversations examine how moral concepts function in everyday life and public discourse, including when it is appropriate to dismiss others as “virtue signaling” or “grandstanding,” and what norms should govern moral conversation.
A recurring theme is moral responsibility and blame: what it means to hold agents accountable, how practices like resentment relate to free will and determinism, and whether it can make sense to blame AI systems for harmful outcomes even if they lack agency in the human sense. The show also explores how character and commitment intersect with ethics, considering the value and risks of devotion, fanaticism, and nihilism, as well as broader questions about virtue, meaning, spirituality, and human nature.
Many discussions connect ethical theory to concrete moral controversies and life experiences. Topics include obligations surrounding veganism and meat-eating, framed through arguments about complicity and free-riding; the ethics of gamete donation and whether children have a claim to knowledge of their genetic origins; and how emotions such as anger, shame, and grief shape moral life and might be cultivated or revised. The podcast also engages with ethical traditions and social philosophy, drawing on Confucian views about ritual and flourishing, and examining prophetic pragmatism, hope, and the philosophical study of race and democratic progress. Overall, the show emphasizes careful argument, competing considerations, and how philosophical ideas bear on contemporary moral problems.
| 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 |