Occupation: Philosopher Birth: July 6, 1946
The future of the world depends on how well we meet it..
When the death of a disabled infant will lead to the birth of another infant with better prospects of a happy life, the total amount of happiness wil….
It's also much clearer how much damage the occupation of Iraq is doing to America's reputation and prestige around the world; and that's just startin….
If penicillin had been judged by its toxicity to guinea pigs, it might never have been used by man..
But I think the majority of cows, and even more so chickens and pigs, are leading pretty miserable lives..
If we're going to live an ethical life, it's not enough just to follow the thou-shalt-nots. … If we have enough, we have to share some of that with p….
We are, quite literally, gambling with the future of our planet- for the sake of hamburgers.
Philosophy is not politics, and we do our best, within our all-too-human limitations, to seek the truth, not to score points against opponents. There….
Cheats prosper until there are enough who bear grudges against them to make sure they do not prosper..
There are some circumstances, for example, where the newborn baby is severely disabled and where the parents think that it's better that child should….
Dolphins are social mammals, capable of enjoying their lives. They form close bonds with other members of their group..
If they [animals] were really to get the equal consideration that I believe they should, we wouldn't have commercial animal production in this countr….
The problem is not with the athletes, but with us. No matter how blatant the drug use may be, we don't stop watching the Tour de France. Maybe we sho….
History is not going to look kindly on us if we just keep our head in the sand on armed autonomous robotics issue because it sounds too science ficti….
It may be thought justifiable to require tests on animals of potentially life-saving drugs, but the same kinds of tests are used for products like co….
To be a utilitarian means that you judge actions as right or wrong in accordance with whether they have good consequences. So you try to do what will….
With the eventual acceptance of Darwin's theory we reach a modern understanding of nature, one which has since then changed in detail rather than in ….
We may feel the pain of falling back from a level of affluence to which we have grown accustomed, but most people in developed countries are still, b….
Unfortunately for ethical egoism, the claim that we will all be better off if every one of us does what is in his or her own interest is incorrect. T….
Since ancient times, philosophers have maintained that to strive too hard for one's own happiness is self-defeating..
Of those who die from avoidable, poverty-related causes, nearly 10 million, according to UNICEF, are children under five. They die from diseases such….