We have a new generation of very rich people who want to do more with their money than buy a lot of expensive toys. They want to live meaningful lives.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the desire of wealthy individuals to find purpose in their wealth beyond material possessions.
Peter Singer highlights a shift in the mindset of the affluent, suggesting that today's wealthy individuals are increasingly interested in using their financial resources to make a positive impact on the world rather than merely indulging in luxury. This reflects a broader societal trend towards seeking meaningful contributions and purposeful living, positioning wealth as a means for greater good rather than just personal enjoyment.
In practice
In a speech about philanthropy, someone could use this quote to emphasize the importance of purpose in wealth.
The belief that the animals exist because God created them - and that he created them so we can better meet our needs - is contrary to our scientific understanding of evolution and, of course, to the fossil record, which shows the existence of non-human primates and other animals millions of years before there were any human beings at all.
Pain and suffering are in themselves bad and should be prevented or minimized, irrespective of the race, sex, or species of the being that suffers. How bad a pain is depends on how intense it is and how long it lasts, but pain of the same intensity and duration are equally bad, whether felt by humans or animals.
What is faith? If you believe something because you have evidence for it, or rational argument, that is not faith. So faith seems to be believing something despite the absence of evidence or rational argument for it.
Almost everybody accepts that some people can be killed. 'The concept of 'brain death' - the belief that people on respirators can legitimately be killed - shows that.
If we all think only of our own interests, we are headed for collective disaster - just look at what we are doing to our planet's climate.
Even in the era of AIDS, sex raises no unique moral issues at all. Decisions about sex may involve considerations about honesty, concern for others, prudence, and so on, but there is nothing special about sex in this respect, for the same could be said of decisions about driving a car. (In fact, the moral issues raised by driving a car, both from an environmental and from a safety point of view, are much more serious than those raised by sex.)
This is one of the most effective adaptations of racism over time - that we can think of racism as only something that individuals either are or are not 'doing.'
I spit into the face of time that has transfigured me
I don't think there is such a thing as a precise sexual orientation. I think we're all ambiguous sexually.
Karl Marx was right, socialism works, it is just that he had the wrong species
You are an infinite spiritual being having a temporary human experience.
No one must say that they cannot be close to the poor because their own lifestyle demands more attention to other areas. This is an excuse commonly heard in academic, business or professional, and even ecclesial circles. While it is quite true that the essential vocation and mission of the lay faithful is to strive that earthly realities and all human activity may be transformed by the Gospel, none of us can think we are exempt from concern for the poor and for social justice
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