When should journalists censor themselves?
Last week secret US military files about the war in Afghanistan were published on WikiLeaks. The reaction from the US government was swift and furious. The US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that WikiLeaks may already have blood on its hands. One fear is that information provided about informants will lead to reprisals.
Robot companions are being used in Japan and the the US for elderly patients in nursing homes. They take advantage of our innate tendency to develop affection for things that are cute and appear to respond positively to us. Paro is a robot modeled after a baby harp seal. It trills and paddles when petted,… Read More »Robolove – Robot Machines as Companions
Would relaxing the ban on doping lead to a fairer, safer sporting field with a better spectacle for audiences? Or would it distort and undermine the very nature of sporting endeavour and run contrary to the virtues that are the essence of sport? What have the debaters got right and where have they gone wrong?… Read More »Don’t forget to vote in the Drugs in Sport debate
Interview by Olga Campos, Mª Ángeles Arráez, Miguel Moreno, Francisco Lara,
Pedro Francés, and Javier Rodríguez Alcázar in Dilemata No 3 2010
Read More »Bioethics and enhancement – an interview with Julian Savulescu
A quick reminder that Practical Ethics News will host the 109th Philosophers' Carnival on 7th June. Don't forget to nominate your favourite (recent) philosophy blog post via this link. Posts need not be on the topic of practical ethics, although they should be accessible to a popular audience. Posts relating to current affairs are especially… Read More »Reminder – carnival next week
Practical Ethics News will host the 109th Philosophers' Carnival on 7th June. If you know of a particularly good (recent) philosophy blog post, you can nominate it for inclusion via this link. Posts need not be on the topic of practical ethics, although they should be accessible to a popular audience. Posts relating to current… Read More »The carnival is coming…
Practicalethicsnews is now 2 1/2 years old, and continues to grow. We are keen to improve this blog further, and are going to make a few changes in coming weeks. One change that we are trialling is an alteration to our comments policy. We are keen to encourage readers of our blog, including those who… Read More »Comments on Practicalethicsnews
We encourage readers of our blog, including those who do not have a background in philosophy or ethics, to respond to posts and to engage in debate with our authors, and with each other. Comments should be polite, concise and relevant to the topic. Authors will respond to comments where possible, though may not respond… Read More »Comments policy
Dominic is right thataddicts are competent to decide on sponsored sterilisation. I have argued that addicts can be autonomous and can consent to research trials involving drugs of addiction (Foddy, B., Savulescu, J.. (2006). ‘Addiction and Autonomy: Can Addicted People Consent to the Prescription of Their Drug of Addiction?’ Bioethics. 20 (1): 1-15 (Feb). DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8519.2006.00470.x). I have also argued that paying people large amounts of money to participate in risky experiments does not coerce them or unreasonably induce them (Savulescu, J. (2001) ‘Taking the Plunge’. New Scientist; 169:50) and elsewhere that it is reasonable to offer people money for their organs – the only real ethical issue being to settle on a fair minimum price.
So there is nothing intrinsically wrong with offering addicts money to be sterilised. The only issue is – why stop at addicts? The principle behind this would seem to be that addicts are unfit to parent. But what about paedophiles, the mentally ill, or intellectually disabled? It is hard to see how the principle would not extend to a form of passive eugenics, like what the Nazis imposed in more extreme forms.
The obvious way to avoid this is to offer the inducement to everyone. This has the lovely consequence that those who don’t really want to or value parenting would take the money. And they are not likely to be any more model parents that addicts are.
Read More »Response to Embrace the controversy: let’s offer Project Prevention on the NHS
A relationship counsellor, Gary McFarlane, 48, in Bristol was sacked in 2008 for refusing to provide sex therapy to a gay couple. He took action against his former employer, Relate Avon, arguing that it had failed to accommodate his Christian beliefs. He lost, appealed and his appeal has just been turned down by the High Court.… Read More »The end of conscientious objection?
