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Episode 152: Ruthlessness, Public and Private

Episode 152: Ruthlessness, Public and Private

FromVery Bad Wizards


Episode 152: Ruthlessness, Public and Private

FromVery Bad Wizards

ratings:
Length:
81 minutes
Released:
Nov 20, 2018
Format:
Podcast episode

Description

Tamler and David continue their Nagel-gazing by discussing another essay from Mortal Questions: "Ruthlessness in Public Life." Why do we treat the immorality of politicians, military leaders, and others in power differently than the immorality of individuals? Why does it seem less aversive to shake the hand of someone responsible for the death of thousands of civilians through military action than it does to shake the hand of a serial killer who has merely killed dozens? Are the rules we use to judge the moral atrocities of public officials different from the ones we use to judge private atrocities? Do they have the same basic foundations? Plus, we satisfy our listeners bloodlust by arguing about the new "Journal of Controversial Ideas" (because it would be cowardly not to).
This episode is brought to you by Givewell.org (http://www.givewell.org), and by the private morality of our generous supporters.
Released:
Nov 20, 2018
Format:
Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

Very Bad Wizards is a podcast featuring a philosopher (Tamler Sommers) and a psychologist (David Pizarro), who share a love for ethics, pop culture, and cognitive science, and who have a marked inability to distinguish sacred from profane. Each podcast includes discussions of moral philosophy, recent work on moral psychology and neuroscience, and the overlap between the two.