Category: Ethics

The Ethics of State Lotteries

January 28, 2015

Is it ethical for the government to run a lottery? Is the government profiting from people’s ignorance? If so is that unethical? What about how the lottery is advertised?

Is it unethical to take advantage of people’s mathematical ignorance? What about casinos?

“Government should not be in the business of exploiting the cognitive deficiencies of its citizens for monetary gain. Right? But state lotteries do just that.”

http://www.philosophyetc.net/2006/01/ethics-of-state-lotteries.html

https://philosophynow.org/issues/14/Lottery_or_Lootery

http://3quarksdaily.blogs.com/3quarksdaily/2006/01/the_moral_degen.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/business/07lotto.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Ethics Questions Arise as Genetic Testing of Embryos Increases

January 28, 2015

“Genetic testing of embryos has been around for more than a decade, but its use has soared in recent years as methods have improved and more disease-causing genes have been discovered. The in vitro fertilization and testing are expensive — typically about $20,000 — but they make it possible for couples to ensure that their children will not inherit a faulty gene and to avoid the difficult choice of whether to abort a pregnancy if testing of a fetus detects a genetic problem.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/04/health/ethics-questions-arise-as-genetic-testing-of-embryos-increases.html?_r=0

Report: Unpublished J.D. Salinger stories leak online

January 28, 2015

“Literary circles were abuzz after three previously unpublished short stories by American author J.D. Salinger showed up on the Internet this week.

“Salinger was known to fiercely guard his writings and only allowed a relatively small number to be published before his death in 2010 at age 91.”

Is it unethical to release these stories? Does the author’s intent matter after he’s died? What if they’re great pieces of art? Once leaked, is it unethical to read them if the author never intended them to be read?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/29/showbiz/salinger-unpublished-stories/

Book: 1984 by George Orwell

January 27, 2015

A link to some famous and interesting quotes from the book.

http://www.alternativereel.com/cult_fiction/display_article.php?id=0000000008

“Written in 1948, 1984 was George Orwell’s chilling prophecy about the future. And while 1984 has come and gone, Orwell’s narrative is timelier than ever. 1984 presents a startling and haunting vision of the world, so powerful that it is completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of multiple generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions—a legacy that seems only to grow with the passage of time.”

http://www.amazon.com/1984-Signet-Classics-George-Orwell/dp/0451524934/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422391373&sr=8-1&keywords=1984&pebp=1422391374808&peasin=451524934

Nothing friendly about it: Orwell’s Ministry of Peace would envy the US military’s use of newspeak

January 27, 2015

“Should we allow generals and politicians to hide behind phrases such as ‘friendly fire’?”

“As revelations of deaths of coalition troops caused by allies surface in Iraq and Afghanistan, an issue for editors is whether the phrase “friendly fire” should have quote marks around it.

“It is a military term, designed to shield the horrors of death and prevent animosity towards a war mission, argues one camp; so why should we be the agents of the phrase’s recognition? It is as if we accept its premise – that it is just one of those things that happens in war, and we should just, you know, get over it.”

http://www.theguardian.com/media/mind-your-language/2010/oct/29/friendly-fire-mind-your-language

Gendercide: Killed, aborted or neglected, at least 100m girls have disappeared—and the number is rising

January 27, 2015

How do you balance human reproductive freedom with the greater good of society? What if individual choices add up to lead to catastrophic consequences for society? Is it unethical to choose to have a child of one gender versus another?

http://www.economist.com/node/15606229