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16The Placebo EffectPhilosophy Now 55 50-54. 2006.A humorous short story about a company that tries marketing a placebo as a more expensive drug on the grounds that doing this will both maximize their profits and benefit the greatest number, since research shows the placebo to be highly effective if marketed as something else
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53The joy of living StoicallyThe Philosophers' Magazine 58 119-120. 2012.Review of William Irvine's 'A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy'
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16Depths of the mundaneThe Philosophers' Magazine 49 89-92. 2010.Why eschew luxury? The traditional arguments for frugality typically focus on what is good for the individual. Some see frugality as morally valuable because it tends to be associated with other virtues such as wisdom, honesty, or sincerity. Some find the natural, uncluttered, focused character of a simple lifestyle aesthetically appealing. The most common argument, though, is that simple living is the surest route – some even say the only route – to happiness.
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165. Why Should I Respect Your Stupid Opinion?In The Virtues of Our Vices: A Modest Defense of Gossip, Rudeness, and Other Bad Habits, Princeton University Press. pp. 215-260
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102. The Ethics of GossipingIn The Virtues of Our Vices: A Modest Defense of Gossip, Rudeness, and Other Bad Habits, Princeton University Press. pp. 53-99
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19Galahad vs OdysseusPhilosophy Now 90 20-25. 2012.The article identifies two basic views of cheating and gamesmanship in sport: the Galahadian view which sees such practices as fundamentally dishonourable; and the Odyssean view which sees them as legitimate strategies for winning. There are pragmatic arguments on both sides, but on balance the Galahadian perspective is preferable in most sports. A similar conflict of outlooks occurs in fields beyond sport also: e.g. over whether someone holding a bad mortgage should keep paying or default.
Tinkertown, New York, United States of America
Areas of Specialization
Metaphysics |
Normative Ethics |
Areas of Interest
Applied Ethics |
19th Century Philosophy |
Philosophy, General Works |