Philosophy Bites Daily

John Gray on Human Rights and Utopian Thinking

Human rights may frame a universal moral minimum, but, according to John Gray, the whole human rights project can become harmful because of its utopian fixation on 'the sickly dream of a time when the intractable dilemmas of ethics and politics will be overcome.' Should we blame this on John Rawls? Read more...

 

Hate Speech and Free Expression

In the US, the First Amendment provides extensive protection for freedom of expression, more extensive protection than exists in the UK. In Jeremy Waldron's 2009 Lectures 'Dignity and Defamation: the Visibility of Hate' he argues (against Ronald Dworkin) that racial and some other forms of hate speech should be prohibited. These lectures can be downloaded as a PDF. Read more...

 

Freedom of speech, Wikileaks and discretion

Are there simple answers to the moral issues surrounding the Wikileaks disclosures? Probably not. Nicholas Shackel attempts to unravel what is going on when principles conflict. Read more...

Is it fair?

Michael Sandel will be discussing the Big Society and Fairness in a public lecture in London on January 18th. The event will be recorded and is part of the BBC4 Justice series which will include a new documentary made by Sandel. Read more...

The tribute vice pays to virtue

Political hypocrisy is rife, but could it be a necessary part of democratic government? Without dissimulation we'd know what politicians really think, and then where would we be? Read more...