I always knew a day would come when they'd want us to pay for this kind of services, too. The wheels of progress are finally turning, albeit grindingly:

...For too long, our society has viewed these unfortunate individuals as non-sexual beings, adopting rules in matters such as consent and reimbursement that may serve the interests of able-bodied ( Read more... )

Incredibly, I was asked why is it wrong to decimate endangered species in general and sperm whales in particular. As my ethical arguments have been ignored as lacking in substance, let me put it in no uncertain terms:

...The iron-limited Southern Ocean plays an important role in regulating atmospheric CO2 levels. We show that by consuming prey at ( Read more... )

...some people say the idea of a Law of Nature is unsound, because different civilizations and different ages have had quite different moralities. But this is not true... Think of a country where people were admired for running away in battle, or where a man felt proud of double-crossing all the people who had been kindest to him... ( Read more... )

Several journals have been pushing the story of "test-tube burgers:" growing muscle tissue (aka meat) using stem cells harvested from farm animals ( Read more... )

Time has played a mean trick on the capital sins. The sinfulness of Vainglory and Despair are all but forgotten, while Wrath, Lust, and Pride have been promoted to virtue. Still, when things go bad it must be blamed on something. Lately, Greed has emerged as everyone's favorite, Gluttony (aka obesity) coming the distant second. No one blames the ( Read more... )

I've accidentally stumbled upon this post, http://eterman.livejournal.com/32236.htmlRead more... )

...the pacifism of the Quakers was raising serious moral problems, especially when the Indians began routinely slaughtering settlers on Pennsylvania's western frontier... The settlers, mostly non-Quaker Germans, were growing increasingly alarmed at the lack of protection. They thought it the most fundamental duty of the legislator to defend his ( Read more... )

http://flying-bear.livejournal.com/763151.html?thread=13228047#t13228047

Exitus acta probat written by love sick Ovid's Phyllis in her letter to Demophoon is said to be the motto of the Inquisition, the Jesuits, or Machiavelli's demonic invention. The ( Read more... )

During the recent discussions, I've heard the argument that only physical abuse that causes an average man to shudder is torture. This argument grossly over-estimates the capacity of our fellow human beings to shudder. How about a simple experiment: I tell you what two of the widely known and loved nursery rhymes in English actually mean.

Three ( Read more... )

I have little of essense to add to CS Lewis' essay below. The short of it is that the deterrent/preventive justice dehumanizes the offender and excludes the possibility of mercy; furthermore, if justice is not retributive, it undermines equality of people (as lex talonis is based on the notion that the value of what you have done onto another is ( Read more... )