The Philosophical Foundations of Civic Education

Those who study and evaluate civic education programs are often reticent about their values or unsure how to defend them. Peter Levine and Ann Higgins-DAlessandro offer a range of philosophical resources for thinking about the values that society should hold and how it should try to transmit these values through civic education to future generations.

Is “Human Being” a Moral Concept?

Is “human being” a moral concept? I believe it is, which makes me a speciesist. Speciesism violates a moral principle of equality. Peter Singer defines it as “a prejudice or attitude of bias toward the interests of members of one’s own species and against those of members of other species.” He compares it to racism. My goal in this essay is to defend a speciesist attitude or outlook on morality.

Google and the Cyber Infiltration

Googles recent decision to withdraw its business from China in the wake of cyber censorship should lead other multinational corporations to recognize that ethical commitments should not be set aside for the purpose of market strategies.

Philosophers to the Rescue? The Failed Attempt to Defend the Inclusion of Intelligent Design in Public Schools

Philosophers have argued convincingly that Intelligent Design cannot simply be defined out of classrooms as nonscience. But the move from the conclusion that intelligent design is not nonscience to the conclusion that it is legitimate to teach it in public schools is deeply mistaken.

The Conscience of a Prosecutor

Should a prosecutor throw a case to avoid keeping men he thinks are innocent in prison? The startling case of justice gone awry in the Palladium nightclub murder raises new questions about the role that conscience should play in lawyers ethics, when conscience presses one way but professional rules press the other.

A Different Way of Thinking about the Two-State Solution

As peace negotiations in the Mideast continue to fail, perhaps we should consider an alternative way of conceiving the proposal for creating two independent Arab and Jewish states. What wouldthe two-state solution look like if rather than turning away from the underlying reality of a common homeland, we were to embrace that reality?

What Is Charity?

Once revered as the greatest of the classic theological virtues, charity now has something of a bad rap. Can it be rehabilitated with help from the Jewish sage Maimonides?

Insider Trading: A Moral Problem

It turns out to be more difficult than one might think to identify the central moral wrong at the heart of this much publicized and vilified crime.

Constitutional Rights for Nonresident Aliens

Nonresident aliens benefit from basic U.S. constitutional rights reciprocity of obligation requires as much, and recognizing their rights would not unduly interfere with U.S. action abroad.

The Harms of Homeschooling

The benefits of homeschooling are now protected through legalization of the practice. Most of its harms could be prevented through its responsible regulation.