...Environmental Ethics Environmental ethics is that branch of philosophy dealing with the major ethical questions regarding the relationships between humans and the environment. This includes issues such as biodiversity, wildlife management, ecological preservation, hunting practices, farming techniques, and food regulations. Emergence of the Field Environmental ethics emerged as a distinct field in in early 1970s. Among its driving forces were the environmental concerns regarding the dependability of our society on natural resources as well as the threat that our use of those resources poses to the integrity of the ecosystem; it should also be noted that the increased attention to an ecological perspective on life was promoted also by the prospect of exploring life on other planets. It should be noted that around the same period a cognate field was also developed: philosophy of biology. In the 70s, in other words, our theoretical perspective on life was deeply transformed and has led to movements such as the green revolution and the contemporary quest for sustainable living. Retrospectively, the emergence of those fields seems almost obvious. A Non-Anthropocentric Philosophy? Although environmental ethicist have applied ethical theories – such as consequentialism – to try and solve environmental concerns, the specificity of environmental problems facilitated the development of some novel ethical perspectives; an example of this is the non-anthropocentric...
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...The realization of this fact became much more firmly established in my conscience when I visited a village a few miles away from University of Hyderabad in continuation of field survey in Environmental Economics that I was supposed to conduct as part of my academics curriculum. The village is located amidst a hub of pharmaceutical and drug industries which on continuous basis keep polluting the environment- a basic precondition to lead a healthy and clean life ; as recently illustrated by our Hon’ble PM in his “Sawacch Bharat Abhiyan”- through their hazardous emissions and discharges of toxic elements into water streams. My other group mates started covering their mouths and all to save them from being “polluted” as they are hailing from affluent families which had never an occasion of an iota of materialistic misery!! I was at the same struck by a new concept in economics that can be referred to as “Ecological Imperialism” which presents itself most obviously in the following ways: the pillage of resources of some countries by others and the transformation of the whole ecosystems upon which the whole nation depends, the dumping of ecological wastes, the exploitation of ecologically vulnerable societies to promote imperialist control. The US-led attacks on Iraq in the guise of “ War against Terror” in order to capture the oil reserves is a stark example of such imperialism. On interviewing people who are having to work there in the same industries out of no choices barely left...
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...The realization of this fact became much more firmly established in my conscience when I visited a village a few miles away from University of Hyderabad in continuation of field survey in Environmental Economics that I was supposed to conduct as part of my academics curriculum. The village is located amidst a hub of pharmaceutical and drug industries which on continuous basis keep polluting the environment- a basic precondition to lead a healthy and clean life ; as recently illustrated by our Hon’ble PM in his “Sawacch Bharat Abhiyan”- through their hazardous emissions and discharges of toxic elements into water streams. My other group mates started covering their mouths and all to save them from being “polluted” as they are hailing from affluent families which had never an occasion of an iota of materialistic misery!! I was at the same struck by a new concept in economics that can be referred to as “Ecological Imperialism” which presents itself most obviously in the following ways: the pillage of resources of some countries by others and the transformation of the whole ecosystems upon which the whole nation depends, the dumping of ecological wastes, the exploitation of ecologically vulnerable societies to promote imperialist control. The US-led attacks on Iraq in the guise of “ War against Terror” in order to capture the oil reserves is a stark example of such imperialism. On interviewing people who are having to work there in the same industries out of no choices barely left...
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...is the Black Liberation movement, which demands an end to the prejudice and discrimination that has made blacks second-class citizens. The immediate appeal of the black liberation movement and its initial, if limited, success made it a model for other oppressed groups to follow. We became familiar with liberation movements for Spanish-Americans, gay people, and a variety of other minorities. When a majority group— women—began their campaign, some thought we had come to the end of the road. Discrimination on the basis of sex, it has been said, is the last universally accepted form of discrimination, practiced without secrecy or pretense even in those liberal circles that have long prided themselves on their freedom from prejudice against racial minorities. One should always be wary of talking of "the last remaining form of discrimination." If we have learnt anything from the liberation movements, we should have learnt how difficult it is to be aware of latent prejudice in our attitudes to particular groups until this prejudice is forcefully pointed out. A liberation movement demands an expansion of our moral horizons and an extension or reinterpretation of the basic moral principle of equality. Practices that were previously regarded as natural and inevitable come to be seen as the result of an unjustifiable prejudice. Who can say with confidence that all his or her attitudes and practices are beyond criticism? If we wish to avoid being numbered amongst the oppressors...
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...twins are more similar than fraternal twins. Also, biological siblings are more similar in personality than adoptive siblings. Each observation suggests that personality is heritable to a certain extent. However, these same study designs allow for the examination of environment as well as genes. Adoption studies also directly measure the strength of shared family effects. Adopted siblings share only family environment. Unexpectedly, some adoption studies indicate that by adulthood the personalities of adopted siblings are no more similar than random pairs of strangers. This would mean that shared family effects on personality are zero by adulthood. As is the case with personality, non-shared environmental effects are often found to out-weigh shared environmental effects. That is, environmental effects that are typically thought to be life-shaping (such as family life) may have less of an impact than non-shared effects, which are harder to identify. One possible source of non-shared effects is the environment of pre-natal development. Random variations in the genetic program of development may be a substantial source of non-shared environment. These results suggest that "nurture" may not be the predominant factor in...
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...impact on legislation, social policy and intervention programmes in relation to Blacks. More importantly, a discussion of cultural bias in test design focuses on the response of Black psychologists who developed Black intelligence tests that portray whites as intellectually inferior in the same manner that Blacks are portrayed as intellectually inferior on tests devised by white psychologist. Furthermore, The hereditary perspective of intelligence is challenged by empirical evidence that centres on children with white ancestry to assess whether white genes influence intelligence while citing several sources that support the environmental explanation of the race gap in test scores. Consequently, this discussion questions the reliability and validity of intelligence tests that are used to reinforce the Black intellectual inferiority myth. The conclusive argument suggests in no uncertain terms that the Bell Curve is nothing more than the repackaging of racist pseudo-scientific conclusions by right wing academics, intent on rekindling a political debate premised on a racist manifesto to justify the withdrawal of intervention programmes that challenge existing social and racial hierarchies, that are perceived to transfer white power and privileges to undeserving Blacks. Special Thanks to: Dr. Madge Willis Morehouse College...
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...Chapter 1, Sexual Violence as a Tool of Genocide, discusses the history of and gives us an introduction to genocide. The author talks about the treatment of bodies, in particular Native bodies, and how colonial thought and theory regards Native people as inherently “rapable” and “violable,” a colonial conviction that stretches past the physical bodies of Natives, to Native independence and lands as well. She explains that patriarchy is the foundation by which power is established over Native women's bodies because hierarchal, patriarchal authority and control systems of society are seldom found within native societies. Europeans, on the other hand, have long depended on these methods to suppress and infuse fear into their people. Sexual violence, consequently, serves the colonizer as one way of assimilating Native women into Western society, which, therefore, increases Native vulnerability to gender violence. Sexual violence exists to such a degree, according to Smith, that the "phenomenon indicates the extent to which our communities have internalized self-hatred". Chapter 2, Boarding School Abuses and the Case for Reparations, give some examples for the above mentioned violence. Boarding school systems in the United States are described as a tool for genocide and rape/sexual dominance. This chapter focuses, as well, on the reparations for such wrongs, encompassed by her communication of "abuses from a reparations framework" that is essential for coalition-building...
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...| | | Intercultural Paper | | | | | |Jennifer Minnerup | |September 15, 2011 | Jennifer Minnerup Bernadette Lewis Ivy 101 March 7, 2008 Minnerup 1 I choose this subject to write about because I think that it is still a big issue in the world today. This subject is a very touchy one in my family because my aunt is dating an African American man and my grandfather would have a heart attack if he ever found out. I think that this is an important issue still in the new age as it was in the old and I would like everyone to know it doesn’t really matter about your skin color it is about what you have to offer from inside. Interracial romance had been an issue in the United States since the first English settlers established the seventeenth century. Over the years, views toward interracial relationship in America have changed greatly. However, there are still many biases...
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...Gentrification is the process of upper or middle class people moving into previously lower class areas which increases in taxes and property value, as well as changing a district’s culture. Wealthier people moving into a poorer region increases property value and small community stores, as well as removing former residents due to them not being able to afford the sudden new taxes. Small cultural dime stores or restaurants are replaced by fast food or malls to please this new rich population, who would rather have something quick. This is such a controversial topic because on one hand schools, roads, crime rate, people who have been living in this community for generations are suddenly reduced to living on the streets because their once reasonable rent, increasing drastically. Rare cultural businesses are replaced by a common McDonald's or Starbucks for production rather than quality. Gentrification will lead to poverty in many families and independent people because families who live in low priced apartments, once gentrification takes place those people and families won’t be able to afford their households. Gentrification also leads to poverty by taking money from taxing in order to have the money to rebuild those complexes which many people can’t afford to do because they need to provide for themselves and their families if they have one. Because of gentrification people lose a lot of money that could be used for their personal lives in...
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...straightforward on the surface, there are deep ethical questions being asked. Some of which are embodied the battle between deontological and utilitarianism views, and the variations between them. Beginning with utilitarianism, which is the view that everyone’s interests should be considered (including animals) and that only the consequences of actions should be taken into consideration when determining whether an action is moral. The primary goal of utilitarianism is to “balance the pleasure and pain as such, the question of to whom a pleasure or pain belongs to is irrelevant” (27). Many, such as Singer, even state that the idea that humans should get special consideration would be considered “speciesism” which would be comparable to racism. Then on the other spectrum lies the deontological view, which is the idea that some things have intrinsic value, or as Tom Regan believes, that animals or at least beings that were “subject to life” (beings...
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...Animal Equality: Effects of Giving Animals Rights PHI 103 Informal Logic June 2, 2014 Argument When it comes to animal equality it can be hard to imagine a dog, cat, or even a hamster of having equivalence. When I think of animals, I picture our pets, wild animals, and even those in which are consumed. The question of what is and what is not ethically appropriate in the treatment of animals has is debatable. Peter Singer’s provides a utilitarian arguments for why animals with a certain level of perceptive justify equal moral attention with humans. Introduction Singer calls for the establishment of a “liberation movement” comparable to those that remained emerging up throughout the dated in which he wrote his essay and attentive on such problems as gay, women’s and African-American rights. Noting how previously “legitimate” forms of judgment and prejudice, over time, correctly came to be observed as unfairly and immorally damaging towards definite classes of people, Singer argues that the time has come for a similar pledge to the rights of species that walk on four legs instead of two. The animal liberation movement, which was essentially begun by Singer’s book, Slate.com (2001) argues “It is ethically wrong to use animals in such a way that we cause them suffering, either by deprivation of essential components of a happy existence, or by causing them pain.” (Slate.com, 2001) The animal liberationists would like to disallow most medical experimentation using animal...
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...Performative Conception of Race and How it Impacts Black Women in the Workplace Name of Author Institutional Affiliation Women, often seen as the weaker sex than their male counterparts suffer much discrimination due to their gender. This is made worse when such women are not white or belong to a lower socio-economic status. Unfortunately, although civil rights and feminist movements attempt to showcase and fight against racism, sexism and classism, stereotypes and discrimination apparently prevail as permanent features in the United States (Omni & Winant, 2006). Judith Butler (1993) analyzed how race and gender can become performative for people concerned. She claims that: “race proves to be performative - that is, constituting the identity it is purported to be. In this sense, race is always a doing, though not a doing by a subject who might be said to preexist the deed .... There is no racial identity behind the expressions of race ... race is performatively constituted by the very ‘expressions’ which are said to be its results”. (p. 181). This means, people of a certain race are automatically expected to behave or perform the...
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...Social Darwinism The social theory or ideology of Social Darwinism, which was prominent during the late 1800s, was a source of both controversy and conflict in Victorian Society and other nations, where imperialists, capitalists and colonialists manipulated Social Darwinism to justify horrific acts of genocide and cultural destruction. Upon the publication of Darwin’s revolutionary theory of evolution, The Origin of Species, uproar was caused in Victorian Society at the notion that humans were related to apes, to animals, which was unthinkable at the time largely because it contravened prevailing religious beliefs. This upheaval was the very beginning of a new age of political thinking and sociological ideas. Society was very quickly divided into those who applied Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection to society and philosophy, and those who opposed the idea, maintaining that Darwin’s theories should not be applied to Homo sapiens…us and that these theories contradicted the most fundamental of moral beliefs and principles. Hence, Social Darwinism was born in all its controversy. However, despite the controversial nature of Darwin’s theories, science and its trends were held in high esteem in Victorian England. Through this, fraudulent governments and individuals motivated by greed for wealth and power were able to justify their actions by manipulating Social Darwinism to fit their purpose, claiming that if science said so, then it must be so. However, Social Darwinism was...
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...Should Companies Monitor Their Employees' Social Media? In recent years people have had their lives turned upside down over social media comments, videos, or pictures. Imagine this: A group of friends on vacation and have a good time. They laugh, drink, and take pictures with their cell phones. One of these pictures shows a woman holding a cocktail in each hand and smiling. One of her friends posts this picture on Facebook; her friends share the image. Unfortunately, the woman holding the cocktails in the photo is a schoolteacher. Though her Facebook page is private, she had befriended some of the teachers at her school. When the teacher’s principal finds out about the photos, she is told to resign or face suspension. According to Jeffrey Mello, “Employers face an ethical question relative to whether, as part of due diligence in the hiring process, they should scour online networks and sources to discover information about prospective hires” (168). Reviewing a job applicants’ social media presence may soon become a standard hiring procedure. In the article “Employer Access to Employee Social Media: Applicant Screening, ‘Friend’ Requests and Workplace Investigations”, it mentions a survey of managers and human resource professionals in which over 43 percent of employers used social media sites to research job applicants (Crespo and Lyon 8). It also states that employers’ interest in employees’ social media accounts extended beyond hiring. Many companies seek to leverage their...
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...of IQ and the Wealth of Nations. Education Review, 10(6). Retrieved [date] from http://edrev.asu.edu/essays/v10n6index.html. Abstract I review the book IQ and the Wealth of Nations, written by Richard Lynn and Tatu Vanhanen. I critique the authors’ major assertion that a significant part of the gap between rich and poor countries is due to differences in national intelligence. The authors claim that they have evidence that differences in national IQ account for substantial variation in per capita income and growth of a nation. This essay review debunks their assumptions that intellectual and income differences between nations stem from genetic differences. This critique provides an extended review of the research literature that argues against these assumptions and presents a different picture from that presented by Lynn and Vanhanen about the concept of intelligence, what IQ measures and does not measure. The essay exposes the racist, sexist, and antihuman nature of the research tradition in which the authors anchored their studies and the deep methodological flaws and theoretical assumptions that appear in their book. The low standards of scholarship evident in the book render it largely irrelevant for modern science. This essay specifically deals with the IQ value of Ethiopian immigrants that came from Israel, used by the authors as representing the National Education Review Vol. 10 No. 6 http://edrev.asu.edu 2 Average IQ of Ethiopia. Most of these immigrants had...
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