Nathan Nobis, Ph.D. - Philosophy Professor and More
Tuesday, April 02, 2024
Monday, April 01, 2024
Text to speech at 1000WordPhilosophy.com
1000WordPhilosophy.com now has text-to-speech (TTS) capabilities.
Check it out!
Any thoughts about it? Let us know!
Monday, November 20, 2023
Teaching Vegetarian / Vegan Arguments
By good luck and timing, we were able to finish the vegan / vegetarian arguments in class today.
FYI, here's some of the materials used:
1. "Reasonable Humans and Animals," by me, written long ago, posted under a pseudo name.
https://www.nathannobis.com/2016/08/an-argument-for-veganism-from-2005-or.html
2. The abstract of the position paper of the Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Vegetarian Diets.
https://higherlogicdownload.s3.amazonaws.com/THEACADEMY/859dd171-3982-43db-8535-56c4fdc42b51/UploadedImages/VN/Documents/Position-of-the-Academy-of-Nutrition-and-Dietetics-Vegetarian-Diets.pdf
3. "Our Friends at the Farm," an old video from Farm Sanctuary and Gene Baur, which I set up as a "college students versus elementary students debate; and:
https://youtu.be/vo2-4RnTk8k
4. some frequent references to Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat and their page.
https://www.elwooddogmeat.com/
5. some short video overviews of the main arguments by Singer and Regan, by me.
https://www.tiktok.com/@nathan.nobis/video/7029021393006185734?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id6927684233759786502
https://www.tiktok.com/@nathan.nobis/video/7030472929603374341?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id6927684233759786502
Maybe this will be of interest to some out there!
#vegan #vegetarian #teaching #teachingphilosophy #ethics #teachingethics
Video: Youtube: Peter Singer's "Animal Liberation" and "All Animals Are Equal"
Video: Youtube: Tom Regan's Human Rights and Animal Rights
Reading: “Speciesism” by Dan Lowe
Video: “Their Future is in your hands” by Animal Aid
Video: “My Friends at the Farm,” Farm Sanctuary
Video: Farm to Fridge by Mercy for Animals (The Truth About Meat Production); (4-minute version)
"Reasonable Humans and Animals" by John Simmons
Abstract of the Position of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Vegetarian Diets (updated link!)
Tuesday, November 14, 2023
On the Moral Status of Non-Human Animals and Vulnerable Human Beings
On the Moral Status of Non-Human Animals and Vulnerable Human Beings
Abstract: What do the reasons given for and against various moral views about many non-human animals imply or suggest for moral views about human beings in all their varieties, especially “vulnerable” human beings? And what do the reasons given for and against various moral views about the variety of human beings imply or suggest for our moral views about many animals? Some people are offended by some of these claims and arguments, but which are genuinely offensive? These and related questions are discussed and answered here.
2. Moral Epistemologies for Animals 2
2.2. Arguments from Non-Species-Specific Properties 3
2.2.1. The Argument for Animal Rights 4
2.2.2. The Argument against Animal Rights 5
2.3. Arguments from Animals’ Relations to Human Beings 6
2.3.1. Arguments from Human Beings “In General” 6
2.3.2. Arguments from All Human Beings 8
2.3.2.1. Is the Argument Offensive? 10
2.3.2.2. A Dangerous Argument? 10
2.3.2.3. An Unsound Argument? 14
3. Moral Epistemologies for Human Beings 18
3.2. Arguments from Non-Species-Specific Principles 18
3.3. Rationality-Requiring Theories of Rights 18
3.4. Theories of Rights based on Relations to (Rational) Human Beings 18
3.5. From Animal Rights to Human Rights 19
4. Conclusions: What Should We Think? What Should We Do? 19
4.2. Human-Rights Advocates 20
4.3. Foes of Human and Animal Rights 21
Sunday, October 29, 2023
Shortcast Club
I was on the Shortcast.club podcast again, this time with a writing tip ("Assume that your reader is about to die, so you tell them the most important stuff first, in case they don't make it!").
Tuesday, October 17, 2023
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
Ethical relativism
An in-class reading comprehension quiz on cultural relativism:
1. Cultural relativism is the view that different cultures have some different moral views. True or false? Explain your answer.
2. Cultural relativism is an ethical theory: it’s an explanation for what makes wrong actions wrong and what makes not-wrong actions not wrong. What’s cultural relativism’s explanation here of what makes wrong actions wrong and permissible actions permissible?
3. What argument pattern are the arguments against cultural relativism?
4. Are the arguments given for cultural relativism – that is, to think that it’s a true theory – sound or unsound? Why?
Saturday, June 17, 2023
Following All The Facts About Abortion—Scientific, Ethical, And Logical—Wherever They Lead
“Following All The Facts About Abortion—Scientific, Ethical, And Logical—Wherever They Lead,” a response to @CCamosy in @RNS (“Faith, science and the abortion debate”) and @americamag (“it’s the pro-lifers who have science on their side”) #abortion #prochoice #prolife #ethics
And here's a (funny?) video inspired by what's often said about these matters:
@nathan.nobis A conversation with a certain type of "pro-life" or anti-abortion advocate: does that sound familiar to you? If not, it should?! #abortion #prochoice #prolife #criticalthinking #logic #bioethics #philosophy #arguments #counterexamples ♬ original sound - Philosophy 101 - Prof. Nobis
Tuesday, May 23, 2023
Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Talk for a Leadership class on ethics and animals
I gave a talk / led a class today at a class on Moral Leadership. The notes talk are here.
Here were the questions I addressed:
Would it be morally permissible for a “moral leader” to start and maintain a factory farm or a slaughterhouse? Or would that be morally wrong? WHY?
Would it be morally permissible for a “moral leader” to start and maintain a so-called “humane farm” or slaughterhouse? Or would that be morally wrong? WHY?
Would it be morally permissible for a “moral leader” to start and maintain a competitor to Elwood’s Dog Meat’s farm? Or would that be morally wrong? (If so, would it also be wrong to raise and kill cows, pigs, chickens, and other animals?). WHY?
Would a “moral leader” buy and eat meat, and other animal-based food products in most circumstances they are actually in? Would a moral leader be a vegetarian or a vegan? WHY?
In general, what would a moral leader do (actions; behaviors), and what kind of person would a moral leader be (character traits, virtues; “personal style” of engagement–how they interact with others and view them)?
Sunday, April 09, 2023
Penser l’avortement
Penser l’avortement
Thinking Critically About Abortion, in French!
Available from the publisher ÉLIOTT ÉDITIONS and from Amazon France!
This is not yet available in an open-access format, but this should happen eventually. Check back!
Tuesday, April 04, 2023
AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT THE FUTURE OF 1000-WORD PHILOSOPHY, FROM ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS
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AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT THE FUTURE OF 1000-WORD PHILOSOPHY, FROM ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS