Famine, Affluence, and Morality
I just finished reading Singer's 1972 Famine, Affluence, and Morality in which he discusses the nature of moral obligation as it relates to those in famine (starvation, poverty..etc). As I think this is a very important issue, please read the article and think about the issues presented.
A crude summary:
Assumption one: "...suffering and death from lack of food, shelter, and medical care are bad."
Assumption two: "...if it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it."
Conclusion: "...our lives, our society, and our world would be fundamentally changed."
Though seemingly radical, I have trouble finding flaws in his argument. How about you?
A crude summary:
Assumption one: "...suffering and death from lack of food, shelter, and medical care are bad."
Assumption two: "...if it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it."
Conclusion: "...our lives, our society, and our world would be fundamentally changed."
Though seemingly radical, I have trouble finding flaws in his argument. How about you?
posted by That which is called Darren at 5:48 PM
3 Comments:
Please see the world through Natchtwey's eyes
http://www.jamesnachtwey.com/
Thank you so much. The link is greatly appreciated and deeply moving.
That's the real pain that we avoid to face...
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