On Sunday’s episode of Philosophy in Action Radio, Greg Perkins and I answered questions on responsibility for a child, career without aptitude, and more. The podcast of that episode is now available for streaming or downloading.

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Whole Podcast: 14 June 2015

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Podcast Segments: 14 June 2015

You can download or listen to my answers to individual questions from this episode below.

Introduction

My News of the Week: I’ve been working on personal projects, and I had my first krav maga class this week!

Question 1: Responsibility for a Child

Question: When is a person responsible for an unexpected and unwanted child? Sex sometimes results in an unexpected and perhaps unwanted pregnancy. What are the moral responsibilities of each party in this situation? Do a person’s obligations depend on prior agreements about what would be done in such a case? Do they depend on whether contraception was used or not? If the man said that he didn’t want children and used contraception, yet a pregnancy occurs, does he have any moral or legal obligation to pay for an abortion, support the child, or act as a father? Does the answer change if the woman agreed to have an abortion in advance, then changes her mind? Should couples talk explicitly about these matters before sex?

My Answer, In Brief: Morally and legally, the fundamental principle is that neither men nor women should be compelled to become parents against their will.

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To comment on this question or my answer, visit its comment thread.

Question 2: Career without Aptitude

Question: Should I pursue a career that interests me even if I don’t have much aptitude for it? I have a strong interest in the field of bioengineering for what it can potentially accomplish. However, in my own estimation, I have little aptitude for hard science and seriously doubt whether I can succeed academically in the areas necessary to enter the field. This self-assessment is based on my academic history, life accomplishments, and aptitude test results. Should I try to pursue this career against the odds anyway, or should I accept that I don’t have the intellectual capability to do so?

My Answer, In Brief: Your interest in bioengineering sounds like an interest in what it produces, not in the day-to-day process of creating that. To make a career in something, you need to love the process. So seek a career where you love the work itself.

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To comment on this question or my answer, visit its comment thread.

Rapid Fire Questions

Questions:

  • If an infant is born with an incurable disease that will kill it after weeks of suffering, should it be permissible to simply euthanise the infant?
  • How is weed legalization going in Colorado from your observations? Do you notice people casually smoking in public? Does the public there have an overall positive or negative view of it so far?
  • Scanning the internet is shortening my attention span considerably. I feel impatient urges to move on whenever I start reading anything. Any advice for how to lessen the urges and retrain focus?
  • How does a person stop himself from obsessing about a difficult conversation they are planning to have with someone? What are some signs that he has moved beyond reasonable planning to obsessing?
  • A while ago I asked you about the moral considerations involved in having to revive my landlord, who didn’t take care of her type-1 diabetes properly and had me and other people calling an ambulance for her regularly, nearly a dozen times within a year. (She ate irregularly, or skipped meals altogether, causing her to pass out, get very weak, or lose most of her cognitive ability.) My concern was whether it was ethical to just leave her in a catatonic state, and you stated that there’s “duty to rescue” laws, where, given my relationship with my landlord, I was legally obligated to tend to her emergencies, regardless if they were honest or not. However, couldn’t it be said that the landlord was literally forcing me to take care of her, violating my rights, since her diabetic emergencies were due to her irresponsibility? Shouldn’t there be a limit to how many times or in what ways a duty to rescue law can apply? Shouldn’t I be able to press charges, sue, or be relieved of obligations, such as being able to move out without illegally breaking the renter’s contract?
  • Isn’t it true that, if the universe has always existed then that, in and of itself, is the strongest argument against design by God? In other words, for argument’s sake, doesn’t just the possibility of the universe being the metaphysical given render design arguments moot?
  • Did Ayn Rand have a sense of humor? Is there room for humor in Objectivism?
  • Could you give a brief overview of Stoicism and its good versus bad points?
  • Was Oskar Schindler an altruist?
  • Would you agree that musical theatre is the only art form that has always remained romantic? I have never heard or a realist musical or a stream of consciousness musical.
  • Why do people describe John Rawls as an ‘individualist’ when his ideas seem to underly all of modern statism?
  • Do you prefer the original Star Trek or The Next Generation?

Listen or Download:

  • Start Time: 25:36
  • Duration: 37:13
  • Download: MP3 Segment

To comment on these questions or my answers, visit its comment thread.

Conclusion

Be sure to check out the topics scheduled for upcoming episodes! Don’t forget to submit and vote on questions for future episodes too!

  • Start Time: 1:02:49


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Philosophy in Action Radio focuses on the application of rational principles to the challenges of real life. It broadcasts live on most Sunday mornings and many Thursday evenings over the internet. For information on upcoming shows, visit the Episodes on Tap. For podcasts of past shows, visit the Show Archives.

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