On Sunday’s episode of Philosophy in Action Radio, Greg Perkins and I answered questions on women versus nice men, the harm of undiscovered infidelity, lying to protect privacy, important ideological disagreements, misused words, returning lost property, and more. The podcast of that episode is now available for streaming or downloading.

You can automatically download podcasts of Philosophy in Action Radio by subscribing to Philosophy in Action’s Podcast RSS Feed:

• Enhanced M4A Feed: Subscribe via iTunes or another podcast player
• Standard MP3 Feed: Subscribe via iTunes or another podcast player

Whole Podcast: 9 January 2011

Listen or Download:

• Duration: 59:37
• Download: Enhanced M4A File (21.7 MB)
• Download: Standard MP3 File (20.5 MB)

Remember the Tip Jar!

The mission of Philosophy in Action is to spread rational principles for real life… far and wide. That’s why the vast majority of my work is available to anyone, free of charge. I love doing the radio show, but each episode requires an investment of time, effort, and money to produce. So if you enjoy and value that work of mine, please contribute to the tip jar. I suggest $5 per episode or $20 per month, but any amount is appreciated. In return, contributors can request that I answer questions from the queue pronto, and regular contributors enjoy free access to premium content and other goodies.

Podcast Segments: 9 January 2011

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

Introduction

My News of the Week: Let’s get started!

Question 1: Women Versus Nice Men

Question: Why do you think most women typically have disdain for men who are ‘too nice’?

My Answer, In Brief: The distinction between nice or not is not a fundamental character trait. It’s largely a matter of style, and its value is wholly dependent on a person’s moral character. If a person is a rational egoist, then he can be strong-willed in pursuit of his values, yet also respectful of the facts and of other people.

Listen or Download:

• Start Time: 3:33
• Duration: 8:20
• Download: MP3 Segment
• Tags: Character, Dating, Ethics, Personality, Psychology, Relationships, Romance

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

Question 2: The Harm of Undiscovered Infidelity

Question: If a husband cheated on his wife, and she never knew about it, he never got anyone pregnant, and he never got any STDs, would she be harmed? If so, how?

My Answer, In Brief: The cheater is doing harm to himself and to the relationship, even if his partner unaware of that.

Listen or Download:

• Start Time: 11:54
• Duration: 7:32
• Download: MP3 Segment
• Tags: Ethics, Honesty, Infidelity, Marriage

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

Question 3: Lying to Protect Privacy

Question: Is lying to protect one’s own privacy moral or not? Many people regard lies to protect their own privacy as justifiable, even necessary. For example, a woman might tell her co-workers that she’s not seeing anyone, even though she’s dating the boss. She might tell those co-workers that she didn’t get a hefty end-of-year bonus, even though she did. She might tell a nosy acquaintance that she didn’t want children, rather than reveal her struggles with infertility. Is that wrong – or unwise? How could the woman protect her privacy in those circumstances without lying?

My Answer, In Brief: A person should protect his privacy by advance planning, including cultivating his personal boundaries and social skills, rather than by suffering all the risks and harms of lying.

Listen or Download:

• Start Time: 19:26
• Duration: 10:53
• Download: MP3 Segment
• Tags: Ethics, Honesty, Privacy, Secrets

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

Question 4: Important Ideological Disagreements

Question: How can Diana and Greg ‘co-exist’ with their difference regarding the question of personhood at/before birth, as seen in the 19 December 2010 show? I ask this especially in light of the discussion in the 26 December 2010 discussion of reality being binary. One of you is wrong on the personhood issue and the issue is so fundamental, I could never tolerate a dispute at this level with a close friend.

My Answer, In Brief: Not all disagreements need be divisive. Approach others – particularly friends – with respect, give them good arguments and time to think through them, if the matter is important enough to discuss.

Listen or Download:

• Start Time: 30:20
• Duration: 13:08
• Download: MP3 Segment
• Tags: Abortion, Conflict, Philosophy, Pregnancy, Relationships, Sanction

Links:

• The ‘Personhood’ Movement Is Anti-Life: Why It Matters that Rights Begin at Birth, Not Conception by Ari Armstrong and Diana Hsieh, particularly the section Rights in Pregnancy
• When does a fetus/infant become an individual? on Objectivist Answers and Abortion Rights and Parental Obligations by Greg Perkins

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

Question 5: Misused Words

Question: How should we act towards others with poor conceptual habits? How should one act towards others who consistently refuse to use some concepts properly? For example, those who call margarine “butter” despite the drastic difference in their chemical makeup.

My Answer, In Brief: You should figure out why the person is misusing words – whether due to mistake, indifference, or malice, then act accordingly.

Listen or Download:

• Start Time: 43:29
• Duration: 6:11
• Download: MP3 Segment
• Tags: Epistemology, Language

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

Question 6: Returning Lost Property

Question: Is there a proper policy on keeping lost property? If one were to find property that had been lost, is there a proper policy which would allow the finder to keep it? The most common example is finding an envelope full of money. Is one even morally obligated to report that he has found it? (Suppose that the owner cannot be immediately located, even with a decent amount of effort.)

My Answer, In Brief: Because lost property belongs to someone else and because you want to live in a benevolent culture, you should make a reasonable effort to return that property to its rightful owner. Forgetful people like me really appreciate that!

Listen or Download:

• Start Time: 49:40
• Duration: 8:26
• Download: MP3 Segment
• Tags: Ethics, Law, Property, Rights

To comment on this question or my answer, 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: 58:06

About Philosophy in Action Radio

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.