Philosophy
So, looking at the 2008 White House Office Staff Salary List, there are four "Ethics Advisors":
George, Allison Carr $130,694
Green, Marcella Moira $107,836
Sarkany, Sergio Francisco $86,279
Molinaro, Rachel E $58,206
None of whom seem to have any philosophical background. To be fair, "ethics" in this context generally means avoiding conflicts of interest rather than deliberating about difficult moral conundrums, but still... 130 G's to be an ethics advisor to the White House? There's a job I'd love to have. Reminds me of a comment I heard years ago made about a certain philosopher -- "Having him teach ethics is like having a blind man teach aesthetics."
- M.b.a.'s And The Meltdown
A letter to Marketplace made an interesting point. This economic meltdown was the result of the actions of businesspeople at a time when more people have M.B.A.'s than at any time in history. The letter-writer was bemoaning the fact that the graduate...
- What Can Be Taught?
Strange that we don't ask this question before we begin to teach, but what is it that can be taught? Skills can be taught. That seems uncontroversial. But what else? As a teacher of critical thinking, can people be taught to be rational? As an ethics...
- Why I Teach
I generally don't respond to memes, but (1) I was tagged on this one by someone whose blog I love, Dr. Free Ride of Adventures in Ethics and Science and (2) it's an interesting question: "Why do you teach and why is academic freedom critical to...
- When Is Good Enough, Good Enough?
The deep questions are often not the technical, complex ones, but the simple ones that challenge the technical complex answers that arose from earlier "simple" questions. In grad school, I was very lucky to study ethics with Susan Wolf, a philosopher...
- Comedism In Congress
If you are new to the playground, weekends are time for the week's Comedist sermon. If you are unfamiliar with the new religion Comedism, here is an introduction to Comedism, ; passages from The Comedist Manifesto, our holy book; Comedist support...
Philosophy
Nice "Work" If You Can Get It
So, looking at the 2008 White House Office Staff Salary List, there are four "Ethics Advisors":
George, Allison Carr $130,694
Green, Marcella Moira $107,836
Sarkany, Sergio Francisco $86,279
Molinaro, Rachel E $58,206
None of whom seem to have any philosophical background. To be fair, "ethics" in this context generally means avoiding conflicts of interest rather than deliberating about difficult moral conundrums, but still... 130 G's to be an ethics advisor to the White House? There's a job I'd love to have. Reminds me of a comment I heard years ago made about a certain philosopher -- "Having him teach ethics is like having a blind man teach aesthetics."
- M.b.a.'s And The Meltdown
A letter to Marketplace made an interesting point. This economic meltdown was the result of the actions of businesspeople at a time when more people have M.B.A.'s than at any time in history. The letter-writer was bemoaning the fact that the graduate...
- What Can Be Taught?
Strange that we don't ask this question before we begin to teach, but what is it that can be taught? Skills can be taught. That seems uncontroversial. But what else? As a teacher of critical thinking, can people be taught to be rational? As an ethics...
- Why I Teach
I generally don't respond to memes, but (1) I was tagged on this one by someone whose blog I love, Dr. Free Ride of Adventures in Ethics and Science and (2) it's an interesting question: "Why do you teach and why is academic freedom critical to...
- When Is Good Enough, Good Enough?
The deep questions are often not the technical, complex ones, but the simple ones that challenge the technical complex answers that arose from earlier "simple" questions. In grad school, I was very lucky to study ethics with Susan Wolf, a philosopher...
- Comedism In Congress
If you are new to the playground, weekends are time for the week's Comedist sermon. If you are unfamiliar with the new religion Comedism, here is an introduction to Comedism, ; passages from The Comedist Manifesto, our holy book; Comedist support...