Monthly Archives: June 2014

In fact, it’s a lot fucking worse, if you can’t see that, you must be a fucking moron, just the kind of thing I’d expect from someone like you, over-privileged wanker in your fucking ivory towers. Ivory! Don’t you know … Continue reading →

Here’s part of an email I received from my child’s school today: “COMMUNITY GOVERNOR FOR THE CHERWELL SCHOOL Are you a qualified accountant? Are you a Cherwell parent, present or future, or a member of the local community, who would … Continue reading →

In amongst the current cat calls across Parliament about the state of British education in schools, there can be heard the cry for sex and relationship education in schools. I never thought I would be sceptical about the provision of … Continue reading →

If you read some reports, you’d think so. But there are many problems with recent claims that philosophy has a particularly bad problem with sexual harassment. One thing that has especially troubled me is that reports of the apparently high … Continue reading →

Prize competition: Which philosopher said this to me in response to a question I raised at a seminar many moons ago? Me: “How, on your view, can moral judgements provide reasons for action?” Him: “That’s a good question.” (Pause.) “Did … Continue reading →

One theory has it that proper names are rigid designators. A rigid designator, according to Saul Kripke who introduced the idea in his book Naming and Necessity, refers to exactly the same thing in all possible worlds. As I see … Continue reading →

I teach ethics. Like many other subjects, including literature, theology, psychology, sociology, medicine, anthropology, history, and art history, proper study of this subject will expose students to material that ‘some may find distressing’. It would be impossible to teach it … Continue reading →

There’s an example by the philosopher Michael Slote used to illustrate an issue with consequentialism. A family has broken down outside a hotel. There are empty rooms available, and so the manager kindly offers them a meal and a cabin … Continue reading →