Wild Birds of New Zealand v. Mean Cats

Feb 112013
 
 February 11, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: ,
Wild Birds of New Zealand v. Mean Cats

Everybody knows that cats are evil. But nobody understands this more than the birds of New Zealand, which have been mercilessly hunted down by the ferocious felines. So why do we care? There are a number of endangered birds in New Zealand, a number of which are flightless. Gareth Morgan, a prominent New Zealand economist, has suggested that New Zealand eliminate cats from the country altogether. Morgan claims that one of the country’s greatest assets is its natural resources and wildlife, and that cats are directly to blame for the endangered status of numerous birds. Of course, New Zealand is a nation of cat ladies, with more cats per capita than any other country in the world. Clearly, this sets the stage for a war of epic proportions: bird lovers v. cat ladies. Anybody More…

Big Questions: Animal Ethics, Feb. 18

Feb 102013
 
 February 10, 2013  Posted by
Big Questions: Animal Ethics, Feb. 18

This week’s Big Questions session tackles issues surrounding animal ethics. Do animals have any rights that we should recognize as universal? Should we value wildlife and pets according to different rubrics? Is it okay to eat animals? Under what circumstances is not acceptable to eat them? This topic was inspired by Nihir’s recent Devil’s Dilemma post about a New Zealand economist who has recommended a on ban cats in order to protect the many endemic and endangered species of birds in his country. Join us in West Duke 103 for snacks and conversation Monday, February 18th from 3:30 until 5pm. No RSVP is necessary; this event is free and open to everyone.

Much Ado About Foreskin

Feb 082013
 
 February 8, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: , , , , , ,
Much Ado About Foreskin

Is circumcision of young boys an affront on their bodily rights? “Yes!” That is according to a regional court ruling in Cologne, Germany, last spring. This case arose after the circumcision of a four-year-old Muslim boy led to medical complications. The doctor who had performed the operation was taken to court and the court ruled that the boy’s “fundamental right to bodily integrity” had been violated. This ruling caused a lot of hue and cry among Muslims and Jews since they viewed it as an affront to their religious freedom. Although German lawmakers eventually passed a legislation that ensures that parents have a right to have their boys circumcised, this controversy touches on a lot of raw nerves. It is clear that while activists against female circumcision in most countries easily get their arguments More…

Cheating When it Doesn’t Count

Feb 072013
 
 February 7, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: ,
Cheating When it Doesn’t Count

As midterm week approaches at Duke, numerous instances of cheating can be heard on the C1, on the plaza, and in Perkins. – “Oh, I STINFed that class. Had to study for orgo.” – “Can I see your p-set? I don’t have time to do it.” – “First time I’ve written a paper without Adderall!” Pressures are high, and so we cut corners. But why would students cheat for classes that “don’t count?” The online course company, Coursera, reported dozens of instances of plagiarism in a sci-fi fantasy course attended by 39,000 students. The class (and all classes offered through Coursera) is free, peer-graded, and carries no academic credit, except a certificate of achievement. Fun fact: Duke Professor Walter Sinnott-Armstrong teaches the largest Coursera course — over 180,000 are enrolled. More…

A Fan’s Moral Imperative: Is Watching Football Ethical?

Feb 042013
 
 February 4, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: , , ,
A Fan's Moral Imperative: Is Watching Football Ethical?

To prepare themselves for the Super Bowl yesterday, many people are asked themselves some important questions: What kind of dip will I make? How much beer do I need to buy? Will the toss be heads or tails? Which commercial will be the best? Will it be the 49ers or the Ravens? I can certainly relate to most of these concerns (though, I must admit that once the Redskins lost, I was just not invested in the postseason). But, maybe the question that few, if any, are asking themselves is the one that’s the most important: is watching football ethical? For lifelong football fans, myself included, this might be a shocking question. Perhaps it seems like something only those in high academics would debate. But, with the recent death of More…

Football and Antlers

Feb 042013
 
 February 4, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: , , ,
Football and Antlers

Thanks to the resurgence of antler sprays as highly questionable athletic supplements, deer antlers are still trending a month after Christmas. For thousands of years, deer antlers have been used as a Chinese remedy for essentially everything (a quick Google search will yield a wide variety of results). While most of the antler benefits have not been scientifically proven, it is believed that these antlers contain high concentrations of IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor 1) – a protein that promotes cell-growth. As a result, many deer antler supplements have been dubiously marketed as performance enhancing wonder drugs due to speculations that IGF-1 will boost muscle growth. The “antler issue” has been plaguing sports for a while (IFG-1 is banned in professional leagues such as the MLB and NFL), but it regained More…

What are our toys trying to tell us?

Jan 312013
 
 January 31, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: ,
What are our toys trying to tell us?

When you open newly bought Halloween decorations, the last thing you expect to find between two headstones is a cry for help from Chinese labor camp workers across the world. That is exactly what happened to one US shopper at a K-Mart in Oregon. This woman was shocked at the explicit message inscribed in a letter inside the box she purchased. Normally, when we buy items at a store, there is no indication of how, where, and under what conditions the product was made. Some of us may not care how products are made, but even for those who do want to be ethical consumers, it can be difficult to do so. This may be for a number of reasons including the higher cost of ethically made goods, the cynicism More…

The Morality of Cursing “Go to Hell Carolina, Go To Hell”

Jan 302013
 
 January 30, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: , ,
The Morality of Cursing “Go to Hell Carolina, Go To Hell”

Guest Post by Jing Song Ng In less than three weeks, Cameron will be awash with bobbing blobs of blue: a stampede of hopping feet vertically propels faces encrusted with paint. Behold the enduring war cry: “GO TO HELL CAROLINA, GO TO HELL!” And golly, we feel great banishing our neighbors to the infernal pits. We gleefully rejoice when our team’s foul goes unnoticed. A twisted Tarheell ankle wrings out hoots of delight from the Crazies, even as the player’s face writhes in anguish. Such is the ethics of parochialism: the practice of prioritizing the happiness of a select few over the happiness of the many. For those not familiar with Cameron Crazies, check out this video of parochialism in action: This communal frenzy is not morally bankrupt. There are More…

Florida, Workman, and the Case of the Tossed Dwarves

Jan 282013
 
 January 28, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: , , ,
Florida, Workman, and the Case of the Tossed Dwarves

The first blog entry I wrote for the Devil’s Dilemma was on the ethical implications surrounding a bizarre New Zealand past time known as Possum Tossing. I thought that was the strangest topic I’d write about, but I can now say that this new story takes the cake, and it’s happening right here in America. A Florida state representative, Ritch Workman, is pushing a campaign to lift the ban on “dwarf tossing.” The strange activity is it exactly what it sounds like, and (not surprisingly) often takes place in bars or other events involving alcoholic libations. In this activity, dwarves wear some sort of padded clothing, usually with Velcro, and are then thrown (or “tossed”), usually onto a mattress or similar surface coated in Velcro. It may come as no More…

The Te’o hoax: Why we care so much, and why we really should not

Jan 252013
 
 January 25, 2013  Posted by  Tagged with: , , ,
The Te’o hoax: Why we care so much, and why we really should not

The narrative is so beautiful: Girlfriend of mega-football star died of leukemia, and boyfriend carried his team to an upset in her honor. The football star then went on to become the second most dominant player in college. Why second? Because that’s what actually happened, and frankly, first will just be a bit too cliché. As it turns out, Manti Te’o’s girlfriend was not real; in fact, the “girlfriend” might had been a boy. Many people are now “vaguely enraged” (phrase borrowed from Kolsterman in his letters to Gladwell) because they ended up on the receiving end of the “just kidding” story of the year. As of right now, nobody knows whether Te’o was involved in this not-so-malicious hoax. In fact, I made a meme for the occasion! (I actually think it More…

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