If population shrinks and the past accumulates, we're going to be in big trouble. The only reason to pay attention to the wishes of the dead is that the living will have more confidence their wishes will be respected. If I try to think today which government in the world is most utilitarian, not globally, not for animals, but just for its own citizens, I would tend to think that Singapore.
Peter Singer is one of the world’s most influential living philosophers, whose ideas have motivated millions of people to change how they eat, how they give, and how they interact with each other and the natural world.
Peter joined Tyler to discuss whether utilitarianism is only tractable at the margin, how Peter thinks about the meat-eater problem, why he might side with aliens over humans, at what margins he would police nature, the utilitarian approach to secularism and abortion, what he’s learned producing the Journal of Controversial Ideas, what he’d change about the current Effective Altruism movement, where Derek Parfit went wrong, to what extent we should respect the wishes of the dead, why professional philosophy is so boring, his advice on how to enjoy our lives, what he’ll be doing after retiring from teaching, and more.
Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links, or watch the full video.
Recorded May 25th, 2023
Other ways to connect
Photo credit: Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek