The Morality of Everyday Things: An Everyday Philosophy Podcast

In this episode, Jake and Ant look at the ethics of art. Well, a very small sub-section, enjoying the works of artists who are themselves immoral. In considering this, we consider the difference between art and things that are simply visually/audibly pleasing and how the context of art can (or should) affect how we appreciate it.Key considerations include whether the 'problematic' context of the artist is literally part of their work, a heavy influence or driver of the work, or totally separate. We also consider whether the issue is consequential, i.e. we should withold our attention to financially harm such artists, or diminish their reputation, or whether it's more to satisfy a personal moral qualm.Please do leave a review on your podcast platform, it really helps us immensely.Sign up to our newsletter here to receive a breakdown of the arguments presented, some memes and updates on future episodes: https://moedt.substack.com/If you'd like to support the show, checkout our patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt *excuse minor echo in audio* Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode (another guest-episode digression from our usual format, which we'll return to next episode), Jake and Ant look at whether entrepreneurship can be a force for good, with Chris and Chris from the Beyond Binary Thinking podcast. We discuss the difference between entrepreneurship en masse and large tech companies, the role of finance (and over-financialization) in business and whether shifting ownership can help resolve some of these issues.Sign up to our newsletter here to receive a breakdown of the arguments presented, some memes and updates on future episodes: https://moedt.substack.com/If you'd like to support the show, checkout our patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant look at whether banning Trump was the right thing to do for social media platforms. With our guests, Peter Suciu (Twitter: @PeterSuciu) and Alex Kantrowitz (twitter: @kantrowitz, podcast: https://redcircle.com/shows/big-technology-podcast) we explore questions such as: are SM platforms utilities, is free speech the same as free access to platforms, what were the morally relevant contingent factors to this decision and what next for such SM platforms?This is our first guest-format episode. Please share feedback, give us a review and support the show any way you see fit.Sign up to our newsletter here to receive a breakdown of the arguments presented, some memes and updates on future episodes: https://moedt.substack.com/If you'd like to support the show, checkout our patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant look at the ethics of mandatory vaccination, particularly in the context of covid and the year of mandatory lockdowns we've just been through. Arguably, vaccines have clearer benefits and fewer trade-offs than lockdowns, but precedent over the last few decades has been to enshrine people's freedom of choice on the matter (even if their opinions are based on debunked conspiracy theories).Does the covid crisis make for a different circumstance, particularly given all the recent, mandatory lockdowns? They do after all represent another example of restricting personal freedoms in the interest of public health. We consider the similarities and differences between these interventions which either support or detract from this analogy, exploring concepts of bodily autonomy and human dignity, as well as a brief 'ground-up' view from consequentialist and deontological perspectives.Sign up to our newsletter here to receive a breakdown of the arguments presented, some memes and updates on future episodes: https://moedt.substack.com/If you'd like to support the show, checkout our patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant look at the ethics of private education. Education is so important - and so formative - that it's important to ask whether it is fair for some people to access a higher quality education on the basis of wealth. What happens when what is best for society does not line up with what is best for us individually? If you'd like to support the show, checkout our patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Jake and Ant explore what it means to be overpaid - both from an economic and moral perspective. Particularly, footballers are considered in the context of essentially being entertainers. In it, you'll get a potted history of how footballers went from earning £1 a week to over £300k, an original take on the footballers v nurses debate and a look at what happened to the Gunnersaurus. If you'd like to support the show, check out our Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedtReferences from the episode:For more information about Treepoints, visit https://treepoints.greenThe Peter Crouch podcast's Roy Keane photosSeville's capture of the GunnersaurusThe Acquired PodcastThe shareholders cartoon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant explore what it means to be a bad person, briefly revisit the distinction between good/bad and right/wrong and discuss in some more depth why they specifically chose Facebook for this question (rather than BP or Goldman Sachs or Google) and some of the harms and goods it facilitates.If you'd like to support the show, check out our Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant consider whether the consumption of meat - and specifically the production and slaughter of animals to that end - is immoral. This includes an exploration of the moral differences between different animals (humans included) and a consideration of whether the crux of the issue lies in the suffering and death involved in production or rather in the specific act of consuming the flesh of another creature. Following this, there's a consideration of the indirect effects of eating meat as part of the wider system of industrial meat farming, including the environmental impact of the industry, poor treatment of workers and the impact on propagating the spread of viruses.This episode was flatteringly described as "not bad, for carnists".If you'd like to support the show, check out our Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant consider how and why we segregate sports and, ultimately, what the point of sports might be? This includes an exploration of current issues of segregating by sex, given difficulty determining how to include trans athletes and those with DSD such as Caster Semenya - who recently lost a court ruling on the matter. There are many other forms of segregation that happen in sport, such as weight classes. Which ones are relevant and how should we handle this issue in the future?If you'd like to support the show, check out our Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Jake and Ant consider the circumstances where restricting personal freedoms in the interest of public health may be morally justified. This includes an exploration of whether this is a truly unique circumstances, versus issues like national security, what moral frameworks are most appropriate and the classic balancing of the moral calculus. We'll address questions such as: what's the value of a human life? How should we spread benefits and harms across society and, of course, what might Kant have to say about all this?If you'd like to support the show, check out our Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/moedt--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/moedt/messageIf you'd like to listen ad-free (on any podcast app) and support us as creators, become a member for as little as $2 per month at: https://plus.acast.com/s/moedt.Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices