Category Archives: Episodes
Episode 11. Christopher Heath Wellman on Immigration
There is no denying that international borders—coercively upheld and protected—are a huge factor in determining the distribution of wealth and opportunities throughout the world. From education and health care, to access to credit and the rule of law, a host … Continue reading
Episode 10. Hilary Charlesworth on Bills of Rights
The widespread agreement on the importance of human rights in liberal democracies masks sharp differences between governments’ methods of protecting these rights. What does a country gain by enacting a bill of rights? Do countries that lack bills of rights, … Continue reading
Episode 9. Michael Selgelid on Infectious Diseases
Can we infringe individual rights to promote public health? Should, say, individuals be allowed to determine for themselves when they are too infectious to get on a plane? What happens when an individual contracts a new disease that is of … Continue reading
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Episode 8. David Grewal on Network Power
The evolving global order has liberalized trade in goods, capital, ideas, and, to a lesser extent, people within a multilateral and market-oriented framework. Debates on globalization have focused on the question of whether this order is morally defensible. The arguments … Continue reading
Episode 7. Jeff McMahan on Proportionality
Out of some 1,300 Palestinians killed in Gaza, Israel claims that it can name more than 700 of the dead who were Hamas fighters. Claiming precise knowledge of their targets, Israeli officials insist that their attacks were judiciously planned so … Continue reading
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Episode 6. Bob Goodin and Lina Eriksson on Public Ethics Radio.
What does it mean to live well? The U.S. Census Bureau informs us that an individual American with an income of less than $10,590 lives below the poverty line and is eligible for federal assistance. Add children and the number … Continue reading
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Episode 5. Larry Temkin on Extending Human Lifespans
In his victory speech, President-elect Obama singled out Ann Nixon Cooper. At 106 years old, she has borne witness to tectonic shifts in her society. Few of us would hesitate at a chance to live such a remarkably extended life. … Continue reading
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Episode 4. Larry May on Habeas Corpus
Are habeas corpus petitions, as Barack Obama put it, “the foundation of Anglo-American law”? Or are they just nuisance lawsuits, “whether it be about the diet, whether it be about the reading material,” that will just slow down the legal … Continue reading
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Episode 3. Leif Wenar on the Resource Curse
When we talk about theft in international trade, we usually mean piracy, smuggling, or copyright infringement. Professor Leif Wenar, of King’s College London, thinks that we might be missing the forest for the trees. Illegal transactions across borders are going … Continue reading
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Episode 2. Jessica Wolfendale on Torture Lite
It’s been three years since George Bush announced that the United States does not engage in torture. Since then, a continuous stream of information has indicated that, although Jack Bauer–style brutality is officially prohibited, the U.S. officially sanctions and regularly … Continue reading
