Showing results by author "Magnus Vinding" in All Categories

This audiobook is part introduction to, part reflective examination of the idea and ideal of effective altruism. Its aim is to examine the core question of effective altruism: How can we best help others? It's a question that in turn forces us to contemplate what helping others, effectively or otherwise, really entails.

The reduction of suffering deserves special priority. Many ethical views support this claim, yet so far these have not been presented in a single place. Suffering-Focused Ethics provides the most comprehensive presentation of suffering-focused arguments and views to date, including a moral realist case for minimizing extreme suffering. The book then explores the all-important issue of how we can best reduce suffering in practice, and outlines a coherent and pragmatic path forward.

What follows if we reject belief in any kind of non-physical soul and instead fully embrace what we know about the world? The main implication, this book argues, is a naturalization of personal identity and ethics. A radically different way of thinking about ourself.

The aim of this book is to examine our speciesism. This examination consists of two separate parts, where the first part shows why speciesism is unjustifiable, and hence why it must be rejected, while the second part examines the practical implications of this rejection. This latter examination is bound to be far from exhaustive, yet by merely pointing out the most basic and most important implications of the rejection of speciesism, we see more than a few ways in which our behavior and attitudes should change, and change profoundly.

We appear to find ourselves in a crisis of polarization and failed communication. What can we do about it? This essay argues that part of the solution may be that we all make a deliberate effort to follow certain virtues that are quite straightforward, if difficult to practice. Simply put, we should strive to be charitable toward our adversaries, and aspire for more nuanced and balanced perspectives. This is not just important for addressing our current social predicament, but also for the endeavor of reason in general.

Should we go vegan? The unambiguous conclusion of this short AUDIObook is "yes". This conclusion is reached through a broad examination of the consequences of our not being vegan - both in relation to human health, environmental pollution, the risk of the spread of diseases, and in relation to the beings we exploit and kill.

Two loose currents appear to be in opposition in today's culture. One is animated by a strong insistence on empathy and compassion as core values, the other by a strong insistence on free speech as a core value. These two currents are often portrayed as though they must necessarily be in conflict.