
What we’re about
Welcome to the Los Angeles Philosophy & Ethics Meetup Group! We are a diverse community passionate about exploring the intersections between philosophy, science, environment, and culture. Through engaging discussions, meaningful debates, and thought-provoking events, we aim to deepen our understanding of ethical dilemmas, philosophical concepts, scientific advancements, and their impact on our lives and society. Join us to share ideas, expand your knowledge, and connect with like-minded individuals in a friendly and inclusive environment. Together, let's ponder life's big questions and spark intellectual growth!
We will meet every Tuesday from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Pacific Standard Time (PST).
December 19, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. will be the first meeting.
The topic is Ethical Relativism.
The meetings will end at 9:00 p.m. officially. But afterwards, participants may stay online to clarify the discussed topic. We will read the following book:
“The Fundamentals of Ethics” Fourth Edition by Russ Shafer-Landau, Chapter 19, “Ethical Relativism.”
The book is excellent for mastering ethical topics.
The first meeting will consist of a powerpoint presentation, allowing participants to gage their commitment and whether a book purchase will be beneficial.
In the future, I will share the text on the screen. For the sake of mastery, we will read pages, discuss them, and then, discuss them again.
Participants are also invited to present power-point or written summaries of the chapters. If you would like to present, you can email me, or, simply inform me during the discussion. Gratitude will be displayed.
Yet, perhaps surprisingly, we will start on the last three chapters of the book which deal with the following topics:
Chapter 19: Ethical Relativism
Chapter 20: Moral Nihilism
Chapter 21: Eleven Arguments Against Moral Objectivity
Why are these chapters read first?
For this simple reason: People often doubt whether any moral claims can be plausible, justifiable, and supported by reasoning. That is, people may tend to be Moral Skeptics, believing that all moral claims are perhaps, at best, rationalizations of bias, upbringing and culture.
So these chapters will prepare us to explore our moral skepticism, and once done, to proceed to other chapters dedicated to normative claims. Those chapters covering normative moral claims are as follows:
Chapters 1 through 4 cover “the good life,” “hedonism,” “desire theory of contentment” and “problems with happiness.”
Chapters 5 through 18 cover the topic of “Normative Theories” which concerns what theories explain and justify moral claims about good and bad conduct. These chapters range from religious theories, natural law and consequentialism, to those of deontology, virtue ethics and feminist ethics.
Finally, we return to Chapters 19 to 21, from where we began
Let’s not rush the reading, which happens so often in meet-up groups.
We are reading for mastery. Have you ever mastered a book or topic, permitting you to discuss it in some detail, if asked? Let’s do so now with one book worth the effort
Life is long.