Episode 6: Trolleys, Utilitarians, and Psychopaths (Part 1)

Very Bad Wizards

Tamler Sommers & David Pizarro

Society & Culture, Philosophy

4.8 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 20 October 2012

⏱️ 62 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Tamler contemplates ending it all because he can't get 'Call Me Maybe' out of his head, and Dave doesn't try to talk him out of it. This is followed by a discussion about drones, psychopaths, Canadians, Elle Fanning, horrible moral dilemmas, and the biggest rivalry in Ethics: utilitarians vs. Kantians.

Links

"Why I Refuse to Vote for Barack Obama." by Conor Friedersdorf

"Why I Refuse to Refuse to Vote for Obama" by Robert Wright.

Dave's study "The Mismeasure of Morals"

The write-up of Dave's study in The Economist: "Goodness Has Nothing to Do With It"

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Very bad wizards is a podcast with a philosopher, my dad, and a psychologist, Dave Pizarro,
0:07.6	having an informal discussion about issues in science and ethics.
0:11.1	Please note that the discussion contains bad words that I'm out of allow to say, and knowing
0:15.6	my dad, some very inappropriate jokes.
0:19.3	How can I live my life when I can't tell good from evil?
0:22.5	There are both fine choices, whatever floats your boat.
0:53.5	They think they're false, and with no more brains than you have.
0:56.5	They know our decisions, till I'm mad.
1:03.5	Anybody can have a brain.
1:07.5	You're a very bad man.
1:09.5	I'm a very good man.
1:11.5	Just a very bad wizard.
1:14.5	Welcome to very bad wizards.
1:15.5	I'm Tamler Summers from the University of Houston.
1:18.5	And I'm David Pizarro from Cornell University.
1:20.5	Millions of lives were suddenly ended in an act of evil perpetrated by Dr. Manhattan himself.
1:31.5	Since the attacks, I have been in constant contact with the premier of the U.S.S.R.
1:38.5	putting aside our past differences.
1:41.5	We are both pledged to unite against this common enemy.
1:48.5	Do you see?
1:52.5	Two superpowers retreating from war.
1:56.5	I've saved the earth from hell.
	...

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