A wide-ranging discussion of the ethical dimension of decisions about how we build and how we live in metropolitan regions.
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The Bafflement of Colleagues
Published on 2012-02-14 06:00:00
I recently wrote to an economist colleague to request some references on the idea of moral hazard as it has made its way into economics form the insurance industry. I have since found further references by other means, but my request sparked an exchange in which I found myself confronted by puzzlement on the part of my colleague . . . and a pressing need to further clarify what I mean by the tragic outlook, and what some critics have meant when they said such an outlook poses a moral hazard.One
Self-Sufficiency
Published on 2012-02-07 06:00:00
Following up on an aside in my first post on Brown's book, I'd like to consider an essential question of ethics and political philosophy: What is the smallest self-sufficient unit of human life?For myself, I lean to the ancient account, from Plato and Aristotle: the smallest self-sufficient unit of human life is the city, that is, the polis, which entails community and political order as well as geographic proximity and economic interdependence. An adult human being may indeed be able to e
14 Days and Counting . . .
Published on 2012-02-03 06:00:00
I have been continuing to read Wendy Brown's book, Surviving the Apocalypse in the Suburbs, though sporadically. My train commute really isn't all that long, and I've had many, many other things to read in the mean time.I have small addition to my review-in-progress of the book, which merges with the theme from my last post: skepticism.Imagine I came to believe the world as we know it really would end in 21 days and, following my own priorities, I decide to meet my neighbors and to work toward g
