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For and Against offers a new and exciting approach to the investigation of complex philosophical ideas and their impact on the way we think about a host of contemporary social and political issues. Philosophers explore a topic of intense public interest from opposing points of view. This approach provides the reader with a balanced perspective on the topic, but also serves to introduce the reader to the deep philosophical conflicts that underpin these differing views. The result is both a series of important statements on some of the most challenging questions facing our society as well as an introduction to philosophy. Each essay is compact and non-technical, yet avoids a simplistic, journalistic presentation of the topic.

  • Edited by: R. G. Frey, Bowling Green State University

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5 results in For and Against

Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide
  • Gerald Dworkin, R. G. Frey, Sissela Bok
  • Published online:
    05 August 2014
    Print publication:
    28 August 1998
  • The moral issues involved in doctors assisting patients to die with dignity are of absolutely central concern to the medical profession, ethicists, and the public at large. The debate is fuelled by cases that extend far beyond passive euthanasia to the active consideration of killing by physicians. The need for a sophisticated but lucid exposition of the two sides of the argument is now urgent. This book supplies that need. Two prominent philosophers, Gerald Dworkin and R. G. Frey present the case for legalization of physician-assisted suicide. One of the best-known ethicists in the US, Sissela Bok, argues the case against.

The Legalization of Drugs
  • Doug Husak, Peter de Marneffe
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    29 August 2005
  • In the United States today, the use or possession of many drugs is a criminal offense. Can these criminal laws be justified? What are the best reasons to punish or not to punish drug users? These are the fundamental issues debated in this book by two prominent philosophers of law. Douglas Husak argues in favor of drug decriminalization, by clarifying the meaning of crucial terms, such as legalize, decriminalize, and drugs; and by identifying the standards by which alternative drug policies should be assessed. He critically examines the reasons typically offered in favor of our current approach and explains why decriminalization is preferable. Peter de Marneffe argues against drug legalization, demonstrating why drug prohibition, especially the prohibition of heroin, is necessary to protect young people from self-destructive drug use. If the empirical assumptions of this argument are sound, he reasons, drug prohibition is perfectly compatible with our rights to liberty.

Is There a Duty to Obey the Law?
  • Christopher Wellman, John Simmons
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    25 July 2005
  • The central question in political philosophy is whether political states have the right to coerce their constituents and whether citizens have a moral duty to obey the commands of their state. In this 2005 book, Christopher Heath Wellman and A. John Simmons defend opposing answers to this question. Wellman bases his argument on samaritan obligations to perform easy rescues, arguing that each of us has a moral duty to obey the law as his or her fair share of the communal samaritan chore of rescuing our compatriots from the perils of the state of nature. Simmons counters that this, and all other attempts to explain our duty to obey the law, fail. He defends a position of philosophical anarchism, the view that no existing state is legitimate and that there is no strong moral presumption in favor of obedience to, or compliance with, any existing state.

Social Welfare and Individual Responsibility
  • David Schmidtz, Robert E. Goodin
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    13 August 1998
  • The issue of social welfare and individual responsibility has become a topic of international public debate in recent years as politicians around the world now question the legitimacy of state-funded welfare systems. David Schmidtz and Robert Goodin debate the ethical merits of individual versus collective responsibility for welfare. David Schmidtz argues that social welfare policy should prepare people for responsible adulthood rather than try to make that unnecessary. Robert Goodin argues against the individualization of welfare policy and expounds the virtues of collective responsibility.

Are Liberty and Equality Compatible?
  • Jan Narveson, James P. Sterba
  • Published online:
    03 May 2010
    Print publication:
    22 April 2010
  • Are the political ideals of liberty and equality compatible? This question is of central and continuing importance in political philosophy, moral philosophy, and welfare economics. In this book, two distinguished philosophers take up the debate. Jan Narveson argues that a political ideal of negative liberty is incompatible with any substantive ideal of equality, while James P. Sterba argues that Narveson's own ideal of negative liberty is compatible, and in fact leads to the requirements of a substantive ideal of equality. Of course, they cannot both be right. Thus, the details of their arguments about the political ideal of negative liberty and its requirements will determine which of them is right. Engagingly and accessibly written, their debate will be of value to all who are interested in the central issue of what are the practical requirements of a political ideal of liberty.