Philosophy Wire: Animal welfare organizations after the tsunami - Grandeur or stupidity?

Philosophy Wire by Spiros Kakos [2011-03-17]: After the devastating earthquake and the even more devastating tsunami thousands of people are lying dead under the mud or in the ruins. Even more thousands of people are homeless or require assistance to survive. And what do animal lovers do in this situation? The... "obvious" for them. Animal welfare organizations are concerned with the salvation of the Japanese...animals instead of saving lives... [source: CNN World Report article] No comment... All of us set priorities in this short life. And everyone is judged by them. If the effort of these organizations to save a cat could have saved a fellow human, which gods would reward such an act?

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Philosophy Wire: Japan, nuclear threat and the sense of duty in the face of death

Philosophy Wire by Spiros Kakos [2011-03-16]: When all people are removed from the vicinity of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan, 180 people remain there [source: CNN Edition web news]. They are people who work at the factory so as to prevent the meltdown of the core even at the last moment, although the risk to receive high doses or fatal radiation is growing. What makes these people stay? What creates in them this sense of duty? It is the duty of Kant or something "higher" that steers them? (see The Source of Ethics article) Or is it just selfishness covered up: they choose sacrificed for the survival of their children and the survival of their genes? Honestly, which of the two theories looks more ... stupid at first glance?

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Philosophy Wire: Japan religion, Japan science and what really matters

Image Source: CNN Belief Blog

Philosophy Wire by Spiros Kakos [2011-03-15]: In the face of disaster, the role of religion comes back in the frontline. In the face of death and the loss of loved ones, old religious practices of Japan are there to help people feel better and go through the ordeal [source: CNN Belief Blog]. In human matters that really matter, science just stays silent. Why do we then keep regarding it as the only and most important aspect of our civilization?

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Philosophy Wire: Google Person Finder - Technology at its best

Philosophy Wire by Spiros Kakos [2011-03-13]: Almost immediately after the Japan earthquake, Google created and launched the Person Finder application via which someone can search for missing loved ones [see http://japan.person-finder.appspot.com/?lang=en]. Technology at its best. Bravo.

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Philosophy Wire: Japan, the (unknown) pre-earthquake, the main earthquake and the importance of models interpretation

With people not yet recovered by the terrible earthquake of 8.8 Richter scale in Japan, we learn today that two days ago the same area was struck by a Richter 7.2 earthquake [source: 1]. The quake was considered as a major earthquake then and did not pose any worries. Until the great earthquake came... and the "main" quake was characterized as a "pre-earthquake" by scientists... We are looking for fixed points of reference, but a new larger quake is enough to change everything overnight. The interpretation of what we see is so ambiguous, subjective, fluid and changeable, which makes us wonder: is anything certain in our "objective" science?

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Philosophy Wire: Tsunami and the coldness of TV. Does technology make us inhuman?

Philosophy Wire by Spiros Kakos [2011-03-12]: Tsunami struck Japan with hundrends of people dead. We all watched the waves take away cars, houses, trains and ships. We all watched stunned. But none of us understood. None of us understood that we were watching people dying in live connection... Does TV brings us closer? Or does it drive us so far apart that we cannot even feel anything for each other?

No pictures. No videos.

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