Ethics at Noon, 1999-2002

Coordinated by Dr. David Perry, Director of Ethics Programs, Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University.  (Speakers are from SCU unless otherwise noted.)

2001-2002 Schedule

September 25:  "Killing in the Name of God: The Problem of Holy War," David Perry (Ethics Center and Religious Studies).

October 1:   "Expectations, Desert, and Probability: Do We Deserve the Consequences of Our Risky Choices?" Scott LaBarge (Philosophy and Classics).

October 16:  "Having What It Takes to Vote: How Property Requirements for Voting Have Produced Lingering Inequality in the U.S.," Margalynne Armstrong (Law).

October 23:  "Ethics for Judges: How Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens Uncovered Judicial Corruption in Illinois," Kenneth Manaster (Law).

October 29:  "When Cultural Values Clash with Universal Rights: Is Multiculturalism Bad for Women?" Susan Moller Okin (Political Science, Stanford University).

November 13:  "Encouraging Ethical Behavior in Business: The Impact of Federal Legislation on Corporate Ethics Initiatives," Jacob Dahl Rendtorff (Roskilde University, Denmark).

January 17:  "Expanding the Role of Ethics in Legal Education and the Legal Profession," Deborah Rhode (Stanford Law School).

January 29: "Responding Ethically to Bio-Terrorism: Perspectives of a Microbiologist," William Murray (Biology).

February 8:  "Should We Forgive People Like Osama bin Laden?" Bill Spohn (Religious Studies) and Robert Audi (Philosophy).

February 12: "Has the Gender Divide Become Unbridgeable? The Implications for Social Equality," June Carbone (Law).

February 26: "Public Choice and Special Interests: How the Structure of Democracy Gives Power to the Few at the Expense of the Many," Fred Foldvary (Economics).

March 5: "Do Human Rights Have a Solid Philosophical Foundation?" Walter Schweidler (Philosophy, U. of Bochum, Germany).

March 12: "Racial Profiling in an Age of Terrorism," Peter Siggins (Chief Deputy Attorney General of California), with responses from Ellen Kreitzberg and Graham Strong (Law).

March 13: "Take the Money Enron!" William Black (U. of Texas), Bryan Ford (Law), Stephen Diamond (Law), Susan Parker (Accounting), Hersh Shefrin (Finance).

April 4:  "When Ethical Issues Arise in the Classroom: A Faculty Workshop," Kirk Hanson (Ethics Center) and Diane Jonte-Pace (Religious Studies).

April 5:  "Necessary Secrets: Privacy, Confidentiality, and Privilege in Mental Health Services," Gerald Koocher (Graduate School of Health Sciences, Simmons College).

April 18:  "Was Abraham Ethical? Should We Admire His Willingness to Sacrifice His Son?" Carol Delaney (Cultural and Social Anthropology, Stanford University).

May 7: "Ethics, Diplomacy, and the Israel-Palestine Conflict: Insights from Computer Simulations," Bill Stover (Political Science) and three of his undergraduate students.

May 16: "An Egalitarian-Libertarian Manifesto," Bill Sundstrom (Economics).

May 21: "The Lack of Sin, East and West: Is It Politically Significant?" Jay Alberg (Sophia University, Tokyo).

June 4:  "U.S. Relations with Cuba: Where Should We Go from Here?" Nicole Streegan (student leader), Bob Bozina (Performance Studies), Dennis Gordon (Political Science and International Studies), and Bill Martinez (attorney for the Buena Vista Social Club).


2000-2001 Schedule

September 26: "Health and Justice in San Jose Latino Communities," Peg Graham (Anthropology) and Margaret McLean (Ethics Center and Dept. of Religious Studies).

October 3: "Representation and Remembrance of the Holocaust," Alicia Appleman-Jurman (Holocaust survivor).

October 10: "Diplomas Denied: The Fairness of Standards-Based Graduation Assessments," Jeff Zorn (English).

November 28: "Taking the Ethical Temperature of Bay-Area News Organizations," John McManus (GradeTheNews.org).

January 23: "Arab-Israeli Co-existence: Reality and Challenges Ahead," Walid Mula (Arab-Israeli educator/activist).

January 29: "A Kantian Account of Dignity," Thomas Powers (Philosophy).

February 27: "Treating Persons as Ends," Robert Audi (Philosophy).

March 6: "Oasis of Peace: A Palestinian/Jewish Community Working for a Just Peace," Deanna Armbruster (American Friends of Oasis of Peace/Neve Shalom/Wahat Al-Salam).

April 4: "United City, Divided Priorities: Myth and Reality behind the Rhetoric of a United Jerusalem," Anat Hoffman (Jerusalem City Councillor).

April 10: "Moral Elitism vs. Moral Egalitarianism," Amelie Rorty (Brandeis University).

April 24: "Cloning Human Beings: Health or Hubris?" Margaret McLean (Ethics Center and Dept. of Religious Studies).

May 10:  "What We Know about Children's Moral Development, and What It Means for Character Education Initiatives," William Damon (Stanford University).

May 14: "The Moral Status of Human Embryos and the Ethics of Embryo Research," Michael Meyer and Lawrence Nelson (Philosophy).

May 21: "Coremetrics and Outsourcing: Use of Personal Data Received from Online Partners," Daniel Merrits, Michelle Ronco and Kelly Walsh (SCU students).

1999-2000 Schedule

October 5: "Go and Do Likewise: The Role of Jesus in Contemporary Christian Moral Imagination," Bill Spohn (Religious Studies, Bannan Institute for Jesuit Education and Christian Values).

October 18: "An Immersion Experience in El Salvador," Lulu Santana (Campus Ministry), Barbara Murray (Theatre and Dance), Chuck Powers (Sociology), Michael Weiler (Counseling/CP&E), and David Palmer (Management).

November 1: "How We Define and Deal with Justice at Santa Clara," Hersh Shefrin (Finance), Paul Fitzgerald (Religious Studies), Marilyn Fernandez (Anthropology/Sociology).

November 17: "Stakeholder Participation in Corporate Environmental Policy," Chad Raphael (Communication).

January 18: "Teaching Compassion Philosophically," Bill Prior (Philosophy).

January 24: "Iceland’s Controversial DNA Database: Facts and Issues," Hank Greely (Stanford Law School), and Margaret McLean (Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Religious Studies), co-sponsored by the Center for Science, Technology and Society. Williman Room, Benson Center.

February 1: "Designs on the Land, Designs for Our Lives," Don Scherer (Philosophy, Bowling Green State Univ., Ohio).

February 8: "Christian Virtues and Capitalism," Deirdre McCloskey (Economics, Univ. of Iowa).

February 15: "Politics and the Media," Robert Audi (Philosophy, Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln).

February 29: "Ethics and the Israeli Defense Forces," Asa Kasher (Philosophy, Tel Aviv Univ.)

March 28: "International Business and Human Rights in China," John Kamm (Director, Stanford Univ. Program in Human Rights Diplomacy, and the Dui Hua ["dialogue"] Foundation).

April 11: "From Partners to Parents: The Unfinished Revolution in Family Law," June Carbone (Law School).

April 18: "Can I Blame (or Even Sue) Mommy for My Bad Health? Pregnancy, Birth, and Women's Moral Responsibilities," Larry Nelson (Philosophy).

April 25: "Wealth and Poverty: How Israel’s Scriptures Can Be Read": J. David Pleins and Kitty Murphy (Religious Studies).

May 8: "Organ Transplants and Brain Death in Islamic Law and Ethics," Ebrahim Moosa (Religious Studies, Stanford Univ.), and Larry Nelson (Philosophy).