Majesty of Reason Philosophy Podcast

Does evolution DEBUNK morality?

Today Dr. Dan Korman and Noah McKay join me to discuss evolutionary debunking arguments. Can our moral beliefs survive skeptical threats?Like the show? Help it grow! Consider becoming a patron (thanks!): https://www.patreon.com/majestyofreasonIf you wanna make a one-time donation or tip (thanks!): https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/josephcschmidOUTLINE0:00 Intro1:40 Debunking arguments6:22 Three kinds of debunking arguments14:43 Telic debunking argument22:05 Explanationist pushback38:51 Swampman pushback59:51 New function pushback1:16:45 Dan’s favored approach1:25:01 Concluding thoughtsRESOURCES(1) Dan’s website (with his papers): https://danielzkorman.weebly.com/(2) Noah’s website (with his papers): https://noahdmckay.wordpress.com/(3) Dan’s paper, "Debunking Arguments", https://philarchive.org/archive/KORDA-2(4) Dan’s paper, “An explanationist Account of Genealogical Defeat“, https://philpapers.org/rec/KORAEA-4(5) Noah’s paper, “Can Rational Reflection Save Moral Knowledge from Debunking?”, https://philpapers.org/rec/MCKCRR(6) Noah’s paper, “Moral knowledge and the existence of God”, https://philpapers.org/rec/MCKMKA(7) My Metaethics playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkbIsKrv640jcBmNCFbU-ZQy(8) My Springer book: (a) https://www.amazon.com/Existential-Inertia-Classical-Theistic-Proofs-ebook/dp/B0BNMHRW63 (b) https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-19313-2THE USUAL...Follow the Majesty of Reason podcast! https://open.spotify.com/show/4Nda5uNcGselvKphtKSKvHJoin the Discord and chat all things philosophy! https://dsc.gg/majestyofreasonMy website: https://josephschmid.comMy PhilPeople profile: https://philpeople.org/profiles/joseph-schmid

Professional ethicist REBUTS Catholic apologist on sexual ethics

Trent Horn ( @TheCounselofTrent ) recently made a video defending very conservative views on sexual ethics. Dr. Dustin Crummett joins me to respond.OUTLINE0:00 Intro1:30 Trent’s video2:23 Disgust and morality4:52 Consent6:26 Natural law theory7:59 Perverted faculty argument13:53 Skepticism about Aristotelian teleology14:51 Natural teleology doesn’t deliver their judgments15:54 Morality isn’t about natural teleology16:32 Counterexamples21:04 Wrong source of normative reasons23:32 Another counterexample?29:57 Alternative accounts of function31:54 Dustin’s sexual ethics42:54 The moral significance of sex47:39 Homosexuality was crazy!51:18 Dendrophilia and Necrophilia54:36 Moral disgust?58:01 Contempt for people who misuse sex1:01:13 Sexual exclusivity and monogamy1:07:01 Monogamy and natural law theory1:12:02 Sex and friendship1:16:29 Monogamy again1:20:12 Infertility and impotence1:34:32 The right to be conceived through sex?1:40:51 Trent’s summary1:50:16 ConclusionRESOURCES(1) Dustin’s website (with links to his papers): https://dustincrummett.com/(2) Dustin's YouTube channel:  @dustin.crummett (3) The discussion on natural law theory and sexuality between Dustin and Brian Besong: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPen831EkYg&pp=ygUfYnJpYW4gYmVzb25nIHZzIGR1c3RpbiBjcnVtbWV0dA%3D%3D(4) Responses to Trent Horn playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkaUBJZkQ5kYe9i2bUqjtQYV(5) Applied Ethics playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkaYPueOwJRE0CPj6xyIWfxb(6) Sexual Ethics in a Secular Age: Is There Still a Virtue of Chastity?: https://www.routledge.com/Sexual-Ethics-in-a-Secular-Age-Is-There-Still-a-Virtue-of-Chastity/Silverman/p/book/9780367522773(7) The Palgrave Handbook of Sexual Ethics: https://www.amazon.com/The-Palgrave-Handbook-of-Sexual-Ethics/dp/303087785X(8) John Corvino's book, "What's Wrong with Homosexuality?": https://www.amazon.com/Whats-Wrong-Homosexuality-Philosophy-Action-ebook/dp/B00AWOTA7S/(9) Corvino and Gallagher, "Debating Same-Sex Marriage": https://www.amazon.com/Debating-Same-Sex-Marriage-Point-Counterpoint-ebook/dp/B007ZQBO0W/(10) Corvino's YouTube channel:  @johncorvino (11) Corvino's PhilPeople profile (with links to his papers on the ethics of homosexuality): https://philpeople.org/profiles/john-corvino

The ULTIMATE Guide to the Problem of Evil

Today Dr. Justin Mooney gives a comprehensive survey of the problem of evil.Like the show? Help it grow! Consider becoming a patron (thanks!): https://www.patreon.com/majestyofreasonIf you wanna make a one-time donation or tip (thanks!): https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/josephcschmidOUTLINE0:00 Intro2:50 Presentation begins3:52 What is the problem of evil?10:09 Main topics in the literature12:00 Kinds of inference13:07 Logical arguments from evil22:36 Evidential arguments from evil35:47 Kinds of evil54:18 Other arguments from evil1:03:44 Theodicies and defenses1:06:50 Conditions for a successful theodicy1:14:44 Free will theodicies1:33:26 Soul-making theodicies1:39:46 Karma and rebirth theodicies1:49:27 Global value theodicies1:53:27 Other theodicies1:59:15 Epistemic defenses1:59:57 Skeptical theism2:11:56 The anomaly defense2:19:41 Appealing to counter-evidence2:26:59 Meta-Theodicy2:27:26 Constraints on successful theodicy2:35:40 Gratuitous evil compatible with theism?2:38:37 Sufferer-centered theodicies2:41:05 Other topics in meta-theodicy2:43:07 Recommended resources2:44:54 Concluding remarksRESOURCES(1) Justin's website: https://www.justinmooney.net/(2) Justin's 120-page bibliography on the problem of evil: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dprquqrzQxJsmOArxEoBDaMx15T9T--P8dagUqX6kQI/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.x1uym8fk8fq3(3) My video with Dr. Perry Hendricks on skeptical theism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDqi5U44f7E(4) Poston, "Social evil": http://tedposton.org/Documents/Socialevil.pdf(5) Crummett, “The problem of evil and the suffering of creeping things": https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11153-017-9619-0(6) My Problem of Evil playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkY98E3QMwBvHcYqWtIhizko(7) Jordan's ( @TheAnalyticChristian ) Problem of Evil playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlVH-ThCazKk0YOU-K-AWIphUjToiBBC6(8) Other versions of the problem of evil (and links to papers) can be found in Dr. Felipe Leon's list of 200 (or so) arguments for atheism: https://exapologist.blogspot.com/2023/03/200-or-so-arguments-for-atheism.html(9) VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED: The unspeakable atrocities of unit 731: https://youtu.be/xLcNvGaSvCo?si=BNWdz0VXLcNd4TGL(10) VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED: The horrors inflicted on Junko Furuta: https://youtu.be/YGSN2MTmzDQ?si=xi_2NObfCkYNOkCk(11) My Springer book: (a) https://www.amazon.com/Existential-Inertia-Classical-Theistic-Proofs-ebook/dp/B0BNMHRW63 (b) https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-19313-2THE USUAL...Follow the Majesty of Reason podcast! https://open.spotify.com/show/4Nda5uNcGselvKphtKSKvHJoin the Discord and chat all things philosophy! https://dsc.gg/majestyofreasonMy website: https://josephschmid.comMy PhilPeople profile: https://philpeople.org/profiles/joseph-schmid

The best argument for atheism you've NEVER heard

Here I explain Paul Draper's decisive evidence argument for atheism. Does it succeed?Like the show? Help it grow! Consider becoming a patron (thanks!): https://www.patreon.com/majestyofreasonIf you wanna make a one-time donation or tip (thanks!): https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/josephcschmidOUTLINE0:00 Intro2:35 Decisive Evidence Argument4:13 The syllogism7:23 Why accept the premises?7:38 First premise8:21 Second premise10:54 Third premise20:33 Responses20:56 Contra premise (1)25:35 Contra premise (2)26:59 Contra premise (3)28:58 Conclusion30:32 Bonus soccerRESOURCES(1) Draper's SEP entry, "Atheism and Agnosticism": https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism/(2) My 12-hour long video responding to 150+ theistic arguments: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iP0Mh42jvV4&pp=ygUfbWFqZXN0eSBvZiByZWFzb24gMTAwIGFyZ3VtZW50cw%3D%3D(3) Over 200 arguments for atheism: https://exapologist.blogspot.com/2023/03/200-or-so-arguments-for-atheism.html(4) My Ontological Arguments playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkZ7oLLpd6Joxl2VS1gOce6t(5) My Bonus Soccer playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkb7WN8KlASj2P9ewLpXGeML(6) My Springer book: (a) https://www.amazon.com/Existential-Inertia-Classical-Theistic-Proofs-ebook/dp/B0BNMHRW63 (b) https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-19313-2THE USUAL...Follow the Majesty of Reason podcast! https://open.spotify.com/show/4Nda5uNcGselvKphtKSKvHJoin the Discord and chat all things philosophy! https://dsc.gg/majestyofreasonMy website: https://josephschmid.comMy PhilPeople profile: https://philpeople.org/profiles/joseph-schmid

Debunking Arguments

What are debunking arguments? How are they defended? And how are they attacked? Does the evolutionary debunking argument against moral realism work? Here I explore these questions and more.Like the show? Help it grow! Consider becoming a patron (thanks!): https://www.patreon.com/majestyofreasonIf you wanna make a one-time donation or tip (thanks!): https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/josephcschmidOUTLINE0:00 Intro2:00 Debunking arguments3:05 Varieties of debunking arguments11:22 Structure of debunking arguments17:49 Explanatory premise19:30 Epistemic premise21:01 Categories of response23:35 Explanationist responses24:57 Alethic28:29 Doxastic29:42 Minimalist responses31:37 Indirect defense33:56 Unstable minimalism35:35 Stable minimalism39:33 Third factor response44:03 Plenitudinist response46:00 Direct defense55:55 Overgeneralization responses58:32 Moorean responses1:02:49 Summary1:04:17 Flowchart1:09:29 ConclusionRESOURCES(1) Korman (2019), "Debunking Arguments", https://philarchive.org/archive/KORDA-2(2) Dan Korman's other papers on debunking arguments can be found here: https://danielzkorman.weebly.com/papers-and-books.html(2) Wielenberg (2016), "Ethics and Evolutionary Theory", https://philpapers.org/rec/WIEEAE-4(3) My Metaethics playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxRhaLyXxXkbIsKrv640jcBmNCFbU-ZQy(4) My Springer book: (a) https://www.amazon.com/Existential-Inertia-Classical-Theistic-Proofs-ebook/dp/B0BNMHRW63 (b) https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-19313-2THE USUAL...Follow the Majesty of Reason podcast! https://open.spotify.com/show/4Nda5uNcGselvKphtKSKvHJoin the Discord and chat all things philosophy! https://dsc.gg/majestyofreasonMy website: https://josephschmid.comMy PhilPeople profile: https://philpeople.org/profiles/joseph-schmid