CAPE Events for Fall, 2007

Universal Health Care:  Does Justice Require It or Forbid It?
Wednesday, October 17, 7:30, PAC 134

Should California or the U.S. enact legislation designed to bring health insurance to all?  Is it disgraceful that the U.S. is the only industrialized, Western nation without guarantees of health care for all?  Or is it an admirable sign of our commitments to freedom and responsibility?  Clearly, some people are luckier than others when it comes to their health, both in terms of their natural endowments and their access to adequate care.  Are the differences unjust, or merely unfortunate?  Does our commitment to equality, the notion that everyone's life matters and matters equally, require us to meet everyone's basic health care needs?  Or does our commitment to liberty require us to refrain from forcing our fellow citizens to pay for the care of others?

Donna Kemp, Political Science Department, CSU, Chico
Eric Gampel, Philosophy Department, CSU, Chico
Fred Foldvary, Department of Economics, Santa Clara University

Altruism:  For Saints, Suckers or Everyone?
Wednesday, October 24, 7:30, PAC 134

We are often surprised and appreciative when we observe an act of selfless good will.  But are these acts truly selfless, or are they really motivated by self-interest?  Do the charitable give simply to make themselves feel better, or are they genuinely concerned with the well-being of others?  Is human nature essentially selfish?  Evolution might favor selfishness since it would seem to promote one’s reproductive interests.  But then altruistic acts should be rarer than they are.  Even if we are inclined by nature to egoism, shouldn’t we at least sometimes act for the benefit of others?  Should we always do so? Or never?  Come hear what contemporary biological, psychological and moral theories tell us about the nature of altruism.

Andy Flescher, Religious Studies Department
Daniel Worthen, Psychology Department
John Mahoney, Biology Department

 

 

“If We Fail to Act”:  Ethical Challenges to 21st Century Global Public Health
Wednesday, November 7, 7:30, PAC 134

By some estimates, tens of millions of people worldwide will die from AIDS , malaria and tuberculosis over the next twenty years.  These deaths are preventable using existing medical treatments.  But efforts to combat these diseases are inadequately funded and coordinated. Furthermore, focusing only on these high-profile killers does little to improve other aspects of public health in developing countries.  What are the causes of ill health and early death in such populations, and how can these be addressed? What are the barriers to establishing effective health care systems and the infrastructure to support them?  What can be done to minimize the loss of lives? What does it mean to act in relation to these problems, what are the reasons to do so, and what may be the consequences if we do not?

Laurie Wermuth,  Chair, Sociology Department
Dr. Norris Cleek, Physician
David Eaton, Jr.,  Anthropology Department