Word: moralisms
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...book engages with moral arguments about protection and survival: What if everything we believed in vanished, leaving love to stand naked on its own--would that be enough? McCarthy's writing has always been a manly affair, so it made sense that he reduced his world to father and son, with the Man emerging heroic. Here, when the Man speaks of carrying "the fire," i.e., the conviction of humanity, it rings more hollow, even though Mortensen grapples well with the potential corniness of that line (he gives a somber, deeply affecting performance). The wasteland that surrounds them...
...teaching one course this fall, Moral Reasoning 54: “If There is No God, All is Permitted...
...columnist David Brooks drew a somber line in the sand for health-care reform: “We all have to decide what we want at this moment in history, vitality or security. We can debate this or that provision, but where we come down will depend on that moral preference.” In the eyes of Brooks and a great many others, reform may very well create a more decent society—but only at the expense of economic dynamism and our oh-so-youthful American spirit...
...argument that American vitality will diminish if we pass the health-insurance bill is ultimately not only misleading, but also dangerous. When we wedge complicated issues between incompatible moral principles, we often drift further from pragmatic reform. There is no doubt that the health-care debate is just as much about values as dollars, but reducing the values debate to a pleasant, soothing dichotomy only solidifies the status quo. Claiming we can’t currently circumvent a tragic choice only postpones the change we need...
...Downplaying the moral component of the American project in Afghanistan may be smart if Obama's goal is to show he's not Bush. But it won't ultimately help win more support for his strategy - and it will ensure that his speech scores with pundits but not with the American people. The most memorable and effective wartime presidential speeches have blended hardheaded statements of resolve with appeals to higher purpose. At Gettysburg, Abraham Lincoln vowed that the Union would complete "the great task remaining before us" yet made it clear that the goal was not just to defeat...