"My Life is Evil"

Comedian Louis CK's take on Peter Singer's argument:

Make Sure It Helps

Here's some stuff related to Bill Easterly's critical review of Singer's book that we read for class.

• Easterly is an economist at NYU whose book is called The White Man's Burden: Why the West's Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good.
• He also ran a blog called Aid Watch with the catchy subtitle, "just asking that aid benefit the poor."
• Some similar websites include GiveWell's blog and Good Intentions Are Not Enough.
• Here's an interesting review of Easterly's book that seriously considers his concerns about giving aid to African nations. I especially recommend reading the last section of the article.
• Here's a great chat between Easterly and Singer:
  

Where to Give?

If you want to donate to an effective charity, check out the following links:

• Affordable, Effective Charities! Against Malaria Foundation or Schistosomiasis Control Initiative (GiveWell's current top-rated charities)
• Research on Effective Charities! Not all non-profits are equal. To figure out the good from the bad, check out GiveWell. Another charity watchdog is Charity Navigator.
• Get Involved! A group of philosophers run Giving What We Can, dedicated to following and promoting Peter Singer's argument to give.

Extra Credit: "I Could've Done More"

Optional extra credit: Explain how Peter Singer thinks that we are in a similar situation as Oskar Schindler in this scene from Schindler's List. Do you agree with Singer? Why or why not?


The assignment doesn't have to be long (only about a paragraph). It's based on the Peter Singer article on pages 229-236 of the yellow textbook, and is due at the beginning of class on Friday, December 21st.  It's worth up to 10 points added to your final grade.

New Jersey's Own

Here's more than you ever wanted on Peter Singer:

• His recent book on giving is called The Life You Can Save.
• Here he points out the biases that keep us from giving.
• Here he calls out professors for not teaching about poverty.
• Here he updates his argument and offers some specific giving guidelines.
• Here he defends his position against some tough questions.
• And here's his recent appearance on The Colbert Report.