Day One: Peter Singer

On Friday I went and saw Peter Singer in conversation, hosted by Anna Goldsworthy. Peter Singer is a philosopher who focuses primarily on the idea of 'effective altruism'. Effective Altruism is the idea that you can use reason, evidence, and logic to do the most good that you can.

Before this session, I had never heard of Peter Singer. I went along to the session because I thought it'd be interesting to hear someone with a philosophical background do a talk. I enjoy thinking and being made to think. Being presented with new ideas excites me, so I saw this as an opportunity to experience something new. I usually chase things that are more on the 'creative' side.
This being said, as soon as the session was over I ran out and brought his book 'The Most Good You Can Do', and was devastated to see that his other book, 'Animal Liberation', wasn't on sale. I've been a vegetarian due to ethical reasons for almost ten years now, and I think I would've really enjoyed reading a bit more on it and developing my stance on the issue of animal rights. Guess that's another book to add to the wishlist on my BookDepository account... Boy that list is getting long.

Peter Singer was incredibly eloquent, as you would expect from an esteemed professor at Princeton University and the University of Melbourne. He talked about how human beings are getting smarter and are developing more abstract reasoning in terms to applied ethics, and that we are no longer motivated by empathy, but also by reason. He spoke on the importance of addressing existential threats, such as global warming and climate change, reducing the amount of animal products we consume, and reducing our personal green house emissions.

One thing that Peter Singer said that I did not agree with, was that donating money to the Arts is not "doing the best you can". He said that while artistic expression is an important part of human nature, it should not take precedence over donating money to worthier causes. While I agree on some level, that donating money to other charities may benefit other people more, I believe that donating money to the Arts is important. But that could be my bias coming in to play, being heavily involved in and passionate about the Arts. I feel that art is the soul of humanity - writing, art, music, and theatre allow expression of the self and the community. It's about creation, which is a good thing. A world without art is a world not worth existing in, as it would be bland and sad.

I found myself overwhelmed by the end of Peter Singer's talk. I was confronted all at once by all the bad things that are occurring in the world, and fretting over how I'm supposed to help anyone or anything when I'm just one tiny person in a huge world full of people. I'm looking forward to reading his book 'The Most Good You Can Do', and searching to see if I can foster change within myself and the people around me. This session gave me a lot to think about.

Questions I would've liked to ask Peter Singer are as follows:

1. How does one ethically determine which charity "does the most good"? How do you prioritise and weigh the importance of one cause over another, and how would you suggest one goes about deciding?
2. His views on the overpopulation crisis, climate change, and the ethical choice of bringing children into the world.