The Keystone Pipeline is a highly debated argument at the moment, generating opinions ranging from potential environmental damages to job creation and economic stimulus. It is my goal to explore some of these opinions at face value and then proceed to generate an ethical opinion of this on my own.
To begin, only 35 permanent jobs will be created by the Keystone Pipeline (source), and while job creation is good, this is hardly something to get excited about. However it will generate 42,000 annual jobs, 29% will come from regions where the pipeline will be located.
The next opinion that pops up is the environmental issue. Environmentalists argue that the pipeline will cause huge environmental damages especially if an oil spill occurs. Now I consider myself an environmentalist and I don't agree with that opinion, one must consider the current method of transporting oil, transporting it using 18-wheelers. The 18-wheelers are consuming oil and producing carbon dioxide, and this is more environmentally detrimental than making a pipeline (which in turn will require the release of carbon dioxide to make). Additionally one must think that the 18-wheeler drivers will be out of a job if the pipeline gets made.
Ultimately I believe that ethically the pipeline is a good idea, It will create jobs, simplify our oil obtaining process (even though I don't agree with it), be more environmentally friendly and stimulate our economy. Environmentalists need to stop rallying against the pipeline and focus on developing better efficiency energy processes and a carbon tax instead.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/04/03/the-keystone-xl-pipeline-and-its-politics-explained/
Sunday, February 22, 2015
Sunday, February 15, 2015
Having Children
Pope Francis recently stated that couples who are able to have kids and choose not to are "selfish." I believe that this is clearly an opinion and not something people should take to heart. Religion encourages people to have children because the easiest way to get more people to follow a religion is not to convert people, but to make more believers. Mind you this is an opinion of my own and does not reflect my own personal beliefs. The pope does not take into account the possibilities of a child being born into terrible conditions. What if parents can't afford children, the child could potentially have a bad life.
The world is currently facing the first throes of depleted resources and having a child would only contribute to the depletion of the resources, and overpopulation for that matter. Maybe not having children is a better decision than having children. If anything I believe that it is selfish to bring a child into this world that we've created, wouldn't you want your children to grow up in the best possible conditions for life instead of being thrown into a pit of uncertainty about the future? I personally believe that if you don't like something, change it, and because of that philosophy I will not have children until I've created the best possible conditions for them to grow up in, not because I'm selfish, but because I want the best for my children, and I don't think any parent would disagree with me on that.
http://www.siasat.com//english/news/pope-francis-calls-choice-not-have-children-selfish
The world is currently facing the first throes of depleted resources and having a child would only contribute to the depletion of the resources, and overpopulation for that matter. Maybe not having children is a better decision than having children. If anything I believe that it is selfish to bring a child into this world that we've created, wouldn't you want your children to grow up in the best possible conditions for life instead of being thrown into a pit of uncertainty about the future? I personally believe that if you don't like something, change it, and because of that philosophy I will not have children until I've created the best possible conditions for them to grow up in, not because I'm selfish, but because I want the best for my children, and I don't think any parent would disagree with me on that.
http://www.siasat.com//english/news/pope-francis-calls-choice-not-have-children-selfish
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Unemployment
If your job can be done by a robot or computer, sometime in the near future it probably will be performed exclusively by those entities. One of the most disheartening facts about the future is that jobs will be replaced by cheap labor, and by cheap labor that means laborers that don't ask for wages: robots and artificial intelligence.
One thing is certain and that is in the future unemployment will be rampant. Knowing this, one must ponder as to whether or not unemployment is a good thing for humans. In the following I will discuss my own personal opinion, and I ask that whoever is reading this keeps an open mind, as I will keep an open mind regarding any opposing viewpoints. The following viewpoints do not describe any political beliefs or malice towards an political/economic systems in place in the world, these are merely musings on the future of jobs.
Unemployment is not a bad thing. When society advances to a point in which all jobs are replaced by technology I believe that the human spirit will truly be free. The one thing that cannot be replaced (as of now) is creativity and the human experience. I believe that when all the jobs are gone, our culture and society will boom, ushering in new art forms and an amazing lifestyle. Imagine for a moment being able to wake up whenever you'd like, and going about your day doing whatever you want. 98% of crimes committed derive from monetary inequalities and when there are no jobs, the merit or "success" of one's life will not be based on how much money one earns but rather the things that person decides to do with their life and their character.
This brings up the largest moral question I have ever thought of: what will happen to our economic system when there exists no jobs by humans? As of now, no economic or political philosophy is a solution to this problem. And I believe that the way we function in our current political system is taught to us, not intrinsic in nature. With that being said, I believe that in the future economic theories will be viewed in a fashion closely associated with how we view mythology in current days.
The key to these thoughts is not to assert a belief of mine, for as I grow my beliefs will change, but more to address the fact that as jobs are replaced by technology we as a society must reevaluate what it means ethically and economically what it means to be unemployed.
One thing is certain and that is in the future unemployment will be rampant. Knowing this, one must ponder as to whether or not unemployment is a good thing for humans. In the following I will discuss my own personal opinion, and I ask that whoever is reading this keeps an open mind, as I will keep an open mind regarding any opposing viewpoints. The following viewpoints do not describe any political beliefs or malice towards an political/economic systems in place in the world, these are merely musings on the future of jobs.
Unemployment is not a bad thing. When society advances to a point in which all jobs are replaced by technology I believe that the human spirit will truly be free. The one thing that cannot be replaced (as of now) is creativity and the human experience. I believe that when all the jobs are gone, our culture and society will boom, ushering in new art forms and an amazing lifestyle. Imagine for a moment being able to wake up whenever you'd like, and going about your day doing whatever you want. 98% of crimes committed derive from monetary inequalities and when there are no jobs, the merit or "success" of one's life will not be based on how much money one earns but rather the things that person decides to do with their life and their character.
This brings up the largest moral question I have ever thought of: what will happen to our economic system when there exists no jobs by humans? As of now, no economic or political philosophy is a solution to this problem. And I believe that the way we function in our current political system is taught to us, not intrinsic in nature. With that being said, I believe that in the future economic theories will be viewed in a fashion closely associated with how we view mythology in current days.
The key to these thoughts is not to assert a belief of mine, for as I grow my beliefs will change, but more to address the fact that as jobs are replaced by technology we as a society must reevaluate what it means ethically and economically what it means to be unemployed.
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