Discussing Ethical Issues in AnS 211

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Discussing Ethical Issuesin AnS 211

• M.D.Kenealy 9/1/09

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What is Ethics?

• Study relating to moral action, motive, or
  characteralso relating to ideals, feelings,
  duty, and conduct

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How do we employ the study of ethics in AnS 211?

• a peaceful method of resolving conflicts
• concerned with constructing and appraising
  arguments
• not what is customary or legal or biblical,
  but what is objectively right and rationally
  justifiable

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What are major ethical issues in todays
headlines?

• should the US be involved in the war in Iraq?
• should we allow abortion?
• should we do stem cell research?
• should we have cage/pen systems for livestock
  production?
• is dog fighting ethical?
• etc.

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What ethical issues have you faced or would you
predict to be a problem in college?

• writing your room-mates English theme?
• selling your AnS114 notes?
• letting your room-mate drink and drive?
• this one is interesting because drinking and
  driving is a legal issue, but your allowing the
  activity is an ethical issue

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Why do we talk about ethics in AnS classes?

• Ethical vs science issues
• eating organic vegetables vs conventionally
  produced vegetables?
• eating organic meat vs conventionally produced
  meat?
• eating milk/meat/eggs from cloned animals?
• should we eat meat/milk/eggs due to your
  beliefs about animal use/rights?

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Have you encountered ethical issues in AnS?

• dissection of animals for learning?
• research in genome modification?
• increasing animal productivity increases stress?
• proprietary research?
• professors receiving patent payments?

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QuestionIs there intrinsic value of knowledge
that doesnt have a dollar value?
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Progress?

• Is it only
• how much will it increase 1b/da gain or bu/a?
• Should it also be
• what are the human, social, animal welfare,
  environmental impacts?

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Ex 1. University of California developed a
better tomato harvester

• how could this be an ethical issue?
• displaced migrant workers
• California Rural Legal Assistance association
  sued UC relative to social and economic
  accountability

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Ex 2. Monsanto requested approval for bovine
somatotropin (BST) to increase milk production

• How could this be an ethical issue?
• BST is a hormone history of issues
• BST was recombinantely produced not natural
• Injections cause pain?
• Increased production causes stress?
• Equally beneficial to all farmers?
• Delay in approval approached 10 years

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Appraising arguments all about 211!

• Structure the argument with
• Premises statements of fact leading to a
  conclusion
• Generally takes two premises to come to a
  conclusion
• Are the premises facts?
• Consider whether premises are debatable, ie,
  they are not in error, but are also not proven
  facts

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Premises and the Conclusion

• Identify the speakers conclusion(s)
• pick the important ones and state them simply
• define important terms
• were the premises backing the conclusion
  true/fact?
• were the premises linked so that they obviously
  lead to the conclusion?
• If not
• the conclusion is incorrect or
• the conclusion is debatable

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Case 1

• Premise 1 cows are mammals
• Premise 2 mammals are warm blooded
• Conclusion therefore, cows are warm blooded

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Case 2

• Premise 1 Ford manufactures green trucks
• Premise 2 this truck is green
• Conclusion therefore, this truck is a Ford

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Case 3

• Premise 1 we should not eat animals we love
• Premise 2 we love dogs
• Conclusion therefore, we should not eat dogs

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Case 4

• Premise 1 BST increases milk production and is
  safe for consumption by human infants
• Premise 2 human infants in Africa need more milk
• Conclusion therefore, BST should be used in
  African cows

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Claims being made

• Factual
• BST is safe for cows and humans
• General
• children in Africa need more milk
• BST will increase milk supply in Africa
• Philosophical
• cows are food producers, so we should not worry
  about their welfare
• is milk the product that should be used to end
  hunger?

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Working with ethical debates

• Evaluate the case fully
• were all the issues presented?
• what underlying issues/agendas may exist?
• who are the stake holders?
• Determine possible alternate conclusions
• identify the strong and weak points of the
  speaker
• be open minded
• be the devils advocate
• be articulate and join the discussion

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Working with ethical debates

• Realize
• there are many perspectives
• therefore, more than one conclusion is often
  reasonable
• That is real life
• There may be more than one answer (conclusion),
  and those who disagree with you are not
  automatically wrong!