The Norm Of Unconditional Parental Love, I

If The Spirit Of Their Intercourse Were Still The Same After Their Coming Together As It Had Been When They Were Living Apart,' Aristotle Writes, Their Association Can't Really Be Considered A Polis, Or Political Community. 'a Polis Is Not An Association For Residence On A Common Site, Or For The Sake Of Preventing Mutual Injustice And Easing Exchange.' While These Conditions Are Necessary To A Polis, They Are Not Sufficient. 'the End And Purpose Of A Polis Is The Good Life, And The Institutions Of Social Life Are Means To That End.

One Of The Appeals Of Markets, As A Public Philosophy, Is They Seem To Spare Us The Need To Engage In Public Arguments About The Meaning Of Goods. So Markets Seem To Enable Us To Be Non-judgmental About Values. But I Think That's A Mistake.

Aiming At Health, Restoring Health - That Is A Goal That Is Both Morally Important And Limited, Because It Aims At The Restoration Of Normal Human Functioning, Which Is An Important Part Of Human Flourishing.

It's Possible To Make Sense Of What's Morally At Stake In An Appreciation Of The Gift Of Life, Or The Gift Of A Child, Without Necessarily Presupposing That There Is A Giver. What Matters Is That The Gift - In This Case, The Child - Not Be Wholly Our Own Doing, Our Own Product.

What Intrigued Me Most Was Not The Technology As Such But The Questions About The Human Goods, The Fundamental Human Values And Virtues That Are Raised By Debates Over Biotechnology.