Wow, thank you for this. You’re far more across this topic than I am, haha.
As for the effects of family planning on population levels, it’s interesting that there’s such wide disagreement, although maybe it’s just that the Collins’ are mistaken (wouldn’t shock me). I’d have to dig into the underlying research.
I distrust self-reports as a reliable guide in this case due to various biases (discussed by Kahneman), and my thoughts on that have been much better expressed in chapter 4 of the human predicament. I’ll need to revisit chapter 9 of WWOTF and see how their arguments and evidence compare. I would agree that an absence of positive lives (wherever the right line is) is somewhat bad, and should be a factor in decision making, although I am not a totalist or even a consequentialist (for example, I think the threshold for a live worth starting is quite above a life worth continuing). I agree that for totalists, this issue matters a lot, and for anyone uncertain about population ethics, it matters somewhat.
To clarify for certain readers, I think that the right of the woman to family planning comes first and shouldn’t be restricted. I think that foregone positive lives only has implications for prioritising among our positive obligations, not negative rights or liberties. I’m sure you agree.
To clarify for certain readers, I think that the right of the woman to family planning comes first and shouldn’t be restricted. I think that foregone positive lives only has implications for prioritising among our positive obligations, not negative rights or liberties. I’m sure you agree.
Wow, thank you for this. You’re far more across this topic than I am, haha.
As for the effects of family planning on population levels, it’s interesting that there’s such wide disagreement, although maybe it’s just that the Collins’ are mistaken (wouldn’t shock me). I’d have to dig into the underlying research.
I distrust self-reports as a reliable guide in this case due to various biases (discussed by Kahneman), and my thoughts on that have been much better expressed in chapter 4 of the human predicament. I’ll need to revisit chapter 9 of WWOTF and see how their arguments and evidence compare. I would agree that an absence of positive lives (wherever the right line is) is somewhat bad, and should be a factor in decision making, although I am not a totalist or even a consequentialist (for example, I think the threshold for a live worth starting is quite above a life worth continuing). I agree that for totalists, this issue matters a lot, and for anyone uncertain about population ethics, it matters somewhat.
To clarify for certain readers, I think that the right of the woman to family planning comes first and shouldn’t be restricted. I think that foregone positive lives only has implications for prioritising among our positive obligations, not negative rights or liberties. I’m sure you agree.
My views are pretty close to Ariel Simnegar’s.