Simon Longstaff
@SimonLongstaff
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philosopher - focusing on the ethical dimension of life - outside the academy - constructively ignorant .. with capacity to pose an occasionally useful question
Sydney, Australia
Joined April 2009
Why Anzac Day’s soft power is so important to social cohesion
ethics.org.au
On Anzac Day we should remember the soft power of a shared ethos that underpins a cohesive society and safety at home.
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Another example of why we need a National Ethics Institute as championed by the likes of @DavidPocock @SophieScamps @allegraspender and the wonderful @JacquiLambie You can help by signing the petition at:
afr.com
We cannot allow the pendulum to swing back to the unacceptable status quo where greed, deceit and conflict of interests are allowed to thrive.
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You can back those making the case at: Why we need an Australian Institute for Applied Ethics @DavidPocock @helenhainesindi @SophieScamps @WayneSwan @sammostyn @allegraspender.
afr.com
Capitalism depends on government to provide a trusted framework of rules around it. But when politics turns into reality TV, we must ask the ethical questions ourselves.
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There is much being written about AI as a potential existential threat to humanity. But, how our society might need to evolve (assuming we survive!) in response to this increasingly powerful technology and its integration into most aspects of our lives:
ethics.org.au
We currently know as little about what Artificial General Intelligence might look like as we do about the risks and benefits that it might pose to humanity.
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It would be wonderful if as many people as possible could join our campaign to secure funding for a proposed new, national Ethics Institute. You can join us here:
ethicsinstitute.au
Australia's ethical infrastructure has been neglected. Support a national institute that will ensure better decision-making for the benefit of all.
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Like many other Australians, I have been wrestling with the arguments made by those who support and oppose Constitutional recognition of our First Nations Peoples through the establishment of a Voice. Here is where I have landed .
ethics.org.au
Only we, the people, voting as a whole, can resolve fundamental questions of how we will be governed, and by whom. Dr Simon Longstaff writes.
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Looking forward to this weekend’s Festival of Dangerous Ideas at Carriageworks in Sydney. We have a remarkable line up- with international guests appearing in person. Of particular interest is the emerging ‘rock star’ of economic history, Adam Tooze:
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Truth, trust, tech, tattoos, and taboos: Australia’s original disruptive festival, @festofdanger returns in-person to @Carriageworks, Sydney 17–18 September 🔥 72 Speakers + Artists // 8 International Guests // Art // Experiences // #BECONSUMED #FODI22.
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RT @TobyWalsh: Join me and the amazing @SimonLongstaff in conversation about Machines Behaving Badly at Gleebooks, 6pm for 6.30pm on May 5t….
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Have just had the most appalling experience with 13Cabs on the Gold Coast. Needed to head from an airport hotel to John Flynn Private Hospital to see a dying relative. Not a single cab would take the fare! Compassionate service. A sign of the times?.
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For all that’s wrong with professional politics in Australia, you have to love a country that adopts a sausage sizzle as a symbol of democracy!.
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It is no small thing when a party to (and of) government drops any pretence to be acting in the national interest. #ethics #cop26 #auspolCOP26:. The choice of our lives - The Ethics Centre
ethics.org.au
In the lead up to COP26 in Glasgow, we have witnessed a very partial kind of politics that has no concern for national interest on climate change.
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It is no small thing when a party to (and of) government drops any pretence to be acting in the national interest. #ethics #cop26 #auspol
ethics.org.au
In the lead up to COP26 in Glasgow, we have witnessed a very partial kind of politics that has no concern for national interest on climate change.
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If dealing with COVID is about the health of our bodies, reconciliation is about the health of our Australian soul: #Reconciliation.
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Some thoughts on our ongoing obligations to the people of Afghanistan. #ethics #foreignaffairs #auspol #afghanistan.
ethics.org.au
The Ethics Centre’s Dr Simon Longstaff on the ethical obligations Australia owes Afghanistan upon withdrawal.
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RT @ethics_centre: As talk of vaccine requirements continue, the discussion wrestles with the balance of safety vs liberty. @SimonLongstaf….
ethics.org.au
One of the most significant ethical issues to confront our community in the current phase of the pandemic is the requirement of vaccination.
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Some might think that ‘pork barrelling’ by government ministers is of little consequence given the challenge posed by COVID. I disagree - if we are to trade liberty for safety, then surely we need to be able to trust those with the power to decide!
afr.com
If we grow weary of saying ‘No’ to pork barrelling, we risk normalising deviancy and making unthinkable political practices acceptable.
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RT @crikey_news: It’s easy to be cynical about politics and lower one’s expectations to a point where it's dismissed as irrelevant. But we….
crikey.com.au
It’s easy to be cynical about politics and politicians, but we mustn't forget how important the truth is to a functioning democracy.
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Under what circumstances, if any, might it be permissible for Sikh boys to take a ceremonial knife to school?
smh.com.au
Religious freedom is a fundamental human right, though it does not trump the right to life or safety. The Sikh ceremonial knife, however, can be made safe for schoolboys to carry.
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