UPCOMING EVENTS: Fall 2018
Event dates can also be found on our calendar page
Coffee And Conversation
Sunday October 14th, 11am to 1:30pm
Neutra House (183 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
Our Coffee & Conversation sessions are informal, inclusive, supportive gatherings. We just talk about things that are on our minds, things that make for, or detract from, a fulfilling human life in the real world for ourselves and for other people. We listen to each other, share our thoughts, sip our hot drinks, and enjoy being together. We do this at Neutra House in Los Altos the second Sunday of each month at 11 in the morning. Linda and John lead the discussion.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Wednesday Evening Discussion and Food: Ethics of Emergency Intervention – What Should I Do?
Wednesday October 17th, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Many fast-thinking kids have called 911 to get help. Even animals have been heroes by dialing 911. Yet, we read in the newspaper that adults have called for everyday nuisances like dog barking, and loud music. Adults call about strange vehicles or to report unknown or “suspicious” individuals walking the neighborhood. Children have called for help with homework or help to find a lost toy.
California’s 911 system received more than twenty-eight million calls in 2016. Research shows that up to 40% of the calls in California are either unintentional or not true emergencies. Knowing when NOT to call 911 is just as important as knowing when and how to call 911.
Vegan dinner served at 6:30, discussion at 7:30. PLEASE do not bring any food or drink into the home. RSVP for location details (you can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form.)
Friday Morning Ethics Discussion
The Right To Die: Death With Dignity
Friday October 19th, 10am to noon
Holder’s Country Inn (998 S. DeAnza Blvd, San Jose CA 95129)
What is dying anyway? Leaving and losing your family and friends? Going to heaven? Leaving an inheritance? Can the right to die coexist with the right to live? Who decides? We’ll discuss these and other issues as we explore this sensitive and “life-changing” topic Molly leads the discussion.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Sunday Spotlight
Speaker TBD
Sunday October 21st, 11am
Neutra House (183 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
Join us one Sunday each month to hear from an inspiring, active speaker who will share information about working to make our community and our world a better place. Topics run the gamut from basic needs to social justice to the environment. We welcome you to participate by listening and engaging in thoughtful dialogue, with a little live music mixed in. We provide the coffee, tea, and a welcoming space for inquiring minds and open hearts to learn from one another.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!
Video Night With Discussion and Food: The Ethics of Trash
Wednesday October 24th, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Trash is everywhere. Paper, food waste, styrofoam, bottles and cans, plastic bags, wrappers, combination packaging. What do we do with all this stuff? What can we recycle? What can we not? Let’s watch a brief video from GreenWaste Recovery – Materials Recovery Facility. Then we’ll review the science of recycling and how to get accurate and complete information.
Vegan dinner served at 6:30, discussion at 7:30. PLEASE do not bring any food or drink into the home. RSVP for location details (you can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form.)
Book Club: Moral Mazes – Envy, A Theory of Social Behavior by Helmut Schoeck
Sunday October 28th, 11am
Neutra House (183 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
For this meeting of the Ethical Culture Book Club we will be discussing “Envy: A Theory of Social Behavior” by Helmut Schoeck.
• All are welcome (though please read the book)
• Please bring along at least one point for discussion
• If you have chance, look over the list to help choose the next book http://ethicalsiliconvalley.org/ecssv-book-club/
About the book: This classic study is one of the few books to explore extensively the many facets of envy, “a drive which lies at the core of man’s life as a social being.” Ranging widely over literature, philosophy, psychology, and the social sciences, Professor Schoeck — a distinguished sociologist and anthropologist — elucidates both the constructive and destructive consequences of envy in social life. Perhaps most important, he demonstrates that not only the impetus toward a totalitarian regime but also the egalitarian impulse in democratic societies are alike in being rooted in envy.
Although it’s fine to just show up, it would be greatly appreciated if you RSVP so we have some idea how many people to expect and can set up the room accordingly. You can use our Meetup page if you have an account there, or you can use our contact form. Thanks!