UPCOMING EVENTS: SPRING 2018
Event dates can also be found on our calendar pag
Wednesday Evening Ethics Discussion and Food
Wednesday July 18th, 7:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Six Moral Virtues. “Every moral perspective in some way embodies the same general moral principles.” Richard Paul, Ph.D.
Starting from this premise, we’ll look at the six moral principles Richard Paul names in “Ethics Without Indoctrination.” These are: Moral Humility, Moral Courage, Moral Empathy, Moral Integrity, Moral Perseverance and Moral Fairmindedness. What does each mean and how do they apply in our decisions about what is right or wrong? When have you used these in your life? Paula will lead the discussion.
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 Housing Crisis: Shared Housing and Supportive Services
Friday July 20th, 10am to noon
Holder’s Country Inn (998 S. DeAnza Blvd, San Jose CA 95129)
We have a housing crisis in the Bay Area. Escalating housing costs and rising rentals. Working families who cannot afford to live near their jobs. Long commutes in bumper to bumper traffic. Is shared housing a viable solution? Granny units? Several generations of family in one unit? Turning a B and B into a rental? What are the risks and rewards? Jan will 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!
Book Club: The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater
Sunday July 22nd, 11am
Neutra House (183 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
The Ethical Culture Book Club, we will be discussing “The 57 bus,” a true story of two teenagers and a crime that changed their lives.
• 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/
Abstract: “One teenager in a skirt. One teenager with a lighter. One moment that changes both of their lives forever. If it weren’t for the 57 bus, Sasha and Richard never would have met. Both were high school students from Oakland, California, one of the most diverse cities in the country, but they inhabited different worlds. Sasha, a white teen, lived in the middle-class foothills and attended a small private school. Richard, a black teen, lived in the crime-plagued flatlands and attended a large public one. Each day, their paths overlapped for a mere eight minutes. But one afternoon on the bus ride home from school, a single reckless act left Sasha severely burned, and Richard charged with two hate crimes and facing life imprisonment. The case garnered international attention, thrusting both teenagers into the spotlight.”
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 and Discussion: Environmental Justice and Activism
Wednesday July 25th, 6:30pm
Paula and Ben’s home (RSVP for location details)
Curt Collier, an Ethical Culture Leader, spoke about Environmental Justice and activism at the Sunday Platform at the AEU Assembly in June. He works with Groundworks and brings an ethical culture focus on relationships and personal growth to the work he does. A question to think about: What environmental work are we as individuals and a group doing? What can we do that will make a difference? What is the relationship between climate change and environmental justice? Paula will lead the discussion.
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: Robots and Health Care
Friday August 3rd, 10am to noon
Holder’s Country Inn (998 S. DeAnza Blvd, San Jose CA 95129)
“The industrial revolution allowed us, for the first time, to start replacing human labor with machines” – Vitalik Buterin.
As robot usage becomes more common in our society, the new field of machine ethics is emerging. It is concerned with ensuring that the behavior of machines toward human users, and perhaps other machines as well, is ethically acceptable. Ethicists are especially concerned with the prospect of intelligent, autonomous, and humanoid robots that take care of the elderly.
Issues arising from the use of robots and questions that need to be addressed include: Will robots replace the nurses and other care givers, leaving the ill and elderly in the hands of machines? Could robots deliver the same quality of care? Can machines give the “warm,” “human” care we seem to expect from human care givers? Do robots used in care deceive vulnerable persons when they (the robots) “pretend” to be something else than they are, for example when they appear as pets? There are also the broad issues of replacement of human workers, moral agency and responsibility.
Please join us for a discussion of this timely topic. Invite others! Bring your unique point of view and add to the discussion. Sue will 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!
Coffee and Conversation
Sunday August 12th, 11am
Neutra House (183 Hillview Ave., Los Altos CA 94022)
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 11:00 in the morning. Linda and John lead.
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!