It can even be said that artists ignore the world’s suffering, and choose to pursue their own, selfish creativity. Rhys Southan sums this stance up in the phrase “Artists, meanwhile, paint the beautiful landscape while the rest of the world burns.” Southan seems to target artists with his deliberate word choice, and the quote itself is pointed sharply toward who the Effective Altruists believe are selfish artists.
Slavery was an awful institution that affected millions of people worldwide, but the historical remnants of its existence are what reminds us of how terrible a system it was and keeps us from ever returning. It brings the quote from George Santayana to mind, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Santayana would surely agree that history is vital to the advancement of both society and culture past their previous wrongdoings.
*Additions in Bold Text
In Singer’s words, “you notice a child has fallen in and appears to be drowning. To wade in and pull the child out would be easy but it will mean that you get your clothes wet and muddy, and by the time you go home and change you will have missed your first class…do you have any obligation to rescue the child?” Singer uses a more relate-able situation to better explain how we have an obligation to help those who are sick, those who are in poverty, and those who are generally less fortunate than we are.
I didn’t have a direct quote for Peter Singer’s shallow pond example. I figured this one would do the trick.
Max, your analysis adds a lot of clarity and power to your argument. Nice work. 3/3