PHIL 002 Lecture 4: PHIL 002 Lecture Notes_ World Hunger (3)
30 Jan 2019
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When petra walks by the pond and sees the drowning child, she is certain about what to do: she should wade in and save the drowning child. In the presence of this certainty that explains why, in the pond case, we would judge inaction as morally blameworthy (186). By contrast, when petra hears about a famine taking place overseas, there is a lot of vital information that she does not know: whether those who are suffering have other means of help available . Nothe that some organizations, non-government or otherwise, are beset by inefficiency, incompetence and corruption. How do we distinguish an efficient organization from an inefficient one: what help is required . Note: it goes without saying that different famines in different parts of the world may call for different forms of aid. But even an isolated case of famine does not present us with a clear course for alleviation.
