Could I have been my sister? Thanks, Bob.

College sport is big business, and generates a tremendous amount of revenue. Should the player receive some share of that money?

Many women who have abortions do so because they realize they won't be able to give the child a decent upbringing. Many anti-abortionists are Catholic and are opposed to birth control (and sex for enjoyment unless it coincides with the possibility of conception - go figure!) which may lead to the very problem they get so exercised about. Don't anti-abortion advocates then have a moral obligation to adopt the offspring mentioned in the first paragraph so as to assure them an affluent upbringing if it is within their means? Crack babies, for example, are not simply a matter of debate about abstract religious dogma. Am I right in detecting massive hypocrisy here? As a rule they don't seem to give a damn, just so long as the foetus survives. The hardship and misery probably awaiting it is conveniently ignored. Also, is it only in religions that we find sexual desire a source of guilt and shame? Surely not. The ancient Greeks had none of our hang ups. Thanks for an edifying site.

Is an act immoral if you are ignorant of its consequences? Would there be a difference between acts in which the truth has been arguably ignored, such as a Christian who doesn't let his kid wear a seatbelt because he has faith that God will save the child despite what statistics say, compared to an act in which a person is truly ignorant, such as the father who accidentally forgets to belt the child in or does so ineffectively by accident? Many thanks :)

I am curious about the philosophy behind popular cliches such as "the power of positive thinking" or "self-fulfilling prophecies". How is it that mental processes are able to influence physical outcomes? Is this an issue that would fall under the "Philosophy of Mind" category?

Studying philosophy has brought for me seduction and self love instead of intellectuality and wisdom! After reading some philosophy books and thinking a lot about philosophy of life, Now I've lost all of my life! I think that daily actions of my friends and their thoughts are useless and meaningless in compare with philosophic thoughts. In my idea, it's time wasting to study university lessons and just go around like others. I also see myself in higher degree than my friends and able to understand what they don't catch at all! After all, I have many problems in my daily life, friendship and in university, maybe because of thinking in this way ...

Is it enough to merely respect the right of others to have beliefs different from my own without actually respecting those beliefs? Or do I need to try to have respect for the actual beliefs of others, even if I strongly disagree with them? In other words, isn't it somewhat hypocritical to talk about how you respect someone else's right to their own beliefs when you secretly think those beliefs are ridiculous or unsupportable?

Concerning the question about a definition of rape answered by Nicholas D. Smith and Alan Soble (http://www.amherst.edu/askphilosophers/question/768), I have the following comment/questions. In all *legal* definitions of rape that I have seen, the main point of argument is not whether or not "sex" (which can generally be defined as a whole range of conduct outside of intercourse) was "wanted" or even "consented to" (as was inferred in the previous posting), but rather, whether or not specifically "penetration" (i.e. invasion of any bodily orifice by a foreign object) was "forced" against a person's "will". I don't see how there could be any argument here, though certain pedants might squabble over an acceptable generalized definition of "will". Here is my concern: I was attacked by a stranger who broke into my apartment late at night and roused me from sleep. He punched me in the face a couple of times, then placed my pillow over my face and threatened to smother me to death if I didn't cooperate with...

If a mother gives birth to a person who goes on to become a serial killer, has she done something immoral? Wouldn't a Utilitarian say that the act of giving birth to that child will decrease the general level of happiness? Great site by the way.

DOES LIFE AFTER DEATH EXIST??? WHAT REASONS COULD WE GIVE TO DENY ITS EXISTENCE??? THANX