The Devil’s Dilemma is a news blog that isn’t about headlines. Instead, we travel the internet to bring together news that is often strange or surprising–but is nonetheless rich with ethical implications. Ethics is everywhere, even where you least expect it. From the other side of the world to the campus here at Duke University, [...]
You may have noticed things look different around here. We’re in the midst of a light website redesign. Everything should be where you remember it for the most part, but things may look a little untidy for a bit. Bear with us!
A hospital in the Lone Star State has decided that not everything should be bigger by regulating potential employees based on their body mass index (BMI). However, under heavy criticism (yay puns), this hospital in Victoria, Texas, has ended the policy (or, in the very-not-eloquent words of Jezebel, “reverses the terribly dumb no fatties [...]
Oh, you’ve heard the old adage that less is more. We all know that it’s wrong. Why would you want quieter speakers, a slower computer, or less money? Everybody knows that more is indeed more. But more doesn’t mean better, as some students in a California school are learning. Dozier-Libbey Medical High School in Antioch, [...]
A few months ago, Planned Parenthood put the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation under fire for withdrawing their funding from Planned Parenthood’s breast health services. The decision was allegedly made to appease pro-life supporters. Now, it’s Planned Parenthood’s turn to be scrutinized for their financial decisions. Planned Parenthood of North Texas recently rejected [...]
I can’t resist. I’m going to add my two cents to USA Today, Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Post, etc. about Kony 2012. For those of you who haven’t seen the viral (or infamous?) video yet, it’s worth half an hour of your time: Although the campaign has generated a lot of media buzz, including celebrity [...]
Every time I read an article about the growing anti-gay sentiments in Africa, I shudder in horror at the pain and violence inflicted on my fellow Africans by my fellow Africans simply because of their sexual orientations. I grew up in a homophobic society, but articles in the newspapers of violent acts against gays and [...]
A video showing a Chinese dad forcing his son to run essentially naked in the snow has gone viral recently. The boy cried for his dad to hug him and instead his father told him to do pushups in the snow. It is a “training regimen,” the self-proclaimed “Eagle Dad” told the media, for his pre-maturely [...]
It’s undeniable: here in America, we take our shopping seriously. Even in the face of the most serious economic recession in decades, people still love shopping for anything they can, or even can’t, afford. In fact, “love” might not really begin to fully explain the obsessive-compulsive relationship many American consumers have with their favorite brands, [...]
Oh, Wyoming. Comical in so many ways. Its squarish little shape, its hilariously small population, its desire to own (or at least maybe use) aircraft carriers… WHAT? That’s right. Wyoming, a landlocked state with no international borders that is 0.07% water by area, wants to have aircraft carriers. Well, you know, if the government [...]
Media censorship is always a contentious issue, but recently, the battleground has moved to scientific research. According to an Economist article, “Influenza and its Complications,” the U.S’s National Scientific Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) asked the world’s two leading scientific journals, Science and Nature, to censor research on the H5N1 flu virus. Ron Fouchier of [...]