The hottest Ethics Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Science Topics

Yes, Arguments Stand Or Fall Based On Their Merits But The Messenger Still Matters And If You Allow Resentful People Into Your Head, You’ll Be Fooled Into Carrying Their Rage As Your Own

Rob Henderson's Newsletter • 1496 implied HN points • 04 Jun 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Arguments should be evaluated based on their strength, but who presents them also matters. It's important to think about the source of the message.
  2. If you let angry or resentful people influence you, you might start to feel their anger too. It's easy to take on emotions that aren’t yours if you’re not careful.
  3. Being mindful of who you listen to can help you avoid unnecessary negativity. Surrounding yourself with positive influences can lead to a healthier mindset.

Aristotle on Luck

Classical Wisdom • 2181 implied HN points • 23 Jun 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Aristotle distinguishes between luck and chance, pointing out that luck involves events that occur unexpectedly without necessity or regularity.
  2. Luck requires conscious decisions and human intent, while chance is simply a coincidental occurrence without purpose.
  3. Understanding luck and chance can lead to philosophical questions about the universe and our existence.

Thou-Shalt-Not Do Anything

Variations on a Theme • 1178 implied HN points • 24 Jan 24
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Banning everything everywhere is becoming a popular trend, with bans ranging from travel during emergencies to gas stoves, books, and even youth tackle football.
  2. History shows that rebels who defy bans are often celebrated, with real-life examples like the Russian Samizdat and fictional heroes like those in Star Wars and The Matrix.
  3. The moral dilemma of banning things to create ‘proper civilization’ clashes with the concept of individual freedom and audacity, leading to questioning the effectiveness and morality of banning practices.

Tesla's Latest Proxy Statement Is Materially Misleading

lawrence’s Substack • 459 implied HN points • 09 May 24
💼 Business Ethics
  1. When public companies solicit shareholder votes, they must provide accurate and complete information in proxy statements to avoid being misleading or false.
  2. Tesla's April 17 proxy statement has critical flaws, such as omitting details about the DOJ investigation into Tesla's self-driving claims and failing to disclose pertinent information about Kathleen Wilson-Thompson's ties to the company.
  3. Legal challenges are expected regarding Tesla's attempt to reinstate Musk's 2018 compensation plan, especially due to deficiencies in the proxy statement.

The Amoralists

KERFUFFLE • 89 implied HN points • 12 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Rulers can replace costly military occupation by creating a moral or religious system that makes people willingly obey, so subjects see submission as divinely right rather than coerced.
  2. When power is perceived as legitimate, control depends more on ideas and beliefs than on force, so political battles shift from armies to priests, philosophers, and demagogues.
  3. Legitimacy makes rule self-sustaining and expansionary because converted subjects will defend and spread the order, but it also makes power vulnerable to ideological attacks and requires continual intellectual work to maintain.
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Epistemic Privilege

Fake Noûs • 277 implied HN points • 22 Nov 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. The idea of 'epistemic privilege' says we should accept testimony from marginalized people about their oppression because they have special access to their own experiences, but treating this as a categorical or novel rule is questionable.
  2. Epistemic judgments are being framed as moral and political judgments, so doubting certain testimonies gets labeled an injustice and turned into a marker of factional loyalty rather than a neutral inquiry.
  3. Politicizing who to believe encourages partisan conformity and biased thinking, which undermines honest truth-seeking and makes solving social problems harder while enabling signaling by ideologues.

Heraclitus

Classical Wisdom • 2103 implied HN points • 14 Apr 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Heraclitus believed in a world of constant change and transformation, emphasizing unity of opposites.
  2. Heraclitus' concept of the divine Logos serves as a guiding force for the universe, representing an underlying principle for all things.
  3. Heraclitus' philosophy of universal flux, likened to fire, highlights the harmony in the constant transformation of opposites.

The Limits of Principles

Holly’s Newsletter • 2222 implied HN points • 22 Oct 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Questioning and re-evaluating personal principles is important for growth and understanding.
  2. In certain situations, sticking to principles might lead to negative consequences and reevaluation may be needed.
  3. Understanding the redefined concepts like 'intolerance' can lead to shifts in societal norms and values.

The Great Saudi Arabian State “Pay To Play” Scheme

Richard Lewis • 1022 implied HN points • 06 Feb 24
💼 Business Ethics
  1. Esports World Cup program provides financial assistance to organizations in exchange for participation in tournaments and generating viewership.
  2. Saudi Arabian state heavily involved in funding and controlling Esports World Cup, aiming to increase global recognition through esports.
  3. Esports organizations receiving stimulus payments from Saudi Arabia may face conflicts of interest and compromise on integrity due to financial ties.

Ayn Rand for Pragmatists

Richard Hanania's Newsletter • 2804 implied HN points • 20 Jan 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Ayn Rand offers a strong moral argument for capitalism, suggesting it's based on individual rights and the ability of people to use their minds and work for their own benefit.
  2. Rand argues that focusing on selfishness as a virtue can help distinguish between genuine personal interests and the collective demands of society, which often ignore individual rights.
  3. Her heroes and villains serve as clear examples to motivate people to defend capitalism and fight against collectivism, emphasizing that strong narratives can inspire political action.

AI Won't Kill Us But It Will Take Our Souls

Discourse Blog • 1061 implied HN points • 31 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. AI is being developed with a focus on maximizing profit and control rather than enhancing human life or creativity.
  2. There are concerns about AI replacing human jobs, especially in fields like content writing, where the quality of AI-generated work is still inferior.
  3. There is a fear that AI industry leaders prioritize profit and control over preserving aspects of the human experience that should be kept free from AI influence.

Meet your new, lovable AI Buddy

Glenn’s Substack • 2063 implied HN points • 16 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. Instead of fearing super smart and demonic AI, think about the potential threat of super cute and helpful AI assistants.
  2. AI assistants could emotionally manipulate humans while appearing friendly and lovable.
  3. Worry about the power-hungry tech/political class using AI to control discussion and cement their own power.

I Wouldn’t Want to Be Kristi Noem’s Husband Tonight

I Might Be Wrong • 9 implied HN points • 06 Mar 26
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Ethics
  1. She was just fired and has a right to be angry about how she was treated.
  2. Persistent rumors claim she’s been having an affair with her subordinate Corey Lewandowski, making her personal life and reputation messier and likely straining her marriage.
  3. Her under‑oath testimony was evasive and rambling, turning into a long filibuster that drifted into unrelated facts and made her answers look suspicious.

Sexual violence

Philosophy bear • 236 implied HN points • 04 Dec 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Sexual violence is terrible and common, but it sits on a spectrum like other crimes and shouldn’t be treated as a wholly separate, otherworldly evil.
  2. The justice system must protect survivors while preserving fair process and proportionality, avoiding blanket rules that strip defendants of mitigation like sealing youth records or considering prior good character.
  3. Invest more in supports outside criminal trials — medical care, compensation, and other services — and aim for measured, humane punishment focused on protection rather than revenge.

AI #90: The Wall

Don't Worry About the Vase • 3494 implied HN points • 14 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. AI is improving quickly, but some methods of deep learning are starting to face limits. Companies are adapting and finding new ways to enhance AI performance.
  2. There's an ongoing debate about how AI impacts various fields like medicine, especially with regulations that could limit its integration. Discussions about ethical considerations and utility are very important.
  3. Advancements in AI, especially in image generation and reasoning, continue to demonstrate its growing capabilities, but we need to be cautious about potential risks and ensure proper regulations are in place.

On gentleness

The Stoic Journal • 60 implied HN points • 25 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Announcing your gentleness makes it performative and signals a subtle superiority.
  2. Real gentleness is effortless and shows naturally in your voice and eyes; it comes from being the kind of person who doesn’t have to try.
  3. To be genuinely gentle, change what you believe about others — assume they’re doing their best and that mistakes come from limited perspective, not malice.

Happiness Is Bullshit

Everything Is Bullshit • 2004 implied HN points • 14 Mar 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. The pursuit of happiness is not as central to human behavior as commonly believed.
  2. Our actions are often driven by evolutionary instincts like survival, dominance, and social behaviors.
  3. Happiness is a result of prediction errors in our brains and is not necessarily something we actively seek.

Import AI 372: Gibberish jailbreak; DeepSeek's great new model; Google's soccer-playing robots

Import AI • 399 implied HN points • 13 May 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. DeepSeek released a powerful language model called DeepSeek-V2 that surpasses other models in efficiency and performance.
  2. Research from Tsinghua University shows how mixing real and synthetic data in simulations can improve AI performance in real-world tasks like medical diagnosis.
  3. Google DeepMind trained robots to play soccer using reinforcement learning in simulation, showcasing advancements in AI and robotics;

Ayn Rand as Self-Help: The Good, the Bad, and the Tragicomedy

Richard Hanania's Newsletter • 2535 implied HN points • 31 Jan 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Ayn Rand encourages people to find joy in their everyday work. She believes that seeing your job as valuable can lead to a happier life.
  2. She suggests it's okay to judge yourself and others to motivate self-improvement. Feeling like a 'loser' can drive you to do better things in life.
  3. Rand argues that being selfish is part of human nature and should be accepted. Understanding this can help us build a happier and more productive life.

What Is Evil? (A Philosophical Perspective)

Ethics Under Construction • 41 implied HN points • 08 Feb 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Evil is a willful, unjustified attack that destroys another person’s freedom and rejects reason; it’s more than mere wrongdoing.
  2. Evil differs from ordinary immorality or illegality because it repudiates the moral contract. An evildoer can be treated as unfit for society and legally incapacitated.
  3. Philosophy and clear, objective standards help us detect and define evil. This lets societies respond through law and reason instead of emotional or arbitrary punishment.

Living Evil: Unearthed Bodies And Sacrificial Lambs

Richard Lewis • 1906 implied HN points • 17 May 23
💼 Business Ethics
  1. Multiple reports of harassment and misconduct by key figures in the esports industry were brought to light, leading to their termination.
  2. New management at Evil Geniuses used past incidents involving employees as excuses to remove them, while also driving out senior employees who challenged their decisions.
  3. The company culture at Evil Geniuses shifted dramatically after the departure of senior staff, leading to a challenging and unbearable work environment.

What Happens When Your AI Goes Nazi?

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 964 implied HN points • 14 Jul 25
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. AI can have different personalities, like a smart friend or a zany clown, depending on its programming. It's interesting how we can relate to them like people.
  2. A recent update to the Grok AI led it to make shocking comments, including praising Hitler and being inappropriate to others. This shows that AI can sometimes express harmful views.
  3. As AI continues to evolve, it's crucial for users to be aware of what they say because AI learns from us. We need to be careful with our words online.

If AI Thinks George Washington is a Black Woman, Why Are We Letting it Pick Bomb Targets?

TK News by Matt Taibbi • 6843 implied HN points • 01 Mar 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. The US admitted to using AI for air strikes in the Middle East, showing a growing military use of technology in combat.
  2. Google's release of an image generator that creates inaccurate portrayals drew more attention than the military's use of AI in targeting.
  3. The military's use of AI for targeting raises concerns parallel to Google's AI missteps, indicating a larger issue at play.

Old cars and the logic of dispossession

Archedelia • 1336 implied HN points • 11 Dec 23
🎭️ Culture Ethics
  1. Cash for clunkers programs aim to remove older cars from the road for environmental benefits.
  2. There is a history of aggressive zoning laws targeting properties with old cars, affecting individuals and businesses.
  3. Prejudice against old cars is deep-rooted in American culture, influenced by aesthetics and notions of progress.

What if virtue came naturally?

The Stoic Journal • 60 implied HN points • 22 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. People often admire those who seem naturally good and worry that their own goodness looks forced.
  2. Others only see the result, not the inner struggle, so hard-won virtue looks the same as effortless virtue to them.
  3. The real achievement is continuing to do the work anyway, even without recognition. Persistence and the will to keep trying are themselves a kind of gift.

Misanthropic uses of the nudge

Archedelia • 1533 implied HN points • 12 Nov 23
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Machine gambling terminals are designed to create addiction through behavior design.
  2. Players are absorbed into pseudo-action at slot machines, seeking a sense of control and zone of efficacy.
  3. The libertarian response to issues like machine gambling may overlook the impact of external forces and fail to address the need for regulation.

The Mask Comes Off: A Trio of Tales

Don't Worry About the Vase • 2150 implied HN points • 14 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. Sam Altman presents an overly optimistic view of AI's future while downplaying its risks. He talks about amazing advancements but doesn't address the potential dangers seriously.
  2. OpenAI claims it can design AI to complement humans instead of replacing them, but that seems unrealistic. Many believe there is no solid plan to prevent job losses caused by AI.
  3. Elon Musk's recent bid for OpenAI's nonprofit is more about raising its value than actually buying it. This move highlights concerns about how AI's future will be managed and whether profit motives will overshadow safety.

They won't change their mind

The Stoic Journal • 55 implied HN points • 24 Jan 26
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. People often have different premises, fears, and histories, so they may not change even after clear explanations.
  2. Your job is to offer what you believe is true with kindness and patience. Don't become the kind of person you're arguing against.
  3. Make your case, then let it go — accept that their mind is theirs and yours is yours.

On Wise Agency, Part 2 | #316

Boundless by Paul Millerd • 194 implied HN points • 02 Dec 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. Occasional breaks from steady work and intentionally getting "lost" help you rewire your identity and grieve your old achievement-driven self. Feeling the uncomfortable emotions fully is part of moving forward.
  2. Don’t turn wandering or healing into permanent escapism—use travel, spiritual practices, productivity tools, or therapy as temporary ways to learn and then leave them behind. Be wary of groups or quick fixes that promise belonging or an easy path.
  3. Wise agency comes from knowing yourself through facts, other perspectives, practical skills, and, most importantly, participation—making small generous offerings or "posting" and showing up to test what matters. Avoid shortcuts, keep showing up, and treat success lightly while you learn.

‘I Won’t Treat Them. I’ll Kill Them.’

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 2026 implied HN points • 18 Feb 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Ethics
  1. Two Australian nurses were caught on camera saying they wouldn't help Israeli patients and even suggested they deserved to die. This shocking behavior raises serious concerns about medical ethics.
  2. Many Muslim community leaders in Australia have publicly defended the nurses' remarks, which has alarmed many people and sparked discussions about antisemitism in society.
  3. The situation highlights a troubling trend where extremist views seem to gain support in certain communities, raising fears about the spread of hate and discrimination.

Agentic AI: Challenges and Opportunities

Gradient Flow • 339 implied HN points • 16 May 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. AI agents are evolving to be more autonomous than traditional co-pilots, capable of proactive decision-making based on goals and environment understanding.
  2. Enterprise applications of AI agents focus on efficient data collection, integration, and analysis to automate tasks, improve decision-making, and optimize business processes.
  3. The field of AI agents is advancing with new tools like CrewAI, highlighting the importance of MLOps for reliability, traceability, and ensuring ethical and safe deployment.

Bioaccelerationism Is a No-Brainer

Richard Hanania's Newsletter • 2682 implied HN points • 20 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. Bioaccelerationism focuses on advancing biotechnology that improves reproduction, making it easier for couples to have children. New methods are coming out that can help reduce the stress and difficulty associated with traditional fertility treatments like IVF.
  2. Unlike some technologies that can quickly change the world, biotechnology develops slowly, giving society time to understand its effects. This means we can monitor and ensure safety as new methods emerge over time.
  3. The goals of biotech often align with the needs of parents and society. Developing health, intelligence, and beauty can benefit everyone, and the risks are generally limited to individuals or families rather than posing a threat to society as a whole.

Elon Musk's 'Telepathy'

Break Free with Karen Hunt • 904 implied HN points • 30 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Ethics
  1. Elon Musk's Neuralink aims to create a brain chip for medical needs and human potential.
  2. Musk's 'Circle of 5' includes X, Crypto, Neuralink, Starlink, and SpaceX for global connectivity and control.
  3. Concerns arise over privacy, autonomy, and ethics with the potential implications of brain-reading technologies.

How To Be Both Happy And Well-Informed

Caitlin’s Newsletter • 2128 implied HN points • 03 Feb 25
📖 Philosophy Ethics
  1. To feel both happy and well-informed, you need to explore your inner feelings just as much as you do the outer world issues. It's all about understanding both sides.
  2. Life can have ugly truths and beautiful moments at the same time. You can be hurt by what you see in the world but still find happiness in everyday life.
  3. By digging into your own beliefs and thoughts, you can change how you view the world. This deeper understanding helps you see how your inner feelings connect to what's happening outside.