Marcus Arvan

Egalitarian democracy index Data by V-Dem. Expert estimates of the extent of voting rights, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, and the protection of rights, access to power, and distri...

ourworldindata.org/grapher/egal...

Also, the happiest, most stable, and least corrupt societies in the world (in Northern Europe) are those that most closely conform to Rawls’ theory.

Imagine saying that an economic theory is wrong because politicians aren’t following it. That’s no reason to throw the theory under the bus. If it’s a good theory, it’s just a reason to get people to actually follow it.

Much of what the OP describes in their post has little to do with the theory at all, but rather inaccurate straw man interpretations of it.

But that’s not the case here. A good theory of justice should do two things: describe an ideal society/world we should shoot for (ideal theory), and then show how to get there in a just way from where we are (nonideal theory). As I argue in my work, Rawls’s theory does both.

Marcus Arvan, From rational self-interest to liberalism: a hole in Cofnas’s debunking explanation of moral progress - PhilPapers Michael Huemer argues that cross-cultural convergence toward liberal moral values is evidence of objective moral progress, and by extension, evidence for moral realism. Nathan Cofnas claims to debunk ...

Also, you say liberals need to show why liberalism is good for people. Okay, but this isn’t that hard to show: see philpapers.org/rec/ARVFRS

That it does so is an unfortunate yet fairly common misconception. Rawls provided an “ideal theory” of a fully just society—but when the framework is extended to unjust conditions, its implications are far more non-neutral on race, gender, and many other things as well.

Rawlsian liberalism (“Justice as fairness”) does not, for example, support neutrality on anti-black racism (something you imply it does in your piece).

Your discussion here may be based on common interpretations of Rawlsian liberalism—but as I show in this published paper, those interpretations are largely wrong about how committed it is to neutrality under unjust conditions.

philpapers.org/rec/ARVAAO

EP28: Is it Okay to be a Moderate? (On Marcus Arvan’s “Why it’s OK to Be a Moderate”) - Academic Edgelords Is moderation just fence-sitting, or is it a forgotten virtue? In this episode, we sit down with philosopher Marcus Arvan to discuss his new book…

I recently went on Academic Edgelords, a leftist podcast, to discuss my new book, Why It's OK to be a Moderate.

Much to my delight, all three hosts indicated that they enjoyed the book, and we had a fantastic discussion!

If you're curious, check it out: www.academicedgelords.com/2025/07/08/e...

Yes, when you click Donate on the GoFundMe page, it gives that as an option.

Donate to Support Helen's Children After Her Passing, organized by Marcus Arvan Help provide Helen De Cruz's children with a better start in life after her un… Marcus Arvan needs your support for Support Helen's Children After Her Passing

I am devastated to learn of my dear friend and fellow philosopher Helen De Cruz’s passing.

With Helen's blessing, her husband Johan and I agreed to circulate a GoFundMe on their children’s behalf.

Please feel free to share and circulate widely.

www.gofundme.com/f/support-he...

The A.I. Safety Embarrassment Cycle Explaining the repeated failures of AI safety research and development

marcusarvan.substack.com/p/the-ai-saf...

Giacomo Pezzano (Università di Torino) & Stefano Gualeni (University of Malta), “How to Do Philosophy with Sci-Fiction: A Case of Hybrid Textuality” Filosofia, 2024.

"How to do philosophy with (science) fiction"

Here are some reflections on writing weird novels as scholarly outputs (with thanks to @marcusarvan.bsky.social).

>> newworkinphilosophy.substack.com/p/giacomo-pe... <<

AI Is Too Unpredictable to Behave According to Human Goals AI “alignment” is a buzzword, not a feasible safety goal

Whether the value is truth, morality, or whatever, there is no empirically tractable way to train these things to reliably give the right outputs. www.scientificamerican.com/article/ai-i...

A.I. Hallucinations Are Getting Worse, Even as New Systems Become More Powerful A new wave of “reasoning” systems from companies like OpenAI is producing incorrect information more often. Even the companies don’t know why.

“As they try to tackle a problem step by step, they run the risk of hallucinating at each step. The errors can compound as they spend more time thinking.”

Your daily reminder that “aligning” LLMs with what we want them to do is a fool’s errand.

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/05/t...

We Should Disaggregate Philosophy’s Graduate Admissions, Placement, Tenure and Promotion, and Publishing Data by Mother/Parent Status (Guest post by Maja Sidzińska) By Maja Sidzińska How well do mothers fare in graduate admissions in academic philosophy relative to fathers and those who aren’t parents? How well do they fare on the academic job market in philosoph...

philosopherscocoon.typepad.com/blog/2025/04...

Reading suggestions for an undergraduate interested in epistemology and existentialism? I have a bright undergraduate student who has taken a couple of philosophy courses who asked if I have any recommendations for readings in epistemology and existentialism. I'd really like to provide t...

philosopherscocoon.typepad.com/blog/2025/03...

YouTube video by New Work in Philosophy Joseph Gough (Oxford), "The embodied, relational self: extending or rejecting the mind?"

I made a video for New Work in Philosophy on mind and self, from Descartes to the anti-Cartesians. Thanks @marcusarvan.bsky.social for the invite! youtu.be/tPXbnketu8I

Why Philosophy? Marcus Arvan Good philosophies make our lives and the world better.

A fun, short interview at "Why Philosophy?" on my path into philosophy, what philosophy means to me, etc.

Many thanks to Céline Leboeuf for the invitation. It's a great series, and I highly recommend subscribing to her substack!

celineleboeuf.substack.com/p/why-philos...

AI is Uncontrollable Ethical Machines · Episode

New podcast interview with Reid Blackman on whether AI control and alignment are possible. Thanks so much to Reid for having me on--it was a fun discussion! open.spotify.com/episode/5rdh...

Hope some of you decide to check it out and enjoy it, and if so, please do share the word!

More information on the book's contents, including a chapter-by-chapter summary and some advance endorsements, are available here: www.marcusarvan.net/my-books

He makes this case to you, showing that whatever your reasonable political ideology may be, things tend to go best politically when radicals and moderates effectively complement each other’s virtues while counterbalancing the other’s vices."

Why It's OK to Be a Moderate Amazon.com: Why It's OK to Be a Moderate: 9781032613864: Arvan, Marcus: Books

I am excited to report that my new book, "Why It's OK to be a Moderate", is now available for purchase ($24.99 paperback / $14.74 Kindle). www.amazon.com/Why-Its-OK-B...

From the book's jacket synopsis: "Arvan shows that it’s OK to be a moderate precisely because not everyone should be one...

Pirated 2 of my books and a bunch of my journal articles.

How do you honestly feel about teaching? In our most recent "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks: I'm a grad student on the market, and I have a lot of teaching experience (as TA and as lecturer at my degree-granting institution as w...

philosopherscocoon.typepad.com/blog/2025/03...

Amanda Evans (University of Pittsburgh), "Medical paternalism, anorexia nervosa, and the problem of pathological values" Synthese, 2025

newworkinphilosophy.substack.com/p/amanda-eva...

Steffen Koch (University of Bielefeld), "Merely verbal agreement, speaker-meaning, and defective context" Synthese, 2025

newworkinphilosophy.substack.com/p/steffen-ko...

Taking on a new AOS mid-career? In our newest "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks: I would like to hear people's experience of changing AOS(s), especially from mid-career philosophers. I do not have a specific question. But...

philosopherscocoon.typepad.com/blog/2025/02...