Drunk and in the Mood: Affect and Judgment What we should do is often subject to our affective shifts, at least if how much we care about something is an important element of practical reasoning. Journal of Moral Philosophy PDF

Abortion and Moral Risk Reasonable people will admit that there is a non-trivial possibility that one of the arguments against abortion goes through. That seems to leave room for worrying about moral risk–the thought that abortion is risky even if we believe the pro-life position to be wrong. Philosophy PDF

A Simple Argument against Design God seems to have had many more options by which to bring about life than were available under natural selection. If so, then mundane features of the world, like that the earth is very old, would actually be evidence that the world was not designed, since that outcome was "optional" on the design hypothesis but nearly inevitable on natural selection. Theists like me might find this evidence unwelcome, but as I stress, this is only one piece of evidence among many. Religious Studies PDF

An Argument against Marriage Consider the Bachelor's Argument: assume that marriage involves a promise to be in a lifelong relationship with another person. Either that promise has lifelong binding force or it doesn't. If it does, marriage is crazy, since it commits us to a relationship with someone even if we cease to love or even like them. Alternatively, if the promise loses its force once we cease to love our spouse, then the commitment lacks authority in the only circumstance in which it is needed and is therefore pointless. People should get and stay married (the author did!), but not for reasons related to oaths and vows. Philosophy PDF

Anticipated Emotions and Emotional Valence I argue that anticipated emotions like regret give us little or no reason to act. I also argue that the valence of emotions is a function of the sensations they involve. Includes a discussion of death-bed regrets, and of whether teenagers should listen to their annoying parents. Philosopher's Imprint PDF