Lockdown: Did Government Do the Right Thing?

by Mark Oppenheimer, Jason Werbeloff

Are Lockdowns unethical?

You’re standing beside a train track, and feel the vibration of an oncoming train. Ahead of you, five innocent people are tied to the rails, screaming for your help.

You can save them. But there’s a catch...

Pull a nearby lever, and the oncoming train will be diverted. But there’s a woman tied to the other track. Are you willing to kill her to save the others?

Government locked down to save vulnerable lives, while forcing businesses to close their doors.

Did government pull the right lever?

Two philosophers use ethical principles to debate whether the pandemic justifies a lockdown.

If you enjoy Pop Philosophy that is easily accessible and makes you think, you’ll love this book.

75 pages, Paperback

First published September 10, 2020

About the author

Mark Oppenheimer is a freelance writer. He is a staff writer for the Christian Century and has written for many publications, including Harper’s, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Boston Globe, the Yale Review, the Hartford Courant, Playboy, and Slate. He has taught at Wesleyan and Stanford universities.

Reviews

[Richard Mulholland · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's worth stating upfront that the authors are mates and I really enjoyed that I could picture the two of them having this philosophical discussion. My only problem is that the discussion in many parts felt above my philosophical pay grade.

That said it was great to learn about this stuff, but leaves me questioning if philosophy is helpful at all in that I'm none the wiser :)

Strong recommendation if you enjoy philosophy.

[Thad]

A clear and lively debate about how governments should respond to Covid-19 in the light of empirical data and some prominent concepts from contemporary ethics. A fun read for the philosophically inclined!