Discussions of Atheism and Transgender in Sunday's Webcast

In Sunday's live Rationally Selfish Webcast, I'll be answering two questions that might be of particular interest. The questions are:

Which bathroom should a pre-operative transgendered person use? The brutal attack at McDonald's on a transgendered person in April 2011 was apparently started because that person used the ladies restroom, which was already occupied by a 14 year old. Was the transgendered person wrong to use that restroom?

And:

How much should I tell my parents about my beliefs, given that I'm still financially dependent on them? I'm in college, and if I told my parents that I'm an atheist, they'd probably stop paying my tuition. Should I tell them now, or wait until I'm done with college?

Go to www.RationallySelfish.com on Sunday at 8 am PT / 9 am MT / 10 am CT / 11 am ET to watch me answer these questions live and join in the text chat.

Here's the full announcement for this week's webcast:

For Sunday's live Rationally Selfish Webcast, I'll answer questions on the purpose of bankruptcy law, bathrooms for the transgendered in transition, private versus state prisons, revealing atheism to religious parents, and more. Come join the discussion!

• What: Live Webcast on Practical Ethics


• Who: Diana Hsieh (Ph.D, Philosophy) and Greg Perkins


• When: Sunday, 30 October 2011 at 8 am PT / 9 am MT / 10 am CT / 11 am ET


• Where: www.RationallySelfish.com

Here are this week's questions:

• Question 1: The Purpose of Bankruptcy Law: What is the proper purpose of bankruptcy laws? When should a person renegotiate his debt with lenders, if ever? Should a person be able to wipe his debt clean by going into bankruptcy? In your July 10, 2011 webcast discussion of strategic default on mortgages, you suggested that a person shouldn't be able to do that, but shouldn't lenders be responsible for who they lend money to?


• Question 2: Bathrooms for the Transgendered in Transition: Which bathroom should a pre-operative transgendered person use? The brutal attack at McDonald's on a transgendered person in April 2011 was apparently started because that person used the ladies restroom, which was already occupied by a 14 year old. Was the transgendered person wrong to use that restroom?


• Question 3: Private Versus State Prisons: Should prisons be run by the state or private companies? After reading this Huffington Post article, I wonder whether prisons should be run by private companies or the state. I tend to think private is almost always better than anything state-run, but the current system of private prisons seems to be corrupt at best. More generally, what would a prison system look like in a free society?


• Question 4: Revealing Atheism to Religious Parents: How much should I tell my parents about my beliefs, given that I'm still financially dependent on them? I'm in college, and if I told my parents that I'm an atheist, they'd probably stop paying my tuition. Should I tell them now, or wait until I'm done with college?

After that, we'll do a round of totally impromptu "Rapid Fire Questions."

If you can't attend the live webcast, you can listen later to the audio-only podcasts. Visit NoodleCast to listen to past episodes or subscribe to the podcast feed. Also, you can submit your questions, as well as vote on your favorite questions from the ongoing queue.

I hope to see you on Sunday morning!