Jacob Blair Faculty Profile

• M.A. Philosophy of Religion and Ethics, Biola University
• Ph.D. Philosophy, University of California, Santa Barbara

Not teaching this semester.

"A Review of 'Love Drugs: the Chemical Future of Relationships' ", American Journal of Bioethics 21 (1):W4-W6. 2021.

"Autonomy and the Moral Symmetry Principle: Reply to Frowe and Tooley", Res Publica 24 (4): 531-541. 2018.

"The Evil of Refraining to Save: Liu on the Doctrine of Doing and Allowing", Diametros 52. 2017.

“Fiona Woollard. Doing and Allowing Harm” (Review), Journal of Value Inquiry 50 (3): pp. 673-681. 2016.

"Self-Defense, Proportionality, and Defensive War against Mitigated Aggression", International Journal of Applied Philosophy 27 (2): pp. 207-224. 2013.

"Defending a Rodinian Account of Self-Defense", Review Journal of Political Philosophy 9: pp. 7-47. 2012.

"Honor in the Military and the Possible Implication for the Traditional Separation of jus ad bellum and jus in bello", in, Applied Ethics: (ed.) Center for Applied Ethics and Philosophy, Hokkaido University, pp. 94-102. 2011.

"Tensions in a Certain Conception of Just War as Law Enforcement", Res Publica 14 (4): pp. 303-311. 2008.

"Decision Making Capacity as Autonomy: Comments On Ben Schwan's 'What's the Matter with Decision Making Capacity'", American Philosophical Association Pacific Division Meeting, 2021.

“Unbefriended Nursing Home Patients and HSC 1418.8: Critiquing the Latter to Protect the Former” (poster), Yale University Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, 2019.

"Does the Refugee Crisis Require Reconciliation? Reply to Fourlas", American Philosophical Association Pacific Division Meeting, 2016.

"Responding with Violence to Fighting-Words: Reply to Trisha Phillips", Fourth Annual Rocky Mountain Ethics Congress, University of Colorado, Boulder, 2011.

 "Honor in the Military and the Possible Implication for the Traditional Separation of jus ad bellum and jus in bello", Fifth International Conference on Applied Ethics, Hokkaido University, Japan, 2010.

"Proportionality and Defensive War against Mitigated Aggression", Society of Applied Philosophy Annual Conference, University of Leeds, UK, 2009.

"Why a Defensive War Against Mitigated Aggression can be Proportionate.  Extending the Right of Self-Defense to our 'Primary' Interests".  Public Reason Political Philosophy Podcast Symposium, 2009.

"Tensions in a Certain Conception of Just War as Law Enforcement", Law and Philosophy Conference, Moral, Legal, and Political Perspectives, University of Stirling, UK, 2007.  Also at the Felician College Spring Ethics Conference, Felician College, 2007.

"BonJour and the Benacerraf Problem", University of Iowa Graduate Philosophical Society's 3rd Annual Graduate Conference, University of Iowa, 2007.

"Moral Judgment, Alienation and Fetishism: Revisiting Michael Smith's Argument for Internalism about Moral Motivation", Berkeley/Stanford/Davis Graduate Student Philosophy Conference, University of California, Berkeley, 2007.

"Nagel and Walzer on the Notion of Supreme Emergency", 11^th Annual University of North Florida Philosophy Conference, University of North Florida, 2007.

Committee Membership:

Bioethics Committee member at Mills-Peninsula Medical Center, Burlingame CA. 2019 - Present.

Professional Development: 

Participant in The Sherwin B. Nuland Summer Institute in Bioethics at Yale University. Summer 2019.

Course Construction: 

Developed a CSUEB freshman cluster course in collaboration with Dr. Maria Ortuoste: War and Terrorism: Ethics, Power and Justice. Spring 2018.

Book Chapter:

"Philosophy Satisfies the Curious Student" (with R. Gorton and C. Moreman) in Philosophy for the Curious. Why Study Philosophy? ed. K. Vaidya, CAP 2015.

Invited Presentation:

"What is it to Appreciate Art?" CSUEB Equal Opportunity Program Fall 2014 Explore the Bay Event. A presentation to undergraduates.