In political philosophy, a throffer is a proposal that mixes an offer with a threat which will be carried out if the offer is not accepted. The term was first used in print by political philosopher Hillel Steiner, and while other writers followed, it has not been universally adopted. An example (pictured) is "Kill this man and I'll pay you—fail to kill him and I'll kill you instead." Steiner differentiated offers, threats and throffers based on the preferability of compliance and non-compliance for the subject compared to the normal course of events that would have come about were no intervention made, although this approach has been criticised. Throffers form part of the wider moral and political considerations of coercion, and form part of the question of the possibility of coercive offers. The theoretical concerns surrounding throffers have been practically applied concerning workfare programmes, where individuals receiving social welfare have their aid decreased if they refuse the offer of work or education. Several writers have also observed that throffers presented to people convicted of crimes, particularly sex offenders, can result in more lenient sentences if they accept medical treatment. (Full article...)
... that Jacques Dutronc only got the opportunity to record his debut single because of an envious, disappointed and trigger-happy record company executive?
The PDSA Gold Medal is an animal bravery award that acknowledges the bravery and devotion to duty of non-human animals. It was created by the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 2001, and is now recognised as the non-human animal equivalent of the George Cross. An animal can be awarded the PDSA Gold Medal if he or she assists in saving human or non-human animal life when his or her own life is in danger or through exceptional devotion to duty. The medal can also be awarded to animals in public service, such as police or rescue dogs, if the animal dies or suffers serious injury while carrying out his or her official duties in the face of armed and violent opposition. The first ceremony, in November 2002, saw the Gold Medal awarded to three dogs, including Endal(pictured), an assistance dog whose actions helped to save the life of his disabled owner. The most recent ceremony was held in June 2013, honouring Ajax, a German Shepherd. The PDSA Gold Medal has been awarded 23 times, and all recipients to date have been dogs. (Full list...)
Mike Godwin (b. 1956) is an American attorney and author active in internet law. In 1990 he formulated Godwin's law, which states "As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches 1."
This Wikipedia is written in English. Started in 2001 (2001), it currently contains 4,333,376 articles.
Many other Wikipedias are available; some of the largest are listed below.
