Ethics: Co-Existing With The Unjust

Ethics: Co-Existing With The Unjust

From Practicing Stoicism by Tanner Campbell

February 2, 2026 · 13 min · Season 1 · Episode 5

About this episode

Tanner Campbell explores the ethical implications of distancing oneself from unjust political leaders and their supporters, particularly within family dynamics, through a Stoic lens.

I am a public philosopher, it is my only job. I am enabled to do this job, in large part, thanks to support from my listeners and readers. You can support my work, keep it independent and online, at https://practicingstoicism.com/pledge. This episode is prompted by a thoughtful listener question: if we judge a political leader to be unjust, would it be unjust to distance ourselves from that leader’s supporters—especially when those supporters are family? For example, would it be just to skip a wedding because a family member supports a political figure we find morally repugnant? I use my own relationship with my father to explore this question through the Stoic framework of role ethics. As Stoics, we occupy many roles—son or daughter, parent, citizen—and each role carries duties that must be reasoned through rather than emotionally rejected. Disagreeing with a parent’s political views does not erase the duties that come with being their child. I explain why Stoicism does not judge people by outcomes or affiliations, but by the reasoning behind their choices. From a Stoic perspective, all unjust actions stem from the same root cause: moral ignorance. There are no degrees of vice…

People in this episode

Host: Tanner Campbell

Topics covered

  • ethics
  • Stoicism
  • family relationships
  • moral responsibility
  • political views

Keywords

  • Stoicism
  • ethics
  • moral ignorance
  • family
  • politics
  • just actions
  • role ethics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Practicing Stoicism

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