Paul Hurley – författare

Outcomes tyrannize over prevailing accounts of ethics, actions, reasons, attitudes, and social practices. The right action promotes the best outcome, the end of every action is an outcome to be promoted, reasons to act are reasons to promote outcomes, and preferences and desires rationalize actions that aim at the outcome of realizing their contents. This book canvasses two sets of seemingly powerful arguments, the first that outcome-centered ethics cannot be wrong, the second that it cannot be right. It proceeds to undermine the arguments that outcome-centered ethics cannot be wrong, in the process providing additional support for the arguments that it cannot be right. The tyranny of outcomes in ethics is given its appearance of legitimacy by ethical arguments that trade on conflations obscured from view by appeal to non-ethical accounts that are in the grips of these very same conflations. Rooting out the mistaken grounding for outcome-centered ethics involves rooting out the outcome-centered accounts of value, attitudes, reasons, and actions upon which the case for outcome-centered ethics depends, along with the considerations that have been offered to support them. The ethical and intuitive arguments for outcome-centered ethics are implausible, the outcome-centered accounts of attitudes, reasons and actions that form the cornerstone of the non-ethical argument shoring up outcome-centered ethics are implausible, and the considerations offered to bolster such outcome-centered accounts either themselves turn on the same equivocations that undermine the ethical arguments, or depend upon highly controversial positions in metaphysics and the theory of action. The result is a comprehensive argument for rejecting these outcome-centered accounts, stepping outside of this toxic outcome-centered circle. The conclusion points to only a few of the many significant implications of this comprehensive rejection of the tyranny of outcomes, with particular focus upon our democratic and legal practices. It demonstrates that outcome-centered accounts lead agents away from the quest for good reasons of the right kind--for integrated and authentic agency, and towards appeal to the wrong kinds of reasons and to bad reasons of the right kind.

Consequentialism, the theory that morality requires us to promote the best overall outcome, is the default alternative in contemporary moral philosophy, and is highly influential in public discourses beyond academic philosophy. Paul Hurley argues that current discussions of the challenge consequentialism tend to overlook a fundamental challenge to consequentialism. The standard consequentialist account of the content of morality, he argues, cannot be reconciled to the authoritativeness of moral standards for rational agents. If rational agents typically have decisive reasons to do what morality requires, then consequentialism cannot be the correct account of moral standards. Hurley builds upon this challenge to argue that the consequentialist case for grounding the impartial evaluation of actions in the impartial evaluation of outcomes is built upon a set of subtle and mutually reinforcing mistakes. Through exposing these mistakes and misappropriations, he undermines consequentialist arguments against alternative approaches that recognize a conception of impartiality appropriate to the evaluation of actions which is distinct from the impartiality appropriate to the evaluation of outcomes. A moral theory that recognizes a fundamental role for such a distinct conception of impartiality can account for the rational authority of moral standards, but does so, Hurley argues, by taking morality beyond consequentialism in both its standard and non-standard forms.

Consequentialism, the theory that morality requires us to promote the best overall outcome, is the default alternative in contemporary moral philosophy, and is highly influential in public discourses beyond academic philosophy. Paul Hurley argues that current discussions of the challenge consequentialism tend to overlook a fundamental challenge to consequentialism. The standard consequentialist account of the content of morality, he argues, cannot be reconciled to the authoritativeness of moral standards for rational agents. If rational agents typically have decisive reasons to do what morality requires, then consequentialism cannot be the correct account of moral standards. Hurley builds upon this challenge to argue that the consequentialist case for grounding the impartial evaluation of actions in the impartial evaluation of outcomes is built upon a set of subtle and mutually reinforcing mistakes. Through exposing these mistakes and misappropriations, he undermines consequentialist arguments against alternative approaches that recognize a conception of impartiality appropriate to the evaluation of actions which is distinct from the impartiality appropriate to the evaluation of outcomes. A moral theory that recognizes a fundamental role for such a distinct conception of impartiality can account for the rational authority of moral standards, but does so, Hurley argues, by taking morality beyond consequentialism in both its standard and non-standard forms.

After steam finished on the main line on 11 August 1968, something had to take its place; something modern, less difficult to maintain, and that was a natural progression. ‘Modernisation’ was the word. British Railways – and later privatised companies – developed other methods of providing power. In the follow-up to Remembering Steam, Paul Hurley and Phil Braithwaite take the reader back down memory lane, exploring traction from the very first locomotive to the latest colourful multiple units, and of course the preserved locomotives, lovingly restored to their former glory and working heritage lines across the country. With over 200 never-before-seen photographs, paired with fond and nostalgic captions, The Changing Railways of Britain is a book not to be missed.

Over fifty years ago, main line steam in Britain ceased to exist: the last ‘official’ date was 11 August 1968. At the time, British Railways’ plan was that this was to be the end of steam traction – although a special dispensation was given for Britannia Class 4-6-2 No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell to travel under its own steam into preservation on the 12th and 13th of that month. We now know that this was not quite the end; that, in fact, steam locomotives would eventually return to the main lines on highly popular ‘specials’.New in paperback, packed with over 200 rare photographs, Remembering Steam takes a look back at the days and years that led up to the end of steam on Britain’s railways.

The railways of Britain were battered and bruised after the First World War. Over 20,000 miles of track were owned and operated by 120 companies, and the government decided the country could no longer support so many inefficient, diverse and, in some cases, overlapping operations. To stem the mounting losses and regulate the system, the 1921 Railways Act, also known as the Grouping Act, became law on 1 January 1923. Just four large companies remained, nicknamed the ‘Big Four’: the LMS (London, Midland and Scottish Railway); the LNER (London and North Eastern Railway); the SR (Southern Railway); and the GWR (Great Western Railway). Remembering the Big Four looks back at the Big Four railway companies, 100 years after they were drawn together. Complete with contemporary images of the locomotives inherited and built by each company, it is essential reading for any railway enthusiast.

From its foundation as a Roman fort, Chester has played an important role in the history of north-west England. Close to the Welsh border, the city is still surrounded by an almost complete circuit of city walls, enclosing the cathedral, castle and many other ancient buildings, including the famous Rows of black and white half-timbered buildings. Chester continued its prominence into the industrial age, with the arrival first of the canal system then the railways. Today, the city of Chester has extended with new housing well beyond the city walls and redevelopments within the city, but still attracts many to its historic centre, its racecourse beside the River Dee and lively cultural scene.Chester Reflections features an exciting collection of historic and modern pictures that are individually merged to reveal how the area has changed over the decades. Each of the 180 pictures in this book combines a recent colour view of Chester with the matching sepia archive scene. Through the split-image effect, readers can see how streets, buildings, the docks and everyday life have transformed with the passing of time. Local author Paul Hurley presents this fascinating visual chronicle that ingeniously reflects past and present glimpses of Chester.This book will be of interest to residents, visitors, local historians and all those with links to the area.

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries Cheshire was a thriving part of the north-west of England. Bordered by Liverpool and Manchester to the north, much of the county was rural and agricultural, centred on the historic county city of Chester, the market towns of Macclesfield, Winsford and Northwich and also the industrial towns of Warrington, Crewe, Widnes, Runcorn and Ellesmere Port.It was a period of great social change as people from all walks of life moved with their families in search of work. Deprivation and poverty could often be found cheek by jowl with more affluent sections of society, and crime, as always, knew no boundaries. The stories were often chronicled in detail in local press at the time and in this book authors Paul and Rose Hurley have delved into the historical records to reveal the dark side of life of everyday people of Cheshire, which could turn to murder and death by execution.This collection of true-life crime stories gives a vivid insight into life in Cheshire in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This book will fascinate anyone with an interest in the history of crime, as well as those who want to know more about the history of this area of the North West.

This book covers tragic happenings within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. The tragedies cover a wide range of human and natural disasters, from accidents in carts, cars, trains and aircraft to the devastating effects of fire and floods. Some of the misfortunes that individuals suffered were caused by others, including their own family members, while others were industrial accidents or sheer bad luck. Crime also intruded on everyday life in this period, and others suffered through mental illness and self-harm.This collection of tragic stories of misfortune and disaster gives a vivid insight into life in Cheshire in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This book will fascinate anyone who wants to know more about the unfortunate history of this area in the north-west of England.

During Roman times, Northwich was known as ‘Salinae’ or the ‘salt works’, and later by the Celtic name ‘Hellath Dhu’, or the black salt town by the Ancient Britons. The Cheshire town grew up at the confluence of the River Dane and River Weaver and lies on underground salt beds, which were exploited through the Middle Ages to the twentieth century. Over the years, mines were dug and later abandoned. Two other towns had an abundance of salt beneath the ground, and Northwich became known as one of the three Wiches or Wyches of Cheshire: Northwich, Nantwich and, in between the two, Middlewich. The use of water to extract the salt in the nineteenth century led to extensive subsidence in the area which has been stabilised as the town has been redeveloped in recent years. As the town has grown, it has absorbed nearby settlements and is now a major commercial hub in the centre of the Cheshire Plain, as well as retaining its historic market town centre in the heart of Northwich.Northwich Reflections features an exciting collection of historic and modern pictures that are individually merged to reveal how the area has changed over the decades. Each of the 180 pictures in this book combines a recent colour view of Northwich with the matching sepia archive scene. Through the split-image effect, readers can see how streets, buildings and everyday life have transformed with the passing of time. This fascinating visual chronicle ingeniously reflects past and present glimpses of Northwich and will be of interest to residents, visitors, local historians and all those with links to the area.

The town of Northwich in Cheshire has been known for its salt production for centuries. The salt mines beneath the town were exploited by the Romans through to the modern era and the vast excavations have caused major subsidence in Northwich. By the nineteenth century Northwich was also a centre of the chemical industry in the north-west of England. Brunner Mond started the production of soda ash in 1874 at Winnington and the company later became ICI, building a huge industrial railway network in the area and growing into one of the largest manufacturers in the UK. Among the other industries in Northwich were shipyards. W. J. Yarwoods & Sons Ltd built over 1,000 vessels including small warships, one under the direction of Lawrence of Arabia, and Isaac Pimblott & Sons also built small craft including canal vessels, both closing in the 1960s/70s. The town also had steelworks and many other industries.Northwich and Around at Work explores the working life of this town and surrounding area in Cheshire and its people and the industries that have characterised it through the ages. The book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Northwich.

Nantwich occupies a pleasant position on the banks of the River Weaver and at least as far back as the Domesday Book has been one of the most important towns in Cheshire. The oldest and most ancient of the Three Wiches it has had several names over the years, a few being; Warmundestrou, Wich Malbank, Helath Wen, Namptwyche or simply Nantwich. The town is second only to Chester for the number of listed buildings and accordingly is a place of great antiquity. Paul Hurley has taken old photographs and used them as a guide to photograph the scenes as they are today. The oldest is that of the Market Hall when it was in the Town Square in the 1860s through to High Street in the 1970s. Use the book as a guide to take you through this quite unique town and see just how things have changed over the years; buildings, infrastructure, people and vehicles all are featured.

From the Cheshire Plain, that swathe of flatland with its mix of rich farmland, chocolate box villages and heavy industry to historic Chester with its aura of antiquity, across to the Wirral, most of which has been snatched away by Merseyside but leaves us with Ellesmere Port where the canal reaches the sea. Not forgetting ancient Nantwich, Alsager, Congleton, Wilmslow, Macclesfield, the gateway to the wild moorlands on the Cheshire Derbyshire border. Paul Hurley paints an affectionate portrait of Cheshire and gives residents, visitors and casual observers a look at how the towns once were compared with how they are now. Towns such as Stockport and Birkenhead that once formed part of the county, are not included but the ones that joined on amalgamation such as Widnes and Warrington are. So turn the pages compare the old with the new and see something different each time.

The drinking establishments of Saxon Chester are a mystery to us. The nineteenth-century historian Thomas Hughes wrote, ‘Anglo-Saxons had their eala-hus [ale house], win-hus [wine house] and cumen-hus [inn]’. We don’t know where they could have been located, but we do know that weak beer was the staple drink throughout the land because it was safer to drink than water. Chester has many cosy, historical and picturesque public houses, some that have served the public for hundreds of years.Chester pubs, like those throughout the country are going through a time of radical change. Reinvented for a new generation of patrons, many of the pubs have turned into gastro and themed pubs and bars. Within the pages of the Chester Pubs you will find a mixture of typical pubs from down the ages, some from a long way down, and a few of the newer bars.

Nantwich has been a very important town from the earliest days. It is the oldest of the three Cheshire Wiches or Wyches from which salt has been drawn, the other two being Northwich and Middlewich. During Roman times Nantwich was famous for the salt that was recovered here, Welsh Row being so-named as it is the road the Welsh used to enter the town to collect salt. In fact, its ancient name was Helath Wen (‘the town of white salt’); the present name is derived from Nant meaning ‘vale’, and Wich meaning ‘a salt spring’. Other names for the town have been Wich-Malbank after the ancient family of Malbank, whose ancestor was one of Hugh Lupus’s relations, and Namptwyche. Join Paul Hurley as he guides the reader through the town’s charming streets, showing how its most recognisable landmarks and hiddenaway gems have transformed over time. With the help of a handy location map, readers are invited on this tour to discover for themselves the changing face of Nantwich.

The origins of the name Knutsford have been disputed by historians but there is an ancient and popular explanation. After one of his victories, King Canute crossed the brook known as Birkin and the village became known as ‘Canute’s ford’, later to be changed to Knutsford. The Domesday Book gives some credence to this by calling it ‘Cunetesford’ (Canute’s Ford). Canute was the king of England from 1016 to 1035 and his name in Old Norse was Knútr. Over the years, Knutsford became popular and affluent with the many wealthy families who settled in the vicinity. In the late 1800s Richard Harding Watt arrived with money and a love of Italian architecture; he used his wealth to build the Gaskell Memorial Tower, in honour of the town’s famous author Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, along with the Kings Coffee House next to it and a number of Italianesque buildings.Join Paul Hurley as he guides us through Knutsford’s streets and alleyways, showing how its famous landmarks used to look and how they’ve changed over the years, as well as exploring lesser-known gems and hidden corners. With the help of a handy location map, readers are invited to follow along and discover for themselves the changing face of Knutsford.

We think of the Blitz as something that happened to major cities and large industrial areas, such as London, Glasgow and Coventry. But that’s only half of the story.Although 1940s Cheshire was a quiet, agricultural county for the most part, it did still have some areas that were of interest to the Nazis, such as Crewe Railway Works and the Rolls-Royce factory. Its strategic location, between frequent targets Liverpool and Manchester, also meant that it would fall prey to the Luftwaffe’s habit of dumping unused bombs on the way back from sorties.Using rare photographs from Cheshire Constabulary, taken around the county as defined by its wartime boundaries, Blitz on Cheshire is a look into the devastation that everyday people suffered at the hands of the Nazis.