Barcalow (Western New England College) finds there are good reasons to invest in secular forms of moral justification but also considers a range of other possibilities in this undergraduate text. Rather than focusing on primary readings, Barcalow provides summaries of leading systems of thought and analyzes a number of specific issues, including those based on case studies. He covers the basics of morality and moral reasoning, natural law and divine commands, realism, nihilism, subjectivism, relativism, psychological and moral egoism, utilitarianism, Kant, virtue and vice, human rights, feminism and sexual equality, sex, life and death issues, economic inequality and poverty, equal opportunity, racism and affirmative action, capital punishment, war and peace, and ethics and the environment. Studies come from insurance fraud cases, reports of police brutality, Florida's ban on gay adoptions, stem cell research, and right-to-die cases. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)