Monday, January 20, 2020

How would you answer someone who questions the heart of ethics?

 According to the BBC guide to ethics, "At the heart of ethics is a concern about something or someone other than ourselves and our own desires and self-interest. Ethics is concerned with other people's interests, with the interests of society, with God's interests, with "ultimate goods", and so on. So when a person 'thinks ethically' they are giving at least some thought to something beyond themselves." But someone might question why we ought to give any consideration to anything beyond ourselves. How would you reply to someone who raises that question about ethics? 

24 comments:

One Brow said...

It's only because other people think beyond themselves that we have a relatively safe society. It's all mutual self-interest to care about others.

John B. Moore said...

Why does it have to be a concern specifically about other people? To me, ethics is just about how to achieve my own best interest. It's true, of course, that I need to be intensely concerned about other people's interests in order to achieve my own best interest, but that's not the heart of ethics. It's just like free-market capitalism - everything works out for the best if each individual just pursues their own enlightened self-interest.

bmiller said...

But someone might question why we ought to give any consideration to anything beyond ourselves.

Because Mark 12:31. Living only for yourself is a empty shabby existence.

StardustyPsyche said...

John,
"To me, ethics is just about how to achieve my own best interest... It's just like free-market capitalism - everything works out for the best if each individual just pursues their own enlightened self-interest."
Spoken like a true selfish jackass, are you a Republican by any chance? Libertarian?

It is in my self interest to steal, overpower, lie, cheat, and dump my waste without regard to others, so if we all just do that, things will work our for the best, right?

Kevin said...

Spoken like a true selfish jackass, are you a Republican by any chance?

This...is CNN. *da da da*

StardustyPsyche said...

Legion
"CNN"
Shades of Trump? Indeed, the epitome of the selfish jackass. A clear example of what happens when crackpot market ethics achieves power.

BTW Legion, the POTUS is a criminal, a dangerous serial criminal that is driving our country headlong toward an economic cliff for his own short term financial gain, a typical Republican politician who is following John's version of master morality or domination ethics.

Kevin said...

You do realize you're the only one talking about Trump, right?

If you were already aware of that, I'd be curious how you feel Trump relates to my comment. My contempt for CNN and other left-leaning outlets, as well as their idiotic and demonstrably false caricatures of "Republican bad, Democrat good" existed for many election cycles prior to Trump.

One Brow said...

Legion of Logic said...
CNN and other left-leaning outlets,

MSNBC is left-leaning, CNN is not. In fact, CNN often goes out of its way to diminish/dismiss Bernie Sanders.

Kevin said...

CNN is left leaning, but they tend to follow along with the Democrats unless a story is simply too big to ignore. The questions they ask, the narratives they use, the stories they focus on, the direction their speculation takes, are almost always identical to Democrats and liberals. Democrats don't like Bernie Sanders for the most part, and lo and behold, neither does CNN.

There's good reason why CNN is referred to as DNCNN.

Kevin said...

Looks like CNN decided to exclude Tulsi Gabbard from a series of town halls they will be hosting. She's another one that the party doesn't like.

Given that it is only conservative media (other than her supporters) who have noted her exclusion and no definitive reason for the exclusion is known, there may be a legitimate reason for her not being included. But given CNN's past and present behavior, it would not surprise me if it was an intentional snub.

bmiller said...

I've heard Tulsi is a Russian asset. Right?

Kevin said...

Who isn't a Russian asset these days?

We have the honorable Representative Adam Schiff saying if the Senate does not remove Trump, the election in 2020 can't be trusted. We have multiple Democrats admitting impeachment is intended to keep him from getting reelected and that we can't trust this at the ballot box (in other words, can't trust voters to do what they want).

Unwanted election results invalidated and impeachment as an election interference strategy in case voters don't elect a Democrat. Sounds to me like the Russians already won.

One Brow said...

Legion of Logic said...
CNN is left leaning, but they tend to follow along with the Democrats unless a story is simply too big to ignore. The questions they ask, the narratives they use, the stories they focus on, the direction their speculation takes, are almost always identical to Democrats and liberals.

Every now and then I go to the adfontesmedia bias chart. Previously, CNN has always been in the middle on political bias, but low on the scale of reliability. The latest chart has moved them up slightly and to the left as well. So, They seem to have been leaning left in the past couple of years.

Democrats don't like Bernie Sanders for the most part, and lo and behold, neither does CNN.

Centrists don't like Sanders.

There's good reason why CNN is referred to as DNCNN.

Because both are owned by the same billionaires?

One Brow said...

bmiller said...
I've heard Tulsi is a Russian asset. Right?

She repeats many Russian talking points. Some thinks that's all you need to be an asset.

Kevin said...

The silly thing to me about notions such as "Russian talking points" or "Russian assets" is that the "Russian" part is absolutely irrelevant.

I couldn't care less if Russia supports or opposes a policy or candidate. If I like the policy or the candidate, I'm going to vote accordingly regardless of what Russia thinks.

And if a "Russian talking point" is more accurate than a Democrat's talking point - which is a very low bar to achieve these days - then I will place the Russian talking point ahead of what Democrats claim. Accuracy is more important than source.

bmiller said...

HA! Just what a Russian agent would say!

bmiller said...

Bernie, on the other hand, promotes staffers that want to bring back Stalin era gulags and re-education camps (not to mention firing squads). He's definitely not a Russian agent.

Kevin said...

Food lines are a GOOD thing. Says Bernie Sanders who is not a Russian asset.

bmiller said...

You can make a living wage in the gulag I hear. Can't wait!

Kevin said...

Anything to keep me from betraying my constitutional voting duties by voting for anyone other than a Democrat. Please, send me to the gulag.

Kevin said...

Don Lemon just demonstrated the objective journalistic professionalism of CNN.

bmiller said...

Who's that? The guy with 2 sexual harassment suits that is still employed?

Kevin said...

Whoever he is, Don Lemon thinks he is insane for his juvenile behavior

bmiller said...

Looks like he needs some Lemon-aide.