Principles of Morality
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Random thought: One principle of morality is that allowable behavior doesn't vary depending on the recipient of the behavior. Example: In the middle ages, both Christian armies and Muslim armies would blow into town and start raping and pillaging, while specifically on a religious crusade. Both sides used the same excuse: It's okay to rape *these* women because they are infidels.
Another example: There are the polygamists who live in small settlements in Arizona and elsewhere who have dozens of wives, dozens of children, and don't work to support them. They all are on the public dole. And the reasoning of these "men" for not supporting their families is that, by having them on the public dole, they are sticking it to the man---making the corrupt and irreligious government/public pay for the support of the true believers.
Obviously another example is those who say it's okay to torture terrorists, or people associated with terrorists, or people suspected of not liking us.
But in the end, what good is morality if you only apply it to people you like? If you took that approach, then the world would look . . . well, very much like it actually does look.
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Random thought: One principle of morality is that allowable behavior doesn't vary depending on the recipient of the behavior. Example: In the middle ages, both Christian armies and Muslim armies would blow into town and start raping and pillaging, while specifically on a religious crusade. Both sides used the same excuse: It's okay to rape *these* women because they are infidels.
Another example: There are the polygamists who live in small settlements in Arizona and elsewhere who have dozens of wives, dozens of children, and don't work to support them. They all are on the public dole. And the reasoning of these "men" for not supporting their families is that, by having them on the public dole, they are sticking it to the man---making the corrupt and irreligious government/public pay for the support of the true believers.
Obviously another example is those who say it's okay to torture terrorists, or people associated with terrorists, or people suspected of not liking us.
But in the end, what good is morality if you only apply it to people you like? If you took that approach, then the world would look . . . well, very much like it actually does look.
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posted by Anonymous at
7:04 PM
1 Comments:
Interesting. I was just thinking about the death penalty, and my musings ran along similar lines as yours: Fair application of the death penalty is warranted if we equate it with justice. I suggest that the death penalty doesn't serve justice. For, we don't abhor a gruesome murder because the victim is faultless; it's not only the best citizens whose deaths are mourned but those who are serial criminals as well. In other words, we abhor the murder itself, not the guilt of the victim. So if the murder of a tragically flawed victim is abhorrent, state-sponsored murder of the perpetrators of violent crime is abhorrent, too. Anyhoodles, . . .
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