Is envy diabolical?
When we find ourselves feeling hostile towards others, we’re often advised to put ourselves in their position. The ubiquity of envy, however, suggests that this might be as likely to increase our enmity as weaken it…
ReadTag: Ethics
Is it OK to objectify people?
The imperative not to treat people as objects is a minimal requirement of civility rather than the foundation of all ethics.
ReadShould we be religious?
We can’t just choose what to believe because it would be convenient to do so. Of course, people do sometimes deceive themselves to avoid uncomfortable truths but that usually happens unconsciously. Believing by mere force of effort is nigh on impossible.
ReadOn taking food seriously
It is absurd to claim that anything that is not essential to our survival is a “luxury” we should not be concerned about. This is not a humane viewpoint, but a deeply anti-humanist one. Why, after all, are we so concerned that many people do not have the necessities of life? Not because we think that mere survival is the purpose of existence. We want people to have food, shelter, health and education so that they can thrive and flourish. To put it another way, we want our “middle-class indulgences” to be available to everyone.
ReadShould we avoid value judgments?
No one has infallible access to moral truth and there is more than one good way to live. But that does not mean that no one has any moral insight and that there aren’t many wrong ways to live. The alternative to unjustified confidence in the one true way is not a misguided faith in the validity of all paths.
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