Ethical Theories

[Sors]

I am just wandering what kind of ethical theories people here subscribe to. There can be arguments for and against each of these. I will list some of the main ones, I know that there are plenty of others and many variations on these main ones. I am curious if people subscribe more to teleological theories or deontological theories.

Cultural Relativism
Devine Command Theory
Utilitarianism
Rights theories - there are plenty of these (Hobbes, Locke, Rosseau etc.)
Egoism
Subjectivism
Virtue Theory
Feminist theory
etc.

 

[Murmur]

Does Discordianism count?

 

[Sors]

Sure I guess. Would you say that problems in the world come from those who impose order on others when it is not needed? Not knowing a whole lot about discordianism how do you distinguish what is right from what is wrong?

 

[David Gould]

I do not really know how to label my moral theory, or even if it is a moral theory at all.

I do not believe that free will exists. I do not believe that responsibility for actions exists. There are events which cause what I subjectively feel is unnecessesary suffering. No-one should be blamed for those actions but cause and effect situations can be set up so as to make such events less likely to occur in the future.

 

[Buzz Dixon]

Bushido

Taoism

Rational Anarchy (viz. Heinlein's THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS)

COnfucianism

 

[Ave Maria]

I consider myself to be a moral relativist.

 

[Dragar]

I do not really know how to label my moral theory, or even if it is a moral theory at all.

I do not believe that free will exists. I do not believe that responsibility for actions exists. There are events which cause what I subjectively feel is unnecessesary suffering. No-one should be blamed for those actions but cause and effect situations can be set up so as to make such events less likely to occur in the future.

I'm with David, apart from I also think that my culture has conditioned me to find certain states of affairs 'preferable', even where these states of affairs are not related to suffering.

 

[Norseman]

I do not really know how to label my moral theory, or even if it is a moral theory at all.

I do not believe that free will exists. I do not believe that responsibility for actions exists. There are events which cause what I subjectively feel is unnecessesary suffering. No-one should be blamed for those actions but cause and effect situations can be set up so as to make such events less likely to occur in the future.

I'm kind of along those lines. I believe that since you are simply the product of your environment and the composition of your body, you don't have any control over what you do. I feel that people should not be blamed for that which they have no control over, however I think that it is important to try and keep it from happening again. A serial killer allowed to do as he wishes will continue to kill, and I think that is unacceptable. Additionally, time in jail can and does act as a form of behavior modification, causing the individual to consider what they have done. Some get better, but others take the opportunity to learn from other criminals how to do crime more effectively. Prison should act in one of two ways; to protect society from those who are dangerous to it, and to attempt to rehabilitate those who broke the law into productive law-abiding citizens. In no part of that do I see it necessary to allow prisoners any form of free speech besides what's necessary to learn to express emotion and let out your anger in a non-harmful manner. Prisoner support groups seem reasonable to me, but allowing prisoners to get worse while in prison seems to be a backwards process.

Repeat offenders get very little mercy from me. If you kill someone, then go to jail, get out and kill someone again, it's obvious you've learned nothing and you probably never will, it's in society's best interests to keep such an individual in jail for life with a chance of parole depending on the cirucmstances.

 

[Sors]

ahh....which leads to the whole free will vs determinism argument.

 

[Norea]

Bushido

Taoism

Rational Anarchy (viz. Heinlein's THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS)

COnfucianism

Woo, Rational Anarchy? I guess you're a Heinlein fan. Yay!

-- Bridget

 

[kedaman]

Deontology and divine commandments. I believe we are all sinners, and are not justified by any law at all, but saved by grace.

 

[Norseman]

ahh....which leads to the whole free will vs determinism argument.

Define free will. Is it the ability to make choices not influenced by the world around you? That's what we call "randomity". If free will is the ability to decide what to do based on the world around you, then you're just a glorified calculator. There is no free will.

Neither is there determinism. In order to predict everything you need to be able to predict the actions of subatomic particles, but quantum uncertainty makes it impossible to do so.

 

[Norseman]

Deontology and divine commandments. I believe we are all sinners, and are not justified by any law at all, but saved by grace.

So do you propose to lock up all those unrepentant sinners?

 

[kedaman]

there are many definitions of free will, but it's basically the ability to defeat fatalism. To be the prime cause, to act as if you will nothing else, to act independently on circumstances, etc..

 

[kedaman]

So do you propose to lock up all those unrepentant sinners?

the wicked will be doomed anyway

 

[Norseman]

the wicked will be doomed anyway

I'll take that as a "yes". You know I think you're a monster now, right?

 

[MoonlessNight]

I ascribe to virture theory, though I think that in certain cases other ethical theories are more useful for practical purposes.

 

[Sors]

I'm kind of along those lines. I believe that since you are simply the product of your environment and the composition of your body, you don't have any control over what you do.

Call it what you will, it sounds like biological determinism to me. Im not arguing against it, just trying to understand what else you would call this belief.

 

[Madcoil]

I do not really know how to label my moral theory, or even if it is a moral theory at all.

I do not believe that free will exists. I do not believe that responsibility for actions exists. There are events which cause what I subjectively feel is unnecessesary suffering. No-one should be blamed for those actions but cause and effect situations can be set up so as to make such events less likely to occur in the future.

So murderers and rapists should walk free after all... My prayers have finally been answered!

 

[Sors]

Deontology and divine commandments. I believe we are all sinners, and are not justified by any law at all, but saved by grace.

I only have one real problem with this theory. I believe it leads one to the conclusion that either God is non omnipotent or that God is arbitrary. Is something right because God commands it? or does God command it because it is right?