Yup. And the teaching of ethics now starts -- and ends -- with such seemingly impossible examples to confuse the very young and unwary, rather than starting with Plato and Aristotle and building gradually to such "hard cases."
Chesterton said somewhere that the most important thing about a man is their overall worldview/philosophy. And it's easy to see why. One can generalize that sentiment to our entire social order.
In a 2014 paper published in the Social and Personality Psychology Compass,[24] researchers criticized the use of the trolley problem, arguing, among other things, that the scenario it presents is too extreme and unconnected to real-life moral situations to be useful or educational.[31]
Brianna Rennix and Nathan J. Robinson of Current Affairs go even further and assert that the thought experiment is not only useless, but also downright detrimental to human psychology. The authors opine that to make cold calculations about hypothetical situations in which every alternative will result in one or more gruesome deaths is to encourage a type of thinking that is devoid of human empathy and assumes a mandate to decide who lives or dies. They also question the premise of the scenario. "If I am forced against my will into a situation where people will die, and I have no ability to stop it, how is my choice a "moral" choice between meaningfully different options, as opposed to a horror show I've just been thrust into, in which I have no meaningful agency at all?"[32]
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Yet, this is exactly where we are today, being coerced to sacrifice ourselves and our children "for the greater good" or to save ephemeral few (maybe one or none?) that cannot take a jab themselves for some unbeknownst medical reason. The pinnacle of absurdity and brutality of 2021-2022. Welcome to Canada.
I think that criticism is entirely valid, but I also think it misses an important point which I hope I captured (but may not have done clearly).
This whole way of thinking "the greater good" / "the end justifies the means" is quite literally Satanic thought. It is a characteristic moral inversion - switcheroo good for its opposite and argue that it is good. Switching privileges for rights is another one (e.g. the "right" to a job, or the "right" to healthcare).
Beautifully written. Thank you for posting it here. I hope others read and share the principles described herein. I know I will add this example and principles in raising our 3 kiddos and at every oppty that presents itself in adult life. Self censorship needs to be replaced utterly with kind dialog that's full of grace sp that opposing opinions have a chance to be heard and rationalized- as opposed to knee-jerk demonizing normally seen. God bless you
"But this is a philosophical trick; a deceit."
Yup. And the teaching of ethics now starts -- and ends -- with such seemingly impossible examples to confuse the very young and unwary, rather than starting with Plato and Aristotle and building gradually to such "hard cases."
Chesterton said somewhere that the most important thing about a man is their overall worldview/philosophy. And it's easy to see why. One can generalize that sentiment to our entire social order.
Thanks for this essay. I have looked up this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolley_problem#Criticism
Criticism
In a 2014 paper published in the Social and Personality Psychology Compass,[24] researchers criticized the use of the trolley problem, arguing, among other things, that the scenario it presents is too extreme and unconnected to real-life moral situations to be useful or educational.[31]
Brianna Rennix and Nathan J. Robinson of Current Affairs go even further and assert that the thought experiment is not only useless, but also downright detrimental to human psychology. The authors opine that to make cold calculations about hypothetical situations in which every alternative will result in one or more gruesome deaths is to encourage a type of thinking that is devoid of human empathy and assumes a mandate to decide who lives or dies. They also question the premise of the scenario. "If I am forced against my will into a situation where people will die, and I have no ability to stop it, how is my choice a "moral" choice between meaningfully different options, as opposed to a horror show I've just been thrust into, in which I have no meaningful agency at all?"[32]
---------------------
Yet, this is exactly where we are today, being coerced to sacrifice ourselves and our children "for the greater good" or to save ephemeral few (maybe one or none?) that cannot take a jab themselves for some unbeknownst medical reason. The pinnacle of absurdity and brutality of 2021-2022. Welcome to Canada.
I think that criticism is entirely valid, but I also think it misses an important point which I hope I captured (but may not have done clearly).
This whole way of thinking "the greater good" / "the end justifies the means" is quite literally Satanic thought. It is a characteristic moral inversion - switcheroo good for its opposite and argue that it is good. Switching privileges for rights is another one (e.g. the "right" to a job, or the "right" to healthcare).
Beautifully written. Thank you for posting it here. I hope others read and share the principles described herein. I know I will add this example and principles in raising our 3 kiddos and at every oppty that presents itself in adult life. Self censorship needs to be replaced utterly with kind dialog that's full of grace sp that opposing opinions have a chance to be heard and rationalized- as opposed to knee-jerk demonizing normally seen. God bless you
Thank you for reading what I wrote and your kind compliment. God bless you and the kiddos too.
You're good, Horace.
Me, I get too angry
I get angry too sometimes, but that's usually with my children - not so much with posters on message boards.
Posted this, called fbi, cia!
On Guardian Angel, a Vatican II guy said something, but I generally don't quote them. I kinda believe him.. He'd be Catholic except v2
https://odysee.com/@DavidKnightShow:1/New-CYA-Spin-from-Alex-Jones-Former-Trump-Official:5