Ethics.

[Deleted]

Society is defined by a majority and minority. However, when you apply this to large numbers, such as all of europe, you find conflicting groups within the majority and minority groups that have different ideas about ethics and morals.

Hitler had the majority of germany behind him in the nazi party. Does that make the other people wrong in going against him?

[Deleted]

Ethics are intelligent mens desperate attempt to make sense of a universe that is inherently neutral.

[Grizzly Willy]

Ethics are only based upon what the society decides.



And our society decided we should have none.






edit:
my point.

Every society has ethics. You can't choose not to have them.

[Kasierith]

I wouldn't say that every society defines ethics necessarily.... every person is, at a starting point, an act utilitarian. Left to their own devices every person will naturally pursue pleasure while avoiding pain and therefore expand on self interest. Ethics come around when societies attempt to form a different system, collective good, and therefore must shift the focus of the society away from self and onto others, something necessary for civilization to advance. I would say that every society defines morality in some way or another, even if its at the most base level.... but morality and ethics while going hand in hand in most cases aren't necessarily the same

[Grizzly Willy]

I wouldn't say that every society defines ethics necessarily.... every person is, at a starting point, an act utilitarian. Left to their own devices every person will naturally pursue pleasure while avoiding pain and therefore expand on self interest. Ethics come around when societies attempt to form a different system, collective good, and therefore must shift the focus of the society away from self and onto others, something necessary for civilization to advance. I would say that every society defines morality in some way or another, even if its at the most base level.... but morality and ethics while going hand in hand in most cases aren't necessarily the same

A society by definition has its own ethics.

[Kasierith]

A society by definition has its own ethics.

That is why I said define, and not has. Ethics are not tied to society, but to the needs within it. If you say that a society, by definition, has its own ethics... care to point out the single ruling ethical school in any modern society?

[Grizzly Willy]

That is why I said define, and not has. Ethics are not tied to society, but to the needs within it. If you say that a society, by definition, has its own ethics... care to point out the single ruling ethical school in any modern society?

Apologies, I think I misunderstood you, or I failed to properly make my statement. My point was that a society has its own rules that govern what is and is not moral. I'll readily admit that I cannot name any specific ethical construct that any modern society uses. Perhaps I'm thinking of a society having its own morals, not ethics.

[Kasierith]

Apologies, I think I misunderstood you, or I failed to properly make my statement. My point was that a society has its own rules that govern what is and is not moral. I'll readily admit that I cannot name any specific ethical construct that any modern society uses. Perhaps I'm thinking of a society having its own morals, not ethics.

My apologies, I sometimes get confused when quickly typing English and kind of spiral off into improperly formed sentences.. Yes, I would definitely agree about morals. Morals are more, simple to lay out.. because they're essentially what limit human behavior, while ethics are what cause human behavior. For example, you cross the street because ethically it suits your purposes and morally because there's nothing blocking you, and therefore nothing preventing you. Because ethics are what cause our behavior, they're more personal and less public, so even though society can influence what ethics an individual has it is far more simple to diverge from the rest of society (you can't punish someone for what motivates them, for example... but you can enforce morality by deciding legality, at least in a traditional pre-modern society)