Ask Lemmy

If it makes me feel virtuous, I want to do it. If it makes me feel guilty, I don't want to do it. 'Right' or 'wrong' seem to be objective morality-ly loaded terms, though.

Wrong, IMO, is defined by the violation of the will of another.

That's the common element to all things that are broadly considered wrong.

For instance, if somebody chooses to give you something, that's a gift and it's fine. But if you take that same something from them against their will, that's stealing, and wrong. In both cases, the exact same thing happened - a thing went from being their possession to being yours. The difference - the thing that separates the right act from the wrong one - is that one was done according to the will of the other person, while the other was done contrary to their will.

And the same holds true consistently - assault, kidnapping, rape, even murder - none of them are characterized by what happens, but by the fact that it happens contrary to the will of the "victim." And in fact, that's what defines a "victim" - whatever has been done to them was done against their will.

And it should be noted that there's an odd sort of relative aspect to this, since the exception to the rule is the violation of the rule.

What I mean by that is that if one decides to violate the will of another, one is instantly wrong, which essentially negates the requirement that ones will not be violated. Your will to violate the will of another not only can be but should be itself violated.

I also have an idea for reconciling the need for an effectively absolute set of moral standards with the fact that morality is necessarily subjective and relative, but that'd require another, and likely even longer, essay.

Don't

• Don’t be an asshole

• everyone just wants to be happy

• don’t be a burden to anyone

• look before crossing the streets

• always assume a bad driver has a reason for this behavior

• wipe front to back

• if you can do it right now, do it

• always assume everyone around you is smearier than you yourself

• don’t take the blame for everything, but offer to help fixing it

• if you’re serving anything, always take the different thing or the worst looking thing for yourself

I'd recommend reading Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do by Michael Sandell.

Also I haven't read it myself yet but it sounds like The Moral Landscape by Sam Harris would probably be of interest to you as well.