Apocolips

Hola!

I feel that the idea of "morality" differs from person to person. Morality, or morals is a personal yardstick of what is right and wrong, what you think is good and OK, may not be for someone else. I am a true believer that it is fine to do anything that you wish, as long as your actions, thoughts or beliefs do not harm myself or another human being.

I do not feel that smoking marijuana is wrong. Others think of it as an evil drug that leads to destruction. But, it is immoral to buy marijuana if that person cannot pay for food for their child.

Ditto with gambling. If you want to throw your paycheck at the casino, go for it. But, as in doing drugs, it is immoral when one gambles away the farm and the children starve.

I feel that homosexuality is immoral and destructive. But that is a personal opinion (morality). If two men or women want to get it on behind closed doors, that is fine by me. One should also understand that homosexuality is a choice, one is not born gay. But to me, it is immoral that someone leaves their wife to be with a gay lover.

What about laws? Are they yardsticks for a culture's morality? In Amsterdam, one can buy a woman for an hour and smoke Turkish hash. Can't do that legally in Iowa. Is Dutch morality different than Iowans?

I don't know, elaborate please.

SENOR

FIDDLE MAN:boohoo: :boohoo: :boohoo:

tudal

What's wrong with hurting yourself or others?

meritocrat

So you think morality is subjective. And?

Quote:

I do not feel that smoking marijuana is wrong. Others think of it as an evil drug that leads to destruction. But, it is immoral to buy marijuana if that person cannot pay for food for their child. Ditto with gambling. If you want to throw your paycheck at the casino, go for it. But, as in doing drugs, it is immoral when one gambles away the farm and the children starve. I feel that homosexuality is immoral and destructive. But that is a personal opinion (morality). If two men or women want to get it on behind closed doors, that is fine by me. One should also understand that homosexuality is a choice, one is not born gay. But to me, it is immoral that someone leaves their wife to be with a gay lover. What about laws? Are they yardsticks for a culture's morality? In Amsterdam, one can buy a woman for an hour and smoke Turkish hash. Can't do that legally in Iowa. Is Dutch morality different than Iowans? I don't know, elaborate please. SENOR FIDDLE MAN:boohoo: :boohoo: :boohoo:

In my personal opinion, legislation should NOT be based on moral judgements. Even still I do concede that laws are made (to a good extent) on whether the thing or action being outlawed is ethical or not.

Vandrare

if you believe so strongly in situational ethics, as you seem to from your post, then how do you know the above example wasn't for the best. perhaps the wife was being hurt even more by her husband staying but being gay as well. perhaps in the long run she's better off having split with him, and moving on with her life.

this is a hard one.... after all, how do you judge someone or somethings morality? would you judge it by comparing it to different cultures to see which is more liberal? or judge it against just one specific area like iowa? and while judging against one specific area, what makes that place the moral right by which other places can be compared?
and then after all that, is more liberal bad or good? i dont see how this can really be answered.....

:-D Anna

Nowhere357

Why does that make it "opinion"? Pain, and the idea of pain, differ from person to person. Does that mean pain is "opinion"?

tudal

No. But who can show that an action which causes pain is inherently bad?

Scandal

Pain usually hurts. Some masochists think pain hurts sooo good.

IMO morals are ingrained and are expressed via conscience. Some choose to be unaware or choose to ignore their consciences because of selfish reasons.

Is my reasoning too simplistic?

Adrammalech

Most morality to me seems to have remained pretty steady. Don't steal, don't kill, don't lie. Morality is like a bell curve, you have your crazy wackos on either end but by and large most people are clumped together in the middle, this middle is generally where our laws and other social rules come from. The smaller issues, at least what I perceive to differences like drug use, gambling, and eating to much mcdonalds vary slightly from society to society. Like take for instance marijuana legalization in some european countries. While america hasn't legalized it and it remains against the law, the society by and large doesn't see it as a huge deal, people don't react with shock and horror when someone smokes a mary jane, and you certainly don't see documented cases of billy taking a hit on the eight o'clock news. So in my mind the general societal reaction is slight.

But even though morals are a matter of opinion, it doesn't make the society unstable, because even when moral values start to begin to change it happens at a very slow rate due to the sheer mass of the society. This of course can be a good thing or a bad thing, but by and large I think it is a good thing.

I think I'll stop here be cause I think I'm making less and less sense.

Nowhere357

I can think of no action which is inherently bad (as in "always immoral"). Self-defense is an exception to killing; need to feed kids may be exception to stealing; etc.

But my point is that morality is a bit more involved than mere opinion. Standing up for justice and tolerance is not the same as choosing a color to paint the kitchen.

Nowhere357

I tend to agree with this. It seems to involve an awareness, a sense or feeling. Perhaps instinctual. This awareness is codified differently depending on other factors, such as culture.