| Allfreedom99 said: In addistion, what is your view on absolute morality? Why is it wrong to murder someone? Why do morals even exist? Either you believe murder to be wrong or else there is no morality that exists at all and we should let people murder whoever they want. We can observe a lion kill a zebra and we dont imprison it or put it to death. Why dont we? Im guessing you are of the belief that no ultimate standard exists if indeed we are all just properties of mathematical equations and chemical reactions. You expect others to be civil to you and not harm you or take something of value from you, correct? On what basis would you even assume absolute morality? |
I already argued the other two points with you and we ended up full circle, but I think this one is an interesting one.
Does absolute morality exist? I think the answer is no. If you look at the broad spectrum of civilisations and behaviours of humans as both individuals and as societies throughout history, you'll find a wide variety of moral beliefs that vary wildly. I doubt the Mongol hoard felt it was particularly wrong to kill and rape. They felt completely justified in their actions even if we find it reprehensible. A socio-path who is incapable of feeling compassion for others is not going to have the same moral compass as others.
The reason we have similar-ish morals today is that for a functioning society and civilisation to thrive for any historically relevant period of time, certain laws and rules make for a better society. Even today however, morals can differ greatly from one culture to the next. In Western civilisation, it's wrong for a woman to be gan-raped for the actions of her brother, yet this occured in a remote region of Pakistan and the locals viewed it as morally correct.
I also don't think you can discount the biology, psychology and environment when talking about morality. For a functioning society, certain qualities/personality traits are desirable and these have a heavy genetic influence. The culture you grow up in also has an impact as the views of your region are passed to you from a young age. Take a look at the animal kingdom and how different domestic animals like cats and dogs are from their wild cousins. Generations of these animals have been bred amongst humans and have incredibly different behaviour that is now ingrained in the genes. A domestic cat is far less likely to kill another cats kittens (if anything I've noticed my cats are more gentle with kittens) than a Lion who had just found another lions litter of cubs.
