mattskramer
Senior Member
Dumb logic, so what proof do you have that homosexuality isn't wrong? What proof do you have that walking down the street and punching someone in the face is wrong? Somebody else might consider right, you see the kind of fallacious argument you're making?
Ethics. Greater minds than mine, and people with a great interest in philosophy and people with a great deal of spare time on their hands, have debated and discussed it throughout the centuries. I have studied it off and on for decades. I read about Immanuel Kant’s “Categorical Imperative” along with its values and criticisms. I’ve also considered Jeremy Bentham’s Utilitarianism. I’ve observed people and listened to them as they try to explain why they think that “A” is wrong and “B” is right. I’ve come to the conclusion that there is no rhyme or reason.
People might say that they think that right and wrong comes from the Bible (a fallacious appeal to an assumed authority). Yet, when I show them some obscure instruction within the Bible that would likely be frowned upon by the most fair-minded of people, they are quick to pause. I show them inconsistencies. I also ask them why they choose that particular book as their guide instead choosing a different religious book or thinking for themselves.
People might say that it just seems right to them, I explain that it might seem wrong to me. I think that there are very few, if any consistent and absolute ways of determining what is right and what is wrong. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that, in general, informed and consenting adults should be free to engage in whatever relationship or activity that they think is okay provided that they don’t directly by force or fraud interfere with the same freedoms of others to do likewise. I do not consent for you to punch me. Yet, even under libertarian philosophy, there are lines that people draw: (Bestiality, Anarchy, Incest, etc.) Yet, I might be wrong. I hold my opinion in reserve, understanding that with more growth and thought, I might adjust my value system in time.
Ultimately, each person, through his own idiosyncratic ways, decides what he thinks is right or wrong. He really makes his own rules. We go with what we believe to be right or wrong at any particular place and time. Some people choose naturalism (the naturalistic fallacy) as a rule. Some people choose that which is popular (the bandwagon fallacy). Some people choose a religious book or person (an appeal to authority) to guide them. As time, location, and understandings progress, people’s positions on ethics change and people adjust their rules to suit them.
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