Davis

@jakelafort – it doesn’t take a lot to destroy the feeling of “I feel your pain”.  All it takes is if we don’t approve of someone, so for some reason, they are not “deserving” of our empathic concern.  A set of people we don’t approve of is hated out-group members.

Strega wrote:
But that’s not what stops us from randomly killing annoying people. We don’t think “I want to throttle you but I’d better not because it’s wrong”.

Well, this is true I agree.  There’s no such thing as moral obligation, having to do things because it’s the morally right thing to do.  We follow moral principles because we don’t like…[Read more]

I wonder if the Saudi’s in partnership with Jared would be interested in this ‘piece of prime real estate’.

Strega,

When i read your reply to Simon my kneejerk was you’re right.

Now i am not sure. In general there is something to it. Evolution would bake in to homos that only the atypical psycopath or deviant just goes around murdering. What evolution also bakes in is neuroflexibility or neuroplasticity. In fact it is if not opposite of instinct…[Read more]

That last one?  Made me laugh out loud.

Potential Darwin Award winner?

I ridicule my efforts to get a fly out of the kitchen alive. 

I opened the back door fully, you stoopid fly…and the front window too!  Can you not see the gaps with the most light? The one you just entered through? The stray cats stare at me. Earn your keep you lazy band of…..ah, ok he’s gone. Buzz……Arrgh! your brother stayed behind!! T…[Read more]

@simonpaynton

“Murder is wrong”.  You are presenting this as a choice. We choose not to murder because it’s wrong.

But that’s not what stops us from randomly killing annoying people.  We don’t think “I want to throttle you but I’d better not because it’s wrong”.

I mock myself for my revulsion of killing. I ridicule my efforts to get a fl…[Read more]

Reg the Fronkey Farmer wrote:
Many hope that AI will discover ethical truths.

In principle, we can make a complete description of the way morality works.  But this still would give a multiplicity of correct answers, according to multiple moral principles or domains; it couldn’t resolve dilemmas such as the abortion issue.

Reg the Fronkey Farmer wrote:
Many hope that AI will discover ethical truths. But as Gödel shows, deciding what is right will always be our burden.

I think it’s impossible to get “moral truths” (such as “murder is wrong”) with the same truth-status as “2 + 2 = 4”.  I think this is because the two kinds of “truth” are about different things – m…[Read more]

Some more info on witchcraft in India as mentioned in last weeks’ post.

Enco says:

If “nobody is home” and we are just “acted on” as opposed to also acting back, then how do you propose we can “create positive influences and minimize negative influences?”. Ever heard of self-awareness?

And just who is the proposed target audience for your proposed novel about Lesbrews? It won’t fly with the Abrahamic crowds who be…[Read more]

Thanks Reg!

Have a great week Everyone!

“Morality needs neither heaven nor hell to function—just a working conscience and the ability to think beyond yourself.”

– Me.