...neurosciences has shed light on that question. But this research also has normative significance. A standard way of arguing against a normative ethical theory is to show that in some circumstances the theory leads to judgments that are contrary to our common moral intuitions. If, however, these moral intuitions are the biological residue of our evolutionary history, it is not clear why we should regard them as having any normative force. Research in the neurosciences should therefore lead us to reconsider the role of intuitions in normative ethics. KEY WORDS: brain imaging, David Hume, ethics, evolutionary psychology, Henry Sidgwick, Immanuel Kant, intuitions, James Rachels, John Rawls, Jonathan Haidt, Joshua D. Greene, neuroscience, trolley problem, utilitarianism 1. INTRODUCTION In one of his many fine essays, Jim Rachels criticized philosophers who ‘‘shoot from the hip.’’ As he put it: The telephone rings, and a reporter rattles off a few ‘‘facts’’ about something somebody is supposed to have done. Ethical issues are involved – something alarming is said to have taken place – and so the ‘‘ethicist’’ is asked for a comment to be included in the next day’s story, which may be the first report the public will have seen about the events in question.1 In these circumstances, Rachels noted, the reporters want a short pithy quote, preferably one that says that the events described are bad. The philosopher makes a snap judgment, and the result is 1 James Rachels, ‘‘When...
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...done, ethical issues are involved. Rachels has noted that the reporter want a short quote and more importantly a bad quote. Rachels rejected the idea that the role of moral philosophers is to take a common moral intuition as data and to find the theory that fits those institutions. “Philosophers have considered are: whether ethics is objectively true, or relative to culture, or entirely subjective; whether human beings are naturally good; and whether ethics comes from nature or from culture” (Singer 333). The past philosophers have taught us our understanding of evolution and its application to ethics. In order to see the evolutionary theory, we need the pre-Darwinian thinkers who have speculated about the origins of morality, considered to Hume’s discussion of morality. Hume says “there is no such passion in human minds as the love of mankind, merely as such, independent of personal qualities, of services, or of relation to ourself”(Singer 334). But most humans lack the benevolence for strangers. Singer brings up the example of nonhuman relatives, a monkey. A monkey will present its back to another monkey to pick out parasites, and then later on, the other monkey will do the same and the roles will be reversed. This brings up the conclusion that the reciprocal behavior has been observed in birds and mammals. The same goes with humans, when someone has lice, someone will have to take it out and then later on the favor will be returned. Some people might regard the reciprocators...
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...It is clear that the dilemma of the Trolley problem is traumatic as any action the man takes, results in the death of either the five passengers or the fat man. Any action taken will be based on the man’s reasoning. From my perspective, throwing the fat man onto the track seems reasonable as it is better to save five lives and lose one than to lose five lives and save only one. The theory of utilitarianism stands to justify this as the outcome for five people is good and the outcome is bad for only one person, making it a rational act. This proves that reason is a good check on our instinctive judgments as the man’s reasons might guide him into doing what he regards as instinctively the right thing. This right thing is justified by the reasons...
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...fact about what is right or wrong but the best we can do is be consistent with our values as they are. So, what does this mean? One good example is the infamous “trolley example” where there are 5 people standing on the track and they are about to be hit by the trolley, and there is another track with one person standing on the tracks, and you have the choice to “pull the switch” so the trolley goes to the other track saving the 5 people but resulting in killing the one other person. Many people say they would pull the switch because they would be saving 5 people instead of just one. But, if you made the situation more personal, and up front where you would push a person in front of the trolley in order to slow the trolley down and to save the other 5 people, a lot more people said they wouldn’t push the person and just let things take its own course. Now why would this have changed if it is the same scenario, just different ways to do it? Greene views it as, people tend to act for a “good will” and that it is more duty based and people don’t think about the consequences of their actions; where people tend to ignore moral ambiguity so to say. In the situation where they “pull the switch” people tend to think “This action is a good deed!” But when it becomes more personal and pushing someone in front of the trolley, then people’s thoughts become “this action is just...
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...Williams’ Integrity: Is The Utilitarian’s Calculus Too Inhuman for Morality? Alexander Raby Introduction Bernard Williams’ article "A Critique of Utilitarianism" has been consistently referred to as the definitive work that refutes utilitarianism.[1] In this article, Williams builds an argument against consequentialist ethical theories in general and utilitarianism specifically. According to Williams, all forms of consequentialism are concerned solely with consequences and are indifferent to the personal integrity of a person, something that is formed by their deepest held moral principles.[2] By forcing a person to reject her conscience and compelling her to perform lesser evils, utilitarianism requires us to discard integrity and should be rejected on these grounds, or at least so says Williams.[3] It can be difficult to understand Williams’ argument without making clear the charges he makes against utilitarianism and why they are considered to be effective attacks against the view. To get the clearest conception possible of the charges made, one should have a firm grasp of the utilitarian position so that one may successfully relate Williams’ criticisms to the theory. First, the utilitarian moral theory must be clearly formulated. Then I will present and clarify some of Williams’ objections against this theory. Finally, I will explore some utilitarian responses to Williams’ objections. Articulating Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is a moral theory that...
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...In the “The Moral Instinct”, Steven Pinker’s main claim is that “The science of the moral sense can help us to see through the illusions that evolution and culture have saddled us with and to focus on goals we can share and defend”(2). Most of Pinker’s evidence is used to draw the attention of his audience. For example, Pinker presents the audience with a two dilemmas where one has to sacrifice one life to save five other lives; “Both dilemmas present you with the option of sacrificing one life to save five, and so, by the utilitarian standard of what would result in the greatest good for the greatest number, the two dilemmas are morally equivalent. But most people don’t see it that way”(4) Pinker illustrates the seemingly unexplainable...
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...Singer begins his article by stressing the famine suffering which is currently taking place in East Bengal. Singer starts his argument by imposing the reader to accept the moral premises which are "that suffering and death from lack of food, shelter, and medical care are bad," and "that if it is in our power to prevent it from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it" (Singer, Famine pg.599). Singer then goes on to exploit a broad-based approach to his assertion in that "we cannot discriminate against someone merely because he is far away from us" (Singer Famine pg600). Singer emphasizes on the fact that distance is not a reason to fail in doing what is morally right to do. The distance between you and the person in need is not a moral justification to discard their need. Singer also emphasizes on an interesting point in his assertion which implies that two wrongs do not make a right. Singer states, "one feels less guilty about doing nothing if one can point to others, similarly placed, who have also done nothing" (Singer Famine pg600)Singer supports this claim by providing an example of a scenario in which a person witnesses a child drowning. Most people would agree that that person has a duty to save the drowning child. Singer claims that this duty exists because we believe that the drowning of a child is a bad thing. If a person has a duty to save the child because a drowning child is a very bad...
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...Utilitarianism Essay Shirnel Charles Grand Canyon University: PHI-305 Ethical Thinking in Liberal Arts Instructor John Wise September 21, 2014 The Story of Ethics states that the point of the Utilitarian theory is to conceptualize exactly what is good life by “bringing about consequences of a certain sort that is the greatest happiness for the greatest number” (The Story of Ethics). The Story of Ethics also states that the Utilitarian principle of greatest happiness for the greatest number was first popularized by Jeremy Bentham who according to the Lecture Note “version of utilitarianism is known as quantitative utilitarianism” (Lecture Note). According to The Story of Ethics Bentham states that the principle of utility recognizes right and wrong and the causes and effects from right and wrong. These effects can lead to the nature of mankind being either in pain or pleasure and “Bentham assumes that one can only act according to their aversion to pain or desire for pleasure” (The Story of Ethics). The understanding that I have gained from Bentham’s theory is that good and bad is judged by pleasure and pain that is the greater the pleasure the greater the good and the greater the pain the greater the bad. Bentham’s theory is the ethical position that influenced both John Stuart Mill and his father James Mill. According to an article in the Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia “the central aim of John Stuart Mill’s Utilitarianism is to defend the view that those...
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...There is no fair distribution of happiness in utilitarianism; as long as the majority’s happiness is larger than the minority’s unhappiness, those actions that made it so would be called ethical. To most people, this would not be ethical because these actions caused the direct suffering of individuals. For example, with the trolley problem, the fact that you killed a person if you went on the sidetrack is negated by the fact that you saved five people’s lives. The person you killed and their friends and family would not consider that a good moral choice, and their judgment would not count if it were not enough to surpass others’. Another objection is that most people judge actions by their motives and not purely on their consequences. Consequences are largely out of our control and difficult to fully predict, so for most people it does not make sense to judge someone’s actions based on the outcome. For example, if someone acted with bad intentions to scam someone, but inadvertently caused several people to become happy, their action would still be considered morally good...
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...Ethical Issues in Global Supply Chains Bodo B. Schlegelmilch ∗ , Magdalena Öberseder ∗∗ Abstract Despite all technological advances, global supply chains are always based on the interaction of people. And wherever people interact, a kaleidoscope of ethical issues emerges. While consumer demands and concerns have undoubtedly led to an increased awareness of unethical conduct in the supply chain, contravening forces, such as the relentless pressures for low cost products and the ease by which consumers are purchasing non-deceptive counterfeits, should also not be ignored. Many retailers are now embracing ethical issues by emphasising, for example, that they take care of the production methods and working conditions pertaining to the goods they offer. Keywords: Global Supply Chains; Ethics; Fairness; Global Markets 1. Introduction 1. Introduction Despite all technological advances, global supply chains are always based on the interaction of people. And wherever people interact, a kaleidoscope of ethical issues emerges. Starting at the origins of the supply chain, the plight of individual farmers, minors or production workers is frequently examined in terms of working conditions or fair wages (Cotton et al., 2005; Locke and Romis, 2007). Other concerns pertain to the production itself. Issues like ecological soundness and infringement of intellectual property rights are frequently debated. Recently, the ethics of shifting production...
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...According to John S. Mill utilitarianism, also known as “The greatest happiness principle”, is a philosophical theory of morality. This theory is focused on the end result (consequential theory) rather than the motive behind it. It argues that the morality of the action is dependent on the action’s results. The action is right as long as it produces the greatest happiness for the majority of people. Mill describes happiness as pleasure and the absence of pain. Because this theory is based on the consequences or outcomes of certain act you should only do an action if this action contributes or will bring the highest amount of happiness to the greater number of people. Mill mentions, “…”the greatest happiness principle” holds that actions are...
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...“Integrity: Panacea for Socio-Economic and Political Challenges in Nigeria” Nigeria is a nation blessed with vast human and mineral resources. Ironically, her economy is struggling to leverage the country’s vast wealth to displace the economic and political challenges that affects its population.1 Beyond the recent impressive financial projections, a good number of Nigerians still live on less than $1.00 (One dollar) a day, which is about N160.00 (One Hundred and Sixty Naira), and more Nigerians have resorted to a life of crime with some becoming ready tools in the hands of some politicians. Poverty reduction and job creation, as promised by our political leaders, have not kept pace with population growth, implying social distress for an increasing number of Nigerians. Integrity and moral values have been jettisoned to few people, who have little or no impact in the system of government and corruption has been embraced as a tool of inordinate wealth accumulation. Social vices are committed with high level of impunity and the epidemic of the ‘get rich at all cost syndrome’ has infiltrated all age levels in our society, most especially the youths; future leaders of tomorrow. Undermining, “As a partridge that broods but does not hatch, so is he who gets riches, but not by right; it will leave him in the midst of his days, and at the end he will be a fool” (Jeremiah 17:11 NKJV). In ascribing reasons for these socio-economic imbalance and political instabilities in Nigeria...
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...Kantian Morals, Utilitarianism, and Basic Human Rights As we continue to study the origin of moral theory, we come across two very influential philosophers; Immanuel Kant and John Stuart Mill. Both have very opposing ideologies concerning morality and basic human rights, but they have certainly contributed much to the way we work as a society today. In this paper, we will look at both theories more in depth. First we will look at Kant. According to Kantian Ethics, what gives an action it’s moral value is the agent’s respect for moral duty; In other words, the agent must be completely selfless in his action in order for it to be considered moral. Consequences do not matter, the “good will” of a person is the only thing with intrinsic value. A person must act out of only intention to do good; not for personal gain, but because they know it is the right thing to do.(Kant Slides). This theory is impartial to all, there are no exceptions. In order to establish whether an action is moral, the act must follow two categorical imperatives (universal commands): -Categorical Imperative I states: “Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become universal law...”(Kant, 414). In accordance with this imperative, you must first state your maxim (the rule which states your action) and decide whether or not the rule can become a universal law. If it can, in fact, be a universal law by which all of humanity abides, then it is a moral act. For...
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...http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/FraudAmericanHistory.htm History of Fraud in America (Edited for use in MBA 590_ NCSU) Bob Jensen at Trinity University Colonial History Earliest "business" fraud in America centered around phony heath cures. Armstrong and Armstrong (1991) document many of the snake oil ploys that commenced soon after the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. Medical frauds ranging from deceptive medicines to spiritual cures to bloodletting expanded over time to modern day cancer miracle cures and Internet charlatanism. Since early America was largely agricultural, various land schemes accompanied the growing market for deceptive rural living and farming products. As the original 13 colonies were established land was owned by men who had been granted land from the English King. They in turn sold land to individuals and established common areas. Although many of the early dealings were legitimate, it did not take long for land swindles to commence. Swindlers were either buyers or sellers of land. Victims were often new immigrants and Indians who lived on the land before Colonial times. One of the best known frauds was the 1626 purchase of Manhattan Island for trinkets valued at 60 guilders (approximately $24). In this case the Carnarsie Indians from Brooklyn perpetrated the fraud since their land was not even connected to Manhattan Island. But in most cases it was the white men who cheated the Indians and each other. Land swindling grew rampant as America expanded...
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...Chapter 1 Ethical Reasoning: Implications for Accounting Ethics Reflection PENN STATE CHILD ABUSE SCANDAL: A CULTURE OF INDIFFERENCE What motivates an otherwise ethical person to do the wrong thing when faced with an ethical dilemma? Why did Joe Paterno and administrators at Penn State University look the other way and fail to act on irrefutable evidence that former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky had raped and molested young boys, an offense for which Sandusky currently is serving a 30- to 60-year sentence? According to the independent report by Louis Freeh that investigated the sexual abuse, four of the most powerful people at Penn State, including president Graham Spanier, athletic director Timothy Curley, senior vice president Gary Schultz, and head football coach Joe Paterno, sheltered a child predator harming children for over a decade by concealing Sandusky’s activities from the board of trustees, the university community, and authorities. The Freeh report characterizes the inactions as lacking empathy for the victims by failing to inquire as to their safety and wellbeing. Not only that, but they exposed the first abused child to additional harm by alerting Sandusky, who was the only one who knew the child’s identity, of what assistant coach Mike McQueary saw in the shower on the night of February 9, 2001.1 McQueary testified at the June 2012 trial of Sandusky that when he was a graduate assistant, he walked into the locker room and heard sounds of slapping...
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