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Relativism and Morality

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Relativism and Morality

SOC120: Introduction to Ethics & Social Responsibility

March 12, 2012

I have many thoughts on the subjects discussed by Lenn Goodman in his article. Determining whether Goodman is right or wrong is simply a matter of opinion, it is the perception of the person or people who believe in these ways. It is my strong belief that what Goodman is stating in his article is right. “Granted, any norm, to be effectual, must be embedded in the thick of life.”(Goodman, 2010)
Discussing the different areas in which Goodman talks about in his article the first is Genocide, Famine, and Germ Warfare. “All living beings make claims to life.” (Goodman, 2010) Goodman tries to compare murder and warfare in this article. I can agree with him on the fact that murder is wrong, but at the same time there must be some type of line drawn to determine whether this act is committed on behalf of wants, needs, or desire. There are many different facets of murder, all having the same end state of death. Some commit this act of violence on the cause of jealousy or envy which speaks on that individual’s character. Sometimes murder may be committed in acts of self-defense, in these cases I would say that this violent act would possibly be excusable due to the constraints of the situation (either he dies or I die). In this term it is a matter of survival going to the mere basics of humanity. Within the confines of murder comes genocide.
Genocide unlike murder is purposely geared toward a specific type of human, whether it is based on sex, race, religion, or whatever the acting party is aiming for. In my opinion this is a far worse act than murder, because it targets the whole of the group in the specifics to wipe them out. “Genocide targets individuals as members of a group, seeking to destroy a race, a culture, a linguistic or ethnic identity, even a class---as the Soviets did in the Ukraine, or Mao in China, or the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. The target is a way of life.”(Goodman, 2010) Famine and germ warfare are the lowest of the low when it comes to war and murder and all that. These forms of violence target the weak and the vulnerable.
Terrorism is another touchy subject with me. To me terrorist are cowards only willing to sacrifice the lives of others for a cause only a few believe in. Take our current wars with Iraq and Afghanistan; these are wars that are being fought against terrorism all over the world. We have many different societies joining together to fight against terrorism. In most cases we do not even know the face of those we fight because they set traps like IED’s in the roadways and blow them as we pass, then run off without even hesitating to care for others of local community. These terrorists use any means to demoralize the people fighting against them. Terrorism in many ways is similar to genocide; wanting to rid the world of the race they are fighting because they do not like their ways. There are many forms of terrorists, even in disguise among our own people or our ally when it comes to war but it all comes down to one thing again and that is survival.
There are other indecencies that this world has that are thought by many to be wrong; rape and incest. Beliefs play a big part of some cultures where this may play a part, but in my opinion it is wrong in all aspects and should not be forgiven by anyone. Rape should be viewed in every aspect as wrong with no remorse for those who commit the act. “Intimidations of the essence, during the act, afterwards, and even antecedently, since rapists often count on fear and social pressures to forestall an accusation.”(Goodman, 2010) Some would argue that rape is committed for sexual gratification due to a chemical imbalance that one may have and this increases the sexual desires for control and ultimate power over another.
In conclusion, I am agreeing with Lenn Goodman. There should be universal moral requirements that every culture should follow which would constitute relativism in a very minute aspect connecting all cultures. This would in turn make the universals apparent in every society and should be taught as right and wrong from the start of a new life.

References

Goodman, L. E. (2010). Some moral minima. The Good Society, 19(1), 87-94.

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