refuting relativism

[mrnoodle]

For this discussion, I'm not making any of those arguments. I'm just trying to get someone to say in one sentence whether or not they believe there is such a thing as right and wrong.

I would have to go to ludicrous levels of strawmanhood to form a counter-argument where justification for the perpetrator's actions could be found. (But you knew that.)

Yeah, and you know why? Because there's a gaping hole in the philosophy that states that there is no black and white. You can see it every time something black or white goes shimmying through it.

And I think that we are something more than animals. It's easy to look at all the obvious parallels between us and the other creatures who are made of meat, bone and connective tissue and conclude, "Hey we're just another version of that." But there's too much evidence (albeit circumstantial) that we're more.

That's why the Golden Rule is simple, because kindergarteners aren't generally capable of thinking about the world in philosophical terms.

For which we should be eternally grateful. They teach us a lot more that way.

[vsp]

Originally Posted by mrnoodle

For this discussion, I'm not making any of those arguments. I'm just trying to get someone to say in one sentence whether or not they believe there is such a thing as right and wrong.

If you are speaking of "right and wrong" in absolute terms, an objective standard at which people of all nations, cultures and religions can or should point, then no, I do not believe there is such a thing as right and wrong.

Happy?

I believe that there are certain behavioral standards that the vast majority of humans can agree upon as being mutually beneficial (i.e. sticking a fork in other people's eyes is generally not a positive and constructive act). But I do not believe that there is a universal "right or wrong," "good or evil," "normal or sick" moral standard that can be applied to all actions equally, regardless of what culture, location, belief system or other subgroup to which the actors belong.