Being Good
I've started to read a book entitled "Being Good: A short introduction to ethics" by Simon Blackburn, a Cambridge professor of philosophy. Blackburn seeks, in very few pages, to find an approach to right and wrong, to values, to ethics. This is an important thing: We need to find standards for our own conduct and we need a basis for our expectations of others. Without some standard of behavior, without guidelines of acceptable conduct, society couldn't function. Society would be chaotic, fearful, dangerous. How do we determine the appropriate standard? Many find the answer in religion. To them, standards are established by God and his priests. But for many, standards of conduct are the subject of debate, of negotiation. Blackburn writes for the latter group, attempting to provide a basis for agreement, if not on universally applicable standards, on the way to find standards which will enable societies to function.
Blackburn answers the moral relativists who argue that there are no universal standards. He notes that even the most liberal among us, those who argue that none of us can assert the primacy of our ethical structure over that of others, bridle at practices such as slavery, even though accepted as ethical in some cultures. I don't think I am distorting Blackburn's thoughts if I say that we can accept freedom as a universal value and be unashamed when we seek to gain freedom for others, no matter their culture. That's a thought I can wholeheartedly agree with. I want to study Blackburn further to be sure that I'm not misunderstanding but it seems to me a good basis to think about standards.
I suppose one could argue that freedom is too narrow a value to base an entire ethical structure on. But in my view, freedom, the freedom to make one's own decisions, about life, about associations, about religion, about our very existence, is everything. Freedom simply stated means leaving people alone. If we don't impose our ideas about behavior on others, don't try to run other peoples' lives, except to the extent necessary to preserve freedom itself, we are promoting freedom. An old saying holds that my freedom to wave my arms stops at your nose. That's a good way to think about freedom: We should be free to do as we please so long as we don't hurt someone else, so long as we don't interfere with others' freedom.
While freedom assumes responsibility, it doesn't mean we should stop helping people when they need and want help. Freedom is in no way inconsistent with charity, with a good heart. Let's try to let people make their own decisions, while helping them as appropriate. I believe that's the beginning of living our own lives well and enabling others to live their own lives well.
4-26-04
Home Page 2004 Archives 2003 Archives 2002 Archives 2001 Archives 2000 Archives 1999 Archives