On Thu, 27 Jan 2005 21:41:05 -0600, Mark A. Foster <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Gilberto,
> I wrote: > >>>>What kind of reasoning process?<<<< > You replied: > >>One example would be through some kind of deliberative process where we > >>think about the consequences of having certain rules and what kind of > >>society that would result in.<< > A thought experiment. or even trial and error, sure. > Well, thought experiments are not exactly based on trial and error. All I'm saying is that doing thought experiements is only one example of the kind of moral reasoning I am talking about. It could also involve concrete experiences. Gilberto: > >>Sure but even apart from language, whatever you call them, certain kinds of > >>actions will tend to have certain kinds of consequences.<< Mark: > I am not sure what you mean by "certain kinds of actions." However, off the > top of my head, I can think of many situations in which that would not be the > case. When I went to Zaire, now the Republic of the Congo, it was normative > for customs officials to beg for money. (They did it to me.) What would > happen if a customs official did the same in the U.S. or Germany? Gilberto: I'm not sure what you mean by "that" in "that would not be the case". You are the one hung up on the names now. I wouldn't assume that begging for money in Zeire is the same as begging for money in Germany. And perhaps you could say that in Zaire customs officials occurs frequently and went on unpunished. I'm not sure if that makes it normative. Mark: > I don't see how saying, "I can think of many situations in which that would > not be the case," is being hung up with names. You would need to explain that > to me. Gilberto: What I'm saying is that you consider the consequences of each individual act in each particular situation. Just because two different acts have the same name (e.g. "begging" or "killing" or "marrying a 9-year-old female") doesn't mean I would expect them to have the same consequences or would evaluate them the same way. And just because those acts have different consequences in different situations isn't a proof of moral relativism. Peace Gilberto "My people are hydroponic" __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:archive@mail-archive.com To unsubscribe, send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, use subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:bahai-st@list.jccc.edu Web - http://list.jccc.edu/read/?forum=bahai-st News - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Public - http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.net New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.edu
