(urth) What's So Great About Ushas?

[Jeff Wilson]

Paul B wrote:
> 
> 
> On Fri, Jul 11, 2008 at 12:20 AM, Jeff Wilson <jwilson at io.com 
> <mailto:jwilson at io.com>> wrote:
> 
>     Dismiss it?! I've been discussing it with these fellows for years on
>     the list, and years before that on GEnie with mantiss and Hartwell
>     and the gang. Trying to reverse engineer a framework of moral
>     philosophy is not easy, and you being dismissive of me is not
>     helping anyone.
> 
> 
> Now I don't think I understand.  If the Hierogrammates are morally 
> justified in doing what they do, what problem are you discussing?  What 
> are you reverse engineering?  I'm not quite sure what moral segregation 
> is, but it sounds like relativism, and if you believe it applies to this 
> situation then I don't understand what you could talk about for years.  
> There is then no ethical quandary and the sacrifice of Urth is just a 
> necessity that isn't even terribly regrettable.  What moral problem did 
> you have in mind then?


in re "moral segregation":
Moral relativism vs moral absolutism generally is not argued with 
respect to nonhuman intelligences.  I think it likely that the human 
condition boils down to universal moral principles for the most part. 
(Not all moral issues can be decided this way; likely there is a mix.) 
But moral absolutism for humans need not mean that there is an identical 
absolutism for nonhumans.

But first I need to figure out what the writer's moral philosophy is, 
then work out the nonhumans' possible moral philosophy by differential, 
then try to come to some common moral terminological ground with the 
various list people so we can have a coherent discussion of it. And that 
can take a looooong time.

-- 
Jeff Wilson - jwilson at io.com
< http://www.io.com/~jwilson >