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To: ahayes
That wasn't the question. The answer is, pretty much everyone in every culture thinks it is wrong to assault that person.

The question was specific to particular persons and therefore is irrelevant in a discussion of general morality. It is not true that in "every culture" it is wrong for any person to assault any other person. There are societies in which it is OK and even commendable for some people to assault other people.

Now please provide me a rational reason why it isn't wrong for me to hurt you for no reason if we proceed from the assumption that it is wrong for you to hurt me for no reason.

I claim that you cannot reason from the assumption "that it is wrong for you to hurt me for no reason" to anything. You need at least one other proposition to get to a conclusion. You are making an unstated assumption that you and I are in some way equivalent (a Christian notion).

290 posted on 08/29/2006 5:42:44 PM PDT by etlib (No creature without tentacles has ever developed true intelligence)
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To: etlib
It is not true that in "every culture" it is wrong for any person to assault any other person.

No, you misunderstood. Every individual in the world feels that person's self deserves to be treated well.

You need at least one other proposition to get to a conclusion. You are making an unstated assumption that you and I are in some way equivalent (a Christian notion).

Phooey to that. The Bible does not consistently uphold equality of all human beings. In the Old Testament at times foreigners were to be exterminated without mercy. They were not morally equivalent to the Jews--they could be enslaved and their children kept as slaves forever. Women were certainly inferior to men. In the New Testament things are a bit better. Women are still inferior to men, but equality is extended to gentile Christians. However, slavery is still allowed, with cautions for masters to be decent (what solace).

The proposition is that all human beings are equal. The reason for this is logic--is there any rational reason why I am inherently better than you? The only reasons I might be able to come up with are basically emotional reasons based upon my natural self-love. Rationally we are all merely human beings, none with any greater inherent worth than any other.

So starting from the premises that it is morally wrong for others to harm me and that there is no rational reason why I have any greater value than you do, we reach the conclusion that it is just as wrong for me to harm you as it is for you to harm me.

308 posted on 08/29/2006 6:01:15 PM PDT by ahayes ("If intelligent design evolved from creationism, then why are there still creationists?"--Quark2005)
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