I'd like to take a second to talk about morals and ethics here:
Quote:http://www.dailywritingtips.com/ethics-vs-morals/ Wrote:
No, there’s no cage match between the two terms, but there is a distinction: Although the words can be considered synonyms, morals are beliefs based on practices or teachings regarding how people conduct themselves in personal relationships and in society, while ethics refers to a set or system of principles, or a philosophy or theory behind them. (Principles, however, is itself is a synonym for morals.) One lives according to one’s morals but adheres to one’s ethics while doing so. Morals are the tools by which one lives, and ethics constitute the manual that codifies them.
I'll take the example of smoking pot.
The question isn't "is it morally ok/wrong to smoke marijuana?," but "do you think it is ethically correct?" Morallity is simply adhering to what you believe is ethical. As for the answer to "is smoking marijuana ethically ok?...."
It depends who you choose to listen to. What is ethical is completely down to your personal beliefs. No one can tell you what you think is and isn't ethical, you have to make that choice yourself; eg:
Are you prepared to deal with the consequences of smoking marijuana yourself?
In terms of the ethics of smoking marijuana, I believe that there is nothing wrong with smoking weed, given that you're prepared to deal with the consequences. Someone who makes the decision to smoke weed is doing so of their own accord, therefore that is morally fine by me. Is it ethically correct? Personally I don't think it's ethically correct to try force an opinion down someone elses throat, so if that's the decision a person has made, then yes, it is fine for them to smoke weed.
I'm a strong believer in allowing people to do whatever the fuck they want. Restricting someone's freedom, to me, is one of the most despicable acts one can commit - it destroys the whole concept of ethics by removing a person's ability to develop their own.
Quote:Eminem Wrote:
You find me offensive? I find you offensive for finding me offensive
It's fine for you to think smoking pot is bad. What isn't, is trying to stop me doing it because you have your own beliefs. To those people who think it's ethically ok to impose their ethical systems upon others, I think it's ethically ok to tell you to get the fuck out of my life. Someone who believes otherwise is just a hypocrite. Nothing else for it. It's correct for you to tell me what to do, but incorrect for me to tell you what to do?
If you look at the world the way I do, governing bodies are, in general, the single most unethical, immoral, and hypocritical collections of people on the planet. This is where my intense dislike for authority figures in general comes from. If most of the population wants to live under tyranny, without their freedom, that's fine by me, but for everyone else, they shouldn't be expected to adhere to the rules set out purely to restrict our ability to make our own decisions. A global system of rule is no way to treat a group of people. It's dispicable.