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Post 0

Wednesday, September 28 - 10:41am

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What is the danger of relying on moral intuitions for doing the right thing?
And if moral beliefs cannot be settled by reason, what alternatives are there?

(Edited by Ciro D'Agostino on 9/28, 2:40pm)

Post 1

Wednesday, September 28 - 4:06pm

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Ciro, perhaps we should first make clear what you mean by "moral intuitions".

Post 2

Wednesday, September 28 - 4:19pm

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Matthew, our moral intuition is our unreflective, initial, and usually enculturated sense that something
is right or wrong.
For example we think that morder is wrong, yet we may not have articulated to ourself why is wrong other than our strong feeling that it is.
Ciro

Post 3

Wednesday, October 5 - 2:15pm

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This is actually a pretty good question. All I can think of is:

1. Don't act in hasty emotion.
2. If you must, take at least a few moments and, yes, "check your premises".

Post 4

Thursday, October 6 - 9:54am

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Dear Rich I posted this question because I am having a lot of problems with
people who once where my friends. These are people raised in my same society where we absorbed the same morality and culture.
when I ask them any question ,what ever it may be, on love, abortion, politics or any thing, their answer is most of the time based on moral intuition.
Let's say you talk with them about abortion , they take the side that is wrong to kill
a human being, then if you ask them for justification they seem not interested in moral knowledge.
This is something which makes me suffer a little, especially when it's a family member or a person close to you acting like that.

Rich, your answers are always intelligent and inspiring, I would like to know your opinion on this .
I agree on what you have written above.
Ciao Riccardo!
Ciro

(Edited by Ciro D'Agostino on 10/06, 2:13pm)

(Edited by Ciro D'Agostino on 10/06, 2:17pm)

Post 5

Saturday, October 8 - 7:09am

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Let's say you talk with them about abortion , they take the side that is wrong to kill
a human being, then if you ask them for justification they seem not interested in moral knowledge.

They may not be as wrong as you think. They know instinctively that at some point in fetal development a fetus becomes a baby, which is a human being. They can't pin it down, but they know it must be so. Athough, abortion in the first trimester is not a problem for most people, after that, moral questions arise, as both Rand and Peikoff have noted. I think the answer to this specific dilemma is for you to ask more probing questions.

Moral Intuitions