From: jimruttshow8596
Ethics, as a field of philosophy, fundamentally explores how to make “good choices” [00:57:57]. According to philosopher Forrest Landry, ethical thinking is “inherently practical in a very deep way” because it helps individuals make “good effective choices” that yield personal, interpersonal, and global benefits [09:18:20]. This focus on “effective choice” is central to understanding the role of ethics in shaping societal evolution and navigating the challenges brought by technological advancement [01:42:06].
Defining Non-Relativistic Ethics
Landry’s concept of non-relativistic ethics posits that universal principles exist for making effective choices, independent of specific situations or individual choosers [05:05:00]. This contrasts with relative ethics, where what is right depends on the specific context [04:33:00].
Traditional ethical philosophy is broadly divided into three domains:
- Consequentialist ethics: Evaluates actions based on their results, with utilitarianism (greatest happiness for the greatest number) as a key example [02:00:00].
- Deontological ethics: Based on reason or universal morality, like Kant’s categorical imperative [02:22:00].
- Virtue ethics: Focuses on right behavior from an internal perspective, emphasizing character traits like courage, truthfulness, or temperance, famously propagated by Aristotle [02:44:00].
Landry’s non-relativistic ethics integrates aspects of all three, starting with a values-based orientation (virtue ethics), moving through a foundational perspective (deontological), and considering outcomes in terms of “integrity” (consequentialist) [08:27:00].
Ethics vs. Morality
Landry carefully distinguishes between ethics and morality:
- Ethics: Refers to the universal principles of choice that guide a “self” capable of participating in many different “worlds” or contexts [16:09:00]. It’s about how to make choices that connect directly to the notion of agency or action [16:26:00].
- Moral Codes: Are specific rules tied to a particular “game” or “world” (e.g., rules of a sport, workplace conduct, internet communication) [16:04:00].
While moral codes, norms, rituals, and legal systems can be useful for human development by reducing cognitive load and building good habits [01:08:00], systems defined in “black and white terms” can become antithetical to life and consciousness [01:06:18]. These constructs are man-made and should be re-examined and changed if they no longer serve their purpose [01:25:00]. The focus should be on the underlying ethical principles rather than rigid rules [01:12:00].
Key Concepts for Effective Choice
Forrest Landry identifies several intertwined concepts critical to effective choice and societal progress:
Integrity
Integrity means “to act as one together,” implying coherency, cooperativeness, and diversity [00:36:47]. An effective choice should simultaneously preserve integrity and increase the potentiality of both life and evolution [00:34:33]. This applies to the self’s integrity, the world’s integrity as affected by choices, and the integrity of the communication channel between self and reality [00:37:50].
Potentiality, Symmetry, and Continuity
Maximizing potentiality and integrity involves maximizing the combination of symmetry and continuity in the relationship between the subjective self and objective reality [00:39:17].
- Symmetry: Refers to the correspondence between what is at one end of a communication channel (subjective) and the other (objective) [00:41:07]. A lack of symmetry degrades integrity, like garbled communication [00:40:41].
- Continuity: Relates to the smoothness of interaction and the consistent energy flow through the channel [00:43:00]. Abrupt shifts in energy or context can break the channel’s integrity [00:44:10].
These concepts are crucial for high-integrity communication, which in turn fosters effective choices and overall progress.
Value, Meaning, and Purpose
These three concepts are distinct but inseparable and non-interchangeable, meaning contemplating one implicitly involves the other two [00:50:49].
- Purpose: An external ascription of function (e.g., a toaster’s purpose is to make toast) [00:55:01].
- Value: Intrinsic worth, independent of external use (e.g., a toaster made of solid gold is valuable regardless of its toasting function) [00:56:52].
- Meaningfulness: Relates to the dynamic of the relationship between self and reality, often involving narrative or connotative elements beyond mere function or intrinsic worth [00:57:52]. It serves as the grounding for both value and purpose [00:52:00].
A “meaning crisis” in society may stem from an over-engagement with technology and virtualization, which intermediates physical contact and shared context, leading to feelings of being ungrounded [01:03:26]. This impacts the ability to make good life choices [01:04:20].
Responsibility and Communication Rights
Individuals are responsible for the “totality of their choices and expressions,” but not for their perceptions or knowing [01:23:46]. This means thought crime should not be considered unethical [01:26:19].
Effective communication, crucial for societal function and ethical interaction, is facilitated when participants grant each other three rights:
- The right to speak [01:26:45].
- The right to be understood [01:26:46].
- The right to know that one has been understood [01:26:48].
These rights form a “handshake” of mutual granting, enabling error correction and preventing miscommunication [01:27:16]. Assuming others are sending a signal and working in good faith to understand it (mistake theory rather than conflict theory) is vital for high-generative conversation [01:29:55].
Ethics and Societal Evolution
The discussion highlights how different neurodivergent traits, like sociopathy and high-functioning autism (Asperger’s types), play roles in societal “explore” and “exploit” behaviors [01:17:07]. While sociopaths might be good at exploiting, and autistics at creating, an imbalance can be detrimental to societal stability [01:17:40], [01:19:12]. The increasing prevalence of these traits, possibly influenced by the social-economic civilization toolkit, makes robust civilization structures resistant to “game A” (sociopathic) processes even more critical [01:20:50].
Ultimately, the increased capacities brought by technology make the relevance of ethical thinking and “ethical feeling” paramount for humanity’s survival and for being “in right relationship with the natural world, with other people” [01:42:40]. This emphasizes that ethics is not merely a philosophical exercise but a practical necessity for the survival of the species [01:43:02].
Further reading on this topic can be found on jimrutshow.com. [00:22:00]