“Normative” ethical theories

[The Grand Nudger]

Incidentally, i recently read Morris’s book Moral Damages and am sympathetic to antiretributivist approaches

Just a cursory glance at the blurb and reviews I'd say that's an interesting one.  A case to do away with morality because it does more harm than good....?   

Ummmmmmm........ 

Aside from what some would call a fundamental and blatantly obvious contradiction there, there probably is a good moral and pragmatic case to be made against heavy handed moralizing, even if not morality itself. As a realist I also think that we should cool it with alot of the consequentializing we do. It always seems to me that trying to -make- things shitty for people we're in moral disagreement with suggests we do not actually believe in the reality of moral or practical failure itself to be instructive and provide some consequence in peoples lives. A good context being our legal systems. Sure, I'd stop you from hitting your neighbor in the face - but I wouldn't hit you in the face for it or throw you in the oubliette.

Pragmatic and expressivist ethics, I think, can draw alot of people with very different metaethical views together.