genkaus Wrote:On the other hand, if we view evil as "intentional compromise of an agency", then, no matter what the benefit, you do not have the right to torture and kill that 5-year old. So, no matter what the aliens have promised you in return, that act would remain an evil one.
This is a Kantian view of morality. Basically, an agent has to be seen as the end and not a means to an end, like the 5-year-old in Boru's example. I'd say Kant's moral imperative seems to work for just about any situation, and explains very neatly why we instinctively see something as bad, yet we can't quite put our finger on why that is.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it" ~ Aristotle
