Moral standards

[Whateverist]

What is the standard that they measure it by? Two people arguing a moral difficulty, what does the third person say, do, or show that ends the argument?

The third person just needs to point out what the laws are and the likely consequences of the proposed action. There is obviously a pretty big difference between the idea of morality and the idea of justice. We cobble together our best attempts at justice through laws. So you could say we band together to protect one another while also trying to avoid regulating the joy out of people's lives. It is a delicate balance.

But where does fine art come from? Where do great recipes come from? What makes some sounds noise and others music? Morality comes from the same place as these other phenomena. The remarkable thing is that there is so much agreement in all these areas, though there is also variety. But some noises will never be deemed music by anyone's sensibility and some acts will never be deemed moral for the same reason.

Of course people will still do these things sometimes. Life is not black and white and people are not simple. Just think of all the scumbag Christian television personalities who have used money needed by old people barely getting by to buy gold plated bathroom fixtures. Or the ones who keep getting caught abusing drugs or having affairs with people in their own 'flock' or paying for a homosexual prostitute. God's commandments don't seem so very hard to disregard even for those who profess to embrace them as true believers. I wouldn't lose any sleep worrying about what atheists may do without this ineffectual device of yours.