(June 16, 2015 at 2:29 am)Aoi Magi Wrote: Sorry that I won't be able to read through the 15 pages of discussion. But replying to OP, good isn't "universal" because the concept of "good" and "evil" is man-made. For example, you mentioned "murder" as universal truth, however murder IS part of nature, and nature doesn't see it as good or bad. Animals have to murder each other in order to survive, even non-living matter will need to murder each other to make progress, like galaxies swallowing up other galaxies. We determine what is good or bad through our own perspective, and yes, it is subjective. Let's say in our society murder is wrong, but what if a psychopath tries to murder your children? Would killing her in self-defence as a last resort still be wrong? When a lion kills a deer, from the lion's perspective it is doing good because it is ensuring the survival of it's pride, but from the deer's perspective it is evil... from our perspective it is neither good nor evil because that is how nature works.
Thank you for the response, Aoi.
Killing in self defense is not wrong, I agree with you there. What would you say about societies that believe killing is good? Let's use Isis as a current example. They are a whole society and culture of people who believe that killing infidels is good. Would you say that since they believe this is moral, they are thus acting morally? Or do you think they are definitively acting immorally even if they believe otherwise. I think my takeaway from this discussion is that most atheists do not believe in moral truths.
"Of course, everyone will claim they respect someone who tries to speak the truth, but in reality, this is a rare quality. Most respect those who speak truths they agree with, and their respect for the speaking only extends as far as their realm of personal agreement. It is less common, almost to the point of becoming a saintly virtue, that someone truly respects and loves the truth seeker, even when their conclusions differ wildly."
-walsh
-walsh
