Morality in Nature

[genkaus]

Some groups of people certainly monitor other groups of people, and modify the ways of dealing with them. How is this different from a group of neurons monitoring other groups of neurons, and modifying the way they are monitored? (insert next special criterion here. . . )

No special criterion. The neurons themselves are not self-aware, which is why generation of self-awareness enters at that stage. The individuals are already self-aware - which is why the community as a whole is not.

Anyway, back to morality. All this stuff about monitoring the monitor has shown that a brain, if part if it is dysfunctional, can lead to a person doing a bad behavior, like a murder. But what you haven't explained is why we should interpret this as a moral failing, which requires punishment. Why wouldn't you interpret it as a mental disability, and see that as proof that a person SHOULDN'T be punished?

On the contrary, if the bad behavior (murder) is the result of a part of brain being dysfunctional, then it is not interpreted as a moral failing and the person is not punished for it.

This is a simple argument:
1. No healthy person would kill unnecessarily.
2. A serial killer is therefore obviously unhealthy.
3. A person shouldn't be morally accountable for his own illnesses.
4. A peson therefore can't be morally acountable for serial killing.

Premise 1 is wrong.
A healthy person can kill unnecessarily.
And most killers do have a reason for killing.

You don't shout "Fuck you for having epilepsy," and beat someone because they're blocking traffic, do you? Normally, blocking traffic is against the law. Should the epileptic be ticketed for blocking traffic? What if someone had a stroke, and caused a fatal multi-car pileup? Would you punish them for having a stroke?

Given that epilepsy is a chronic condition, that person should not have been driving in the first place. So yes, he should be ticketed for blocking traffic. Similarly, if the stroke patient had a reasonable expectation of having a stroke, then he too can be held accountable for the fatal multi-car pile-up. Although, prosecution might be a tad difficult on the account of the pile-up being fatal.