Moral Oughts

[Objectivist]

Hi Acrobat,

The is/ ought problem is a result of a deontological view of ethics.  But that view is flawed.  A duty based ethics is a contradiction in terms.  The moral it the chosen, but a duty is something you must perform regardless of what your judgment says.  There are no categorical imperatives. Nature does not place duties on you.   But there are hypothetical imperatives.  If you want x you must do y.  If you want to live you must eat, if you want to live you must obtain cloths, shelter, tools, etc.  The bridge between an is and an ought is values.  If you value your life and want it to continue, you must take certain actions. Those actions are not arbitrary but are based on your nature.  Your nature and the actions it requires are facts.  Facts are objective.

I see the duty as the judgement. The duty is to do good, and not to do bad.

When I judge something my friend did as bad, I’m saying it’s something he ought not have done.

Im not referring to some sort of duty that’s separable from good, but inseparable from it.

Yes, judgment is a duty, but only if you have made the choice to live.  It's a self-imposed duty.  Nature doesn't force you to judge or to live, it's a choice. But once you've made that choice, you must judge everything and everyone on the basis of your life and the values it requires.  What things should I eat, what food should I avoid, what people should I trust and which not, what kind of work should I do, should I work or just sit on the porch with a beer?  What type of woman or man should I seek, what kind of friends, what kind of business partner, lover, etc.  what will it mean for my life and my happiness? You have to do this with absolutely everything, which is why I think so many people look for someone to tell them what to do, you know like an ancient book supposedly authored by a wise and all-loving being, or a guru or what have you.  Because, thinking is hard, hard work and so people want ready-made, canned answers.  

That's what an objective morality looks like, something in reality (an object) as judged by a mind (a subject)  by an objective method (one that adheres to facts) and by an objective standard.  

"When I judge something my friend did as bad, I'm saying it's something he ought not to have done." *if he wants to live and have a good life*