We need to start teaching social contract morality...

Basing our morals on religions or feelings of guilt causes failures of understanding when people lack those things.

Social contract morality is strictly logical. I won't try to kill you if you don't try to kill me. We each save energy because we don't have to watch each other constantly. Doing this en masse is a foundation of civilization.

Masks during an illness outbreak are not about protecting yourself, they are a step you take to protect others from you. I wear the mask to protect you and want you to wear the mask to protect me. When you refuse, you are not making a statement about freedom. You are saying that you are either too stupid to understand how this exchange works, or that you do not care about the health of others around you.

If people were more aware of social contract morality, they would be more aware that they are sending such signals.

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Grateful4you · M

Too bad the people that need to read this won't.

SwampFlower · 31-35, F

I had never heard of a political theorist until my first year of college. Perhaps therein lies the problem.

REMsleep · 41-45, F

I do not believe in the logic of social contract morality. If I did not believe that there was a God while I would love to just be nice most of the time at the end of the day sometimes I just wouldn't care. I think this goes for most people.
Sure I won't kill you if you won't kill me but if its not really wrong for any specific reason and it will benefit me to kill you then I might do it.

bijouxbroussard · F

@REMsleep Isn’t that what the “golden rule” is about, though ? “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” ? Why would it benefit you to kill someone if they posed no threat to you ? 🤔

REMsleep · 41-45, F

@bijouxbroussard Well I was speaking more so in the sense of considering the various motivations of each person on a global scale. I personally probably would never kill anyone but around the world occasionally it could be very beneficial to off someone such as :
A mean spouse thats making my life hell and I need his insurance money

A business competitor

An evil politician

So many more. If the only basis for morality is that " the world gets along best if we don't harm each other"
Well.... I can think of a number of cases where I personally think that the world would be a better place if person XYZ were in fact dead immediately.
Since we all have different ideas this can get very messy very quickly.

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