Hopefully everyone had a wonderful Valentines Day. As I have mentioned before I love to cook, well I finally got a chance to cater a dinner. My skills were requested from my Mother-in-Law and her friends on Valentines Day at her friend’s house. I prepared a peppercorn filet with sautéed mushrooms drizzled in an alfredo sauce. I put prosciutto wrapped asparagus next to the fillet in the shape of an X. I also prepared zucchini, mushrooms and onions , baked potatoes along with boursin butter (a garlic butter with cream cheese) and French bread.
Dinner went well and everyone complimented the food, and the fact that my wife had been my sous chef for the evening, had given me a sense of accomplishment. (my wife can’t cook so since no one ran to the bathroom I was okay to place a checkmark in the win column) So I packed up my belongings and headed out.
Our son was with us and we walked past a neighbor’s house. I watched as a man started walking out of the house. My wife was waiting for our son to get into the truck as this man got into an SUV parked in the driveway we just passed by. Within moments we heard a commotion from inside the SUV. I turned to look at the source of the noise. The man who only moments ago had climbed into the passenger side of the vehicle was beating the driver in the face with his fists. There was such force that the vehicle was shaking violently. The driver opened the door and partially fell out, his head and upper body were on the ground and the passenger was now atop of him just repeatedly punching him in the face. The driver was crying out for help. My wife was only a couple of feet away and by this point my son was fully inside the vehicle. My wife closed the door of the truck and then she proceeded to yell at the aggressor to stop. I was positioned on the other side of my truck and I contemplated rushing over to get involved to separate the two guys. Part of me wanted to get in the truck and drive away and not get involved in any fashion. I had no idea who these guys were and I decided the best course of action was to call 911.
I was concerned that his attention would turn to my wife or worse my son. I made sure the doors were locked on my truck and I was watching to make sure I would be in his path should he turn. I was on the phone with the dispatcher giving a blow by blow and a description of the guys and the vehicle while I waited on the officers to arrive. During there dispute my wife continued to yell at the aggressor and told him that the police were on the way. He informed her that he did not care that this was his older brother and he needed this. Once the police arrived he surrendered and was arrested for assault.
While I was driving home afterwards I started to ponder… Was it unethical to not attempt to separate the two men in order to assist the man who was begging for help?
I welcome any comments from people who would like to weigh in on this issue.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Assignment #6
PART ONE
QUESTION #1: If an action that is praised in one culture may be condemned in another, would it be correct to say that all moral values are relative to the culture they are found in?
ANSWER 1A:
The core of the World’s problem this question is. (a little play on Yoda) The World today is at odds, different cultures trying to influence and overpower each other with their own superior cultural moral values. All we have to do is turn on the television and flip a couple of channels; before we run across a news story depicting an example of this. Our county is at war with terrorism, terrorism is caused by terrorists. Who are terrorists? The simple answer is on who inflicts terror, however the terrorists see themselves as liberators. They are liberating the infidels from their own terrible existence. In the process the liberator will be granted heavenly rewards. So, I feel that the question posed before me can be answered as, Yes. Yes, moral values are relative to their respective cultures.
ANSWER 1B:
AI: Whether or not it is correct to say that all moral values are relative to the culture they are found in.
P: Each culture has its own moral values
P: Moral values that differ from the norm of the culture are sometimes viewed in distain
P: As culture evolves moral values evolve as well
------------------------------
C: Therefore, it is correct to say that all moral values are relative to the culture they are found in
QUESTION #2: Isn’t it a mark of ignorance to pass judgments on other cultures or to claim that one culture is better than another?
ANSWER 2A:
Throughout history cultures have passed judgment to the fact one culture is superior to another. I do not feel that it is a mark of ignorance to pass judgment over another culture. To have a mark of ignorance we would need a mark of intelligence to create a contrast. With that where does the mark of intelligence come from, who sets the mark? Does the mark of intelligence live within our own culture? By passing judgment are we walking to the edge of morally reasoning and jumping off into the unknown? Oh to answer a question with more questions. This country was founded by a group of people who viewed there beliefs, culture, better than that of their country. A culture within a culture, if they did not pass judgment against England the United Stated of America would not exist .
ANSWER 2B:
AI: Whether or not it is a mark of ignorance to pass judgments on other cultures or to claim that one culture is better than another.
P: We do not an agreed upon mark for what intelligence truly is.
P: To pass judgment on another culture is no different from passing judgment on a criminal.
P: Passing judgments does not mean to pass a negative judgment.
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C: Therefore, it is not a mark of ignorance to pass judgments on other cultures.
PART TWO
In ancient Rome, Sparta, and China unwanted children were abandoned to die. This practice is considered by most of the moral views of this country today as an unimaginable act. However, this was the practice of a culture and the culture viewed this to be morally acceptable. These cultures were trying to weed out the weak. To put the old adage in more macabre light a cultures chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Their focus was on physical strength for the men and the ability to bear more healthy warriors for the women. At a glance the elders would decide if the child fit into this mold, albeit a very harsh and unforgiving mold, if not a one way ticket to the afterlife awaited the infant. As mentioned above the ability to pass judgment onto another culture and what it considers morally acceptable is, in my opinion is futile at best. These cultures tossed out human life in the pursuit of physical strength but most likely they tossed out the children who had the intellectual aptitude to foster a great nation, we will never know but I can speculate.
Arguable issue: Whether or not it is morally acceptable to abandoned unwanted children to die.
P: The value of human life is not being preserved (value life itself)
P: The intelligence of the culture may suffer (the value of knowledge)
P: Passing judgment at a glance doesn’t allow for true analysis (valuing accuracy)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C: Therefore, unwanted children should not be abandoned to die.
QUESTION #1: If an action that is praised in one culture may be condemned in another, would it be correct to say that all moral values are relative to the culture they are found in?
ANSWER 1A:
The core of the World’s problem this question is. (a little play on Yoda) The World today is at odds, different cultures trying to influence and overpower each other with their own superior cultural moral values. All we have to do is turn on the television and flip a couple of channels; before we run across a news story depicting an example of this. Our county is at war with terrorism, terrorism is caused by terrorists. Who are terrorists? The simple answer is on who inflicts terror, however the terrorists see themselves as liberators. They are liberating the infidels from their own terrible existence. In the process the liberator will be granted heavenly rewards. So, I feel that the question posed before me can be answered as, Yes. Yes, moral values are relative to their respective cultures.
ANSWER 1B:
AI: Whether or not it is correct to say that all moral values are relative to the culture they are found in.
P: Each culture has its own moral values
P: Moral values that differ from the norm of the culture are sometimes viewed in distain
P: As culture evolves moral values evolve as well
------------------------------
C: Therefore, it is correct to say that all moral values are relative to the culture they are found in
QUESTION #2: Isn’t it a mark of ignorance to pass judgments on other cultures or to claim that one culture is better than another?
ANSWER 2A:
Throughout history cultures have passed judgment to the fact one culture is superior to another. I do not feel that it is a mark of ignorance to pass judgment over another culture. To have a mark of ignorance we would need a mark of intelligence to create a contrast. With that where does the mark of intelligence come from, who sets the mark? Does the mark of intelligence live within our own culture? By passing judgment are we walking to the edge of morally reasoning and jumping off into the unknown? Oh to answer a question with more questions. This country was founded by a group of people who viewed there beliefs, culture, better than that of their country. A culture within a culture, if they did not pass judgment against England the United Stated of America would not exist .
ANSWER 2B:
AI: Whether or not it is a mark of ignorance to pass judgments on other cultures or to claim that one culture is better than another.
P: We do not an agreed upon mark for what intelligence truly is.
P: To pass judgment on another culture is no different from passing judgment on a criminal.
P: Passing judgments does not mean to pass a negative judgment.
-------------------------------
C: Therefore, it is not a mark of ignorance to pass judgments on other cultures.
PART TWO
In ancient Rome, Sparta, and China unwanted children were abandoned to die. This practice is considered by most of the moral views of this country today as an unimaginable act. However, this was the practice of a culture and the culture viewed this to be morally acceptable. These cultures were trying to weed out the weak. To put the old adage in more macabre light a cultures chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Their focus was on physical strength for the men and the ability to bear more healthy warriors for the women. At a glance the elders would decide if the child fit into this mold, albeit a very harsh and unforgiving mold, if not a one way ticket to the afterlife awaited the infant. As mentioned above the ability to pass judgment onto another culture and what it considers morally acceptable is, in my opinion is futile at best. These cultures tossed out human life in the pursuit of physical strength but most likely they tossed out the children who had the intellectual aptitude to foster a great nation, we will never know but I can speculate.
Arguable issue: Whether or not it is morally acceptable to abandoned unwanted children to die.
P: The value of human life is not being preserved (value life itself)
P: The intelligence of the culture may suffer (the value of knowledge)
P: Passing judgment at a glance doesn’t allow for true analysis (valuing accuracy)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C: Therefore, unwanted children should not be abandoned to die.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Blog Assignment #5
This Video can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HqvE6uye1Y
I found this video and I feel that it demonstrates majority view in a good light. Majority view is flawed and is faulty yes, but in this case where he is describing the need for an ethical code of conduct for CEO's it is relevant. Since starting this class I have really noticed a difference in the way I look at situations. Ethics is a compass to steer us in a direction where good sound judgment will prevail. With the CEO dilemma I feel that this Majority View is a one of the times that would be the exception to the rule. Also within the context of this video it shed light on the fact CEO's could be guided by a conscience that would steer them towards a morally acceptable path as a CEO. The Ruggiero books refers to shapers of our conscience as Natural Endowment and Social Conditioning. Its stands to reason that some current CEO's we not very fortunate to have they consciences molded into proper moral compasses.
Arguable issue: whether or not this post deserves 25 points
Conclusion: this post deserves 25 points
Premises: this post deserves 25 points because
1) the attached video is relevant to our class
2) the points made regarding the video refer back to our reading and how it applies
3) the post was published on time
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