So, we set up moral systems to regulate and make it so people are able to resist the temptation to think in short term, microlevel, temporarily selfish ways about what is good for them. The goal is that people think in the more expansive way about their power being in spreading power to others, rather than to take short term advantages that weaken the social system of trust, or exploit it in a way that if everyone did the same the whole thing couldn’t exist. While we might get away with a localized selfish act, it’s formally inconsistent to do the kind of thing that in principle undermines the flourishing of the system that we ultimately depend on. It’s irrational to try to scheme and undermine a system that you yourself need. It’s irrational in the sense of an inconsistency, comparable to any other rational inconsistency.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 19:59:14 +0000
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