Question about making ethical decisions

[Bluffoon]

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I was thinking about this last night when I couldn't sleep. In making ethical or moral decisions, are you a “black & white” kind of person or a “shades of gray” kind of person? Why? In making ethical decisions, do you have a firm set of stated moral beliefs that you consciously work from, or do you wing it depending on the situation and just what seems right given the circumstances? Why?

I tend to be a very black & white kind of person and have a set of established morals that are my own that I follow.

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I used to be black and white but now I try to be more open minded.

One of my favorite sayings is... "The older I get the stupider I get - When I was eighteen I knew everything and now I dont know [censored]."

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I'm referring to making my own ethical decisions, not how I react to others necessarily. I find that the few issues where I have trouble coming to an absolute decision are very frustrating. If I were a shades of gray person, I would be constatly frustrated.

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Maybe I am misunderstanding your question. For example I used to be very strongly pro-choice. I am still pro-choice but I see a lot of valid points on the right to life side.

[jakethebake]

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shades of grey, since I know that so many of my opinions and beliefs are shaped by just what I've gone through

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I find this very interesting as well because I don't think experiences should change my beliefs about what is right or wrong. All it does is give examples and experiences to frame within my moral system.

[ZeeJustin]

Shades of gay and it's not close.

[jakethebake]

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Shades of gay and it's not close.

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This was hilarious.

I'm pretty black and white.
But, I don't think my ideas of right and wrong are the same as everyone elses.

[DMBFan23]

for example, the whole abortion thing. I would think that if there were a girl who got pregnant at a young age and the pregnancy threatened her life of the mother might make someone more inclined to support abortion. We can think about those sides of the story and consider them when we're thinking about morality and all that, but our experiences along those lines are gonna weigh more powerfully IMO. one could also use the morality of something like welfare programs as an example, where being on one side of it or another would distort your views.

[asofel]

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shades of grey, since I know that so many of my opinions and beliefs are shaped by just what I've gone through

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I find this very interesting as well because I don't think experiences should change my beliefs about what is right or wrong. All it does is give examples and experiences to frame within my moral system.

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so how and when did you create your moral system? What was it based on and influeced on? At birth you had a perfect moral system that couldn't change given experience?


Is it ok to steal?

Is it immoral? Unethical?

If your family was starving and you walked by a store that happened to have a big loaf of bread temporarily sitting on a tray outside, would you take it?


I could continue to give contrived and specific examples, but I think before a discussion of this really needs to have firmly established and agreed upon definition of things like ethics and morality, and that's a whole other thread....

[asofel]

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Are you talking about typical issues like the death penalty, abortion etc? I do find it interesting jake about your normal black/white views, but that you struggle with abortion. I think its a great example where its hard to be black and white...

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if the principle reason(s) abortion, death penalty, etc. make those actions unethical, how do circumstances change those priciples? i'm going to have to say i'm pretty black and white with that kind of thing

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if the principal reasons behind them make them unethical?

i think the gray areas arise when there's something that people agree is wrong (stealing, killing, etc) but that such actions can be justified at times.

For example I'd have no problem stealing medicine that I had no other possible way of obtaining if that would save a family members life. I also think that there are situations where taking of a life is necessary. If I have a gun and have a chance at shooting someone who is about to take an axe to my brother, I won't think twice.

So maybe that means that I think taking of a life in saving another is ok? Is that unethical? Immoral?

I think the issue is that so often the absolute truths and ideas beyond morality and ethics end up meeting the reality of life. In a utopian system many things would work that would not work in life.

I'm far from a warmonger, but I think its foolish when people say war is never justified.

I think the origins of what is moral and ethical or not are important in this discussion. For some its societal, for others its religious. One isn't necessarily right or wrong (in my opinion, of course others will disagree) but in the end it makes it hard to prove or disprove one being correct or not, both what is and what isn't, and whether "black and white" is right, or whether "shades of gray" is ok. Interesting discussion though.

[Manque]

I'm certainly no expert on philosophy, but I wonder if the divide between black and white vs. shades of grey. is based on whether your philosophy tends towards utilitarism or natural law.

[krimson]

Shades of gray, even murder can be justified imo.