>>6328049 (pb)
Another approach would be using the "Natural Law" to regulate society (See Sauce, below). May put lawyers out of business, so there's one bonus. It seems like too much would be subject to an individual's interpretation, which IMHO is a recipe for disaster. As George Carlin said, the average person is pretty stupid, and half the people are even more stupid than that. So yeah, there's that. Anyway, read it or not, it's not my view. Just something to exercise the gray matter.
ETHICS
Chapter 7. Deontological Theories: Natural Law
Section 4. Natural Law Theory
With this theory actions in conformity and support of natural laws are morally correct. A simple summary would be :
What Is Consistent with the Natural Law Is Right and What Is not in keeping with the Natural Law Is Wrong .
NOTE: This is NOT what is natural is morally correct and what is unnatural is morally wrong. The focus is on the natural LAWS and not simply natural acts. Natural Law Theory supports doing unnatural deeds such as surgery for the sake of realizing a restoration of health and the prolongation of human life which are each consistent with the natural drives of organisms: survival.
VIDEO at Natural Law Theory http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_vbogNT9oc
In this view humans have reasoning and the Laws of Nature are discernable by human reason. Thus, humans are morally obliged to use their reasoning to discern what the laws are and then to act in conformity with them.
Humans have a natural drive to eat, drink, sleep and procreate. These actions are in accord with a natural law for species to survive and procreate. Thus activities in conformity with such a law are morally good. Activities that work against that law are morally wrong. As an example consider that to eat too much or too little and place life in jeopardy is morally wrong.
Two types of Natural Law Theory:
Natural Law Theory can be held and applied to human conduct by both theists and atheists. The atheist uses reason to discover the laws governing natural events and applies them to thinking about human action. Actions in accord with such natural law are morally correct. Those that go against such natural laws are morally wrong.
For the theists there is a deity that created all of nature and created the laws as well and so obedience to those laws and the supplement to those laws provided by the deity is the morally correct thing to do.
For atheists there is still the belief that humans have reasoning ability and with it the laws of nature are discernable. For atheists who accept this approach to act in keeping with the laws of nature is the morally correct thing to do.
What are the laws of nature that provide guidance for human actions? These would include: the law of survival, the natural action for living things to maintain themselves and to reproduce, etc..
It is a major problem for this theory to determine what exactly those laws are and how they apply to human circumstances.
READ about this theory here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_law
READ THE ETHICS OF NATURAL LAW by C. E. Harris
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