Is genuine altruism possible?

Color is a quality of the surface (not object) that is colored (or not, I suppose) that causes various wavelengths to either bounce off of it or get absorbed.

Light DOES react to it (color) - it gets bounced or absorbed.

But yes, I think there are properties that allow light to behave in certain manners. How would you explain it?

I think you've just proven why your existentialism is flawed, twyvel. That argument has nothing to do with any kind of materialism.

If one doesn't know what effect their actions will have, if they have no way of knowing, then it's a crapshoot. Equivalent to tossing a coin.

I think its been made obvious in this thread that whether an act is altruistic or not is a subjective consideration, which would mean there probably can be no universal agreement since all humans would have to agree which is highly unlikely.

It has also been agreed by a few including me that altruism calls for a selfless act, where the ego self has been bypassed or temporally suspended, something that can only be know subjectively.

As such it seems that it is only the individual involved in committing an act that can determine whether it was altruistic or not since they are the only person that can know what they truly feel. Third parties can only make judgements based on objectively observed behavior.

Since a lot of information concerning an act is not available and since a lot of it is a judgement call we could probably not construct a scenario that everyone on this thread would agree is altruism, except in a general, every day sort of way.

That depends on what you're calling "subjective." If you're saying that an actor's altruistic motives are subjective, you're not really saying anything either new or important. All motives are inherently subjective, but we can still judge whether those motives, and the acts that result from them, deserve either praise or blame.

If we require an altruistic act to be "selfless," and we define "selfless" as something like an overcoming of self, such that the actor has some sort of metaphysical experience of "otherness" while contemplating and then carrying out the act, then I think we can safely say that few, if any, acts are truly "altruistic." But why should we require such a high threshold?

Observers make judgments based upon their observations all the time, including judgments based upon their observations of others' actions. If Observer sees Rescuer leap into the lake and save Victim, is Observer obliged to withhold any praise (or blame) for Rescuer's act on the grounds that only Rescuer could accurately divine his motives?

And why isn't a "general, everyday sort of way" sufficient? One could, like Hume, reject all inductive knowledge as so much speculation but nevertheless still set his alarm clock. We can remain skeptical of the physical universe on an epistemological level but still establish ethical standards for society.

Clearly, "color" is something that only happens when light hits an object, since it is the light that we are describing and not the object.

But the surface of the object has chemical properties that determine how the light will react to it. Understand?

I'm saying there is no universal agreement, no consensus. Acts are judged altruistic or not on an individual basis, by individuals.

Re-read what I said. I did not say third parties could not determine for themselves whether others have acted altruistically. I said they are perhaps not in the best position to do so.

I guess I did imply that it was insufficient. But if you disagree why do you think that it appears that the folks on this thread cannot agree as to what an altruistic act is?

An intention doesn't cause an act to take place, nor does an act cause an intention (as thought) to occur.

Where is the altruist if the intention, as a thought, and the physical action are not cause--effect related?

There is altruism, but no altruists. There is acting but no actors.

That doesn't negate altruism as an action, but from a transcendental perspective if you save yourself from drowning is it altruism?