An attack on Ethical Egoism

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When an egoist ask you, "why should I care?" there is an expectation of the egoist to make you argue in the terms of his or her interest, and I think this is the trap of the egoist. We would normally answer "because someone is getting harmed, etc." The egoist do not understand why we should not harm people because he or she is too caught up with everything about him or her that he or she has denied the reality of others. Because we do not answer him or her to the expectation that we would argue to his or her interest, he or she would falsely think that he or she have won the argument, and we simply feel frustrated because we did not have the last word and that we cannot control his or her awareness on the situation at hand.

James Rachels actually had an interesting essay on the fallacy of psychological egoism, and he argues against ethical egoism well (although I do not agree that we can not argue against them in terms of logic).

What do you think?

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Hmm. Nows I ain't educat-ed in no fancy college, but I coulda told ya that! Laughing

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Well, he or she might be entertaining his or her notion of how or when to get or obtain his or her way, regardless of what his or her own father or mother taught her, and regardless of what or how you or me thinks. His or her way of conduction his or her business in a way or manner that does not offend or agitate you or me is what makes him or her such lousy we, you they people. His or her antennas or feelers are fried or baked.

Now, is James Rachels a he or her? Rachel James, now who's that?

What do you think?

Smile

Sorry... couldn't resist.

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What the hell is 'ethical egoism'?

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I'll respond to Merry Andrew first, but I think he knows what it is.

Ethical egoism: the belief that we should do things for ourselves period.

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Now, is James Rachels a he or her? Rachel James, now who's that?

I think I got his first name right, but he was a philosopher, a professor at the University of Alabama, this book says. He also wrote a piece analyzing Kant's idea.

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Hmm. Nows I ain't educat-ed in no fancy college, but I coulda told ya that!

lol yeah, but it's weird how some people are into that. Psychological egoism (not an ethical theory but a theory about the nature of ethical choices) when unanalyzed can appear to make sense, but Rachels pointed out the contradiction in the concept. For example, it is a false idea of human motivation, because the feeling of warmth comes after our actions in many circumstances.

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Gurdjieffs objection...

"One of man's important mistakes, one which must be remembered, is his illusion in regard to his "I".
Man such as we know him, the 'man-machine,' the man who cannot 'do,' and with whom and through whom everything 'happens,' cannot have a permanent and single I. His I changes as quickly as his thoughts, feelings and moods, and he makes a profound mistake in considering himself always one and the same person; in reality he is always a different person, not the one he was a moment ago."

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I and I,

In creation one's nature neither honours or forgives,

I and I

One said to the other "no man sees my face and lives."

Bob Dylan--I and I.

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So Ray, What do you do when confronted by an egotist?

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My objection is with the adjective. If the definition is "the belief that we should do things for ourselves period," how is that different from the garden variety of plain, simple and unvarnished egoism? What is "ethical" about this? (Or unethical, for that matter?)

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I think I got his first name right,

You did. I was just derailed by all the gender talk. Reminded me of the people's front of judea. Or was that the judean people's front? Smile

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Hey, I'm for gender equality. :wink:

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My objection is with the adjective. If the definition is "the belief that we should do things for ourselves period," how is that different from the garden variety of plain, simple and unvarnished egoism? What is "ethical" about this? (Or unethical, for that matter?)

Yeah, that is weird. The word "ethical" is probably there to try to ignorantly justify the concept.

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So Ray, What do you do when confronted by an egotist?

Get a reality check, or got to a psychologist. Laughing

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An attack on Ethical Egoism

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