‘The Essence of Justice is a Square Number’

While revising a course on ethics recently for one of the universities where I teach  I got to seriously thinking about the issues of morality and ethics in society today. To a large extent I wondered if we even had any general morals or ethics and if so from where did they arise?

I look back at where some of us would normally claim to have gotten our sense of right and wrong, good and bad, and most of us would refer to our parents or grandparents. Some might even identify with a church or other group as the source of our guidelines. To be sure, religions around the world have played a part in conveying the basics of right and wrong in terms of behavior but, depending on one’s belief system the actual guidelines of behavior may have preceded instructions from any deity. Even Biblical scholars question whether or not Cain knew exactly what he was doing when he killed Able for at that time there was no edict against killing.

The question of course is did Cain know or understand that what he was doing was bad, to which I believe the answer would be yes. There are certain behaviors that humans have understood from the time they gathered together in groups that were mala en se, “bad in and of themselves”. These are behaviors that require no intervention of a God to determine that they were wrong because living among other humans required certain unwritten, even unspoken rules to be followed. Even among tribes of so-called uncivilized peoples they have been found to have rules regarding the “natural laws” (see Bronislaw Malinowski’s “Argonauts of the Western Pacific”.)

The point being that there is a certain level of good and bad behavior that seems pretty well defined in humans. However, when we move beyond the clear cut “natural laws”, humans seem to have less clarity about the rightness and wrongness of their behavior. It is here that ethics and morals become murky and subject to definitional problems.

In many places you will find the term Ethics defined as the study of good and bad behavior, and Morals as the conduct of good or bad behavior. Yet, you will find companies with Ethics Policies where they define ethical behavior not moral behavior. Also, you will find contracts with Morals Clauses but not ethical clauses (see the Bobby Petrino case at The University of Arkansas). So, at least to some extent, there are some who see a distinction between the two in terms of behavior not just in an abstract way.

I too think there is a distinction between the two but I do not think that they are mutually exclusive. I think that when one is conducting ones professional life or carrying out a task of a professional nature one needs to adhere to ethical standards.

For example, writing for this web magazine, while not my profession, is a professional task and professional standards of ethics should be followed. I should not produce something here as my work that is not mine unless I give credit to its original author or as close to that as I can get unless it is a point of general knowledge or in the public domain. What I write here should be truthful unless I make it clear that it is intended as fictional or hyperbole. I should not liable anyone here unless I am stating an opinion about someone who is considered a public figure and subject to public criticism.

Now, on the other hand, in my personal life my personal moral code takes over and rules as long as I am dealing with personal issues. Then it becomes more about my truthfulness, how I treat other people, how I treat animals, if I am charitable, etc., in other words, living to a moral standard that makes me feel good about myself and is generally accepted by others. Now, with the discussion and definitional problems out of the way, I shall turn to the crux of the problem.

One of the things I really enjoy about writing for MMA is that I get to express some of my occasional, sometimes strange thoughts about the state of the world today, meaning of course, mainly this country. I listen and observe politicians, preachers, talking heads, writers, news people, and just everyday people about current topics and they never cease to amaze me. Most all of them either have never thought through what they said, or if they did think about it they were too stupid to figure out how wrong they were and who they were going to hurt, or they did think it through and understood they were wrong and who they would hurt but really didn’t care.

A prime example of the ethical and moral paradox is Paul Ryan, a man who is asking to be Vice President, the so called one heartbeat away from being the leader of the free world. “The Free World, really?” He is a member of the Catholic Church which has for centuries taken care of the poor. Paul Ryan takes and ethical stand along the moral guidelines of the church against abortion which seems logical and rational, BUT the paradox is that in the same breath he also take a stand against the poor, children, and the elderly with his budget proposal. It is the height of hypocrisy. Of course, this same paradox flows to all of those of the Christian right.

Those who take a moral stand against abortion and also take a stand against assistance to women who are forced to bear those children, or at least take care of those children are part of the same ethical/moral paradox for which there is no defense. One cannot say to another person that she must bear a child regardless of how the pregnancy occurred, regardless of the health or situation of the child, and regardless of the health of the mother and then say now it is yours we have no obligation. This is simply an imbalance in the entire process and violates every ethical and moral principle ever held, not only in this day and in this country, but from the beginning of time.

Pythagoras was said to be quoting Buddha when he said “the essence of justice is a square number,” meaning that there should be an equal balance on all sides. (See Joseph McCabe’s, The Human Origin of Morals) Yet, and still, those of various religious faiths would choose leaders who are guaranteeing an injustice not just to women, who have worked and slaved to have equal rights as humans in this country, but also to children who are forced to be born with serious handicaps, into families that do not want them, or who cannot afford them, and also the millions of elderly who will be forced to leave nursing homes where they received proper care.

When those who profess to have high moral standards and believe it will put them in good standing with their God at whatever critical time their faith defines, they will have to answer a question. When those who profess to be of good ethical standards and put themselves out as a model for others to follow toward their professed goals, they too will have to answer a question:

Does your Ethical and Moral behavior follow the path at all times?

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