My take is Jordan probably contributed to many more deaths due to his apparent CNN muzzle order .... despicable in my estimation. No conflicted morals here.
Two different arguments, JB. One argument is that he contributed to more deaths than he saved. We don't know that now because we don't know what actually happened. Moreover, I doubt we will ever know that. He knows, however, he saved some lives; he doesn't know and cannot know if or how many other lives might have been lost.
Second argument, a deontological one. (Don't you just love the big words.) That is that, regardless of situation, regardless of conflicting ethical demands, regardless of conflicting demands of self and family and corporate interest, one must always be honest. The short form, I gather, is that the Western ethical tradition is universal, pace William Bennett and Lynn Cheney and Joe Lieberman, and an essential component of that is situation free adherence to the "truth."
Just to get down and dirty a bit, I recall a period in junior high school in which we tried that with one another. Destroyed friendships; got everyone in trouble with teachers and parents. We decided that was not a reasonable ethical mandate. |
