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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: dave rose who wrote (17362)	6/25/2001 11:55:20 PM
From: The Philosopher	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

Nope. Whether murder is right or wrong is a moral decision. Duelling was once not only legal but a moral obligation in certain circumstances. There have been civilizations in which killing others was morally acceptable. Part of the moral code. A husband, for example, coming home to find another man making love to his wife was morally entitled to kill the cuckolder. But no more. That is a change in the law to reflect a change in moral codes. Theft, again, is saying that the strong are not entitled to take from the weak. This is what happens in, for example, Lion societies. But in our society the weak have banded together to change the moral rules. Which I, being one of the weak, happen to like. But I recognize it for what it is. An imposition of my moral code on those who would, without contrary laws, follow a different moral code. Legislating morality. Nothing more, nothing less.

To: dave rose who wrote (17362)	6/26/2001 11:20:35 AM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

<<Criminalizing murder is legislating morality.>> Incorrect! It is protecting individuals against force and fraud. It is one of the few true functions of a government. The idea that we should protect individuals against force and fraud is one based on a moral opinion. It is a idea involving morality. Of course morality is a rather broad term. Some moral ideas are issues or human rights or otherwise seem to legitimately be pare of the function of government, other ideas do not. Perhaps it would be useful if we had different words for the two categories but even then people would argue about what fits in each category. Tim