Blog #6

This week's contemporary issue was on the death penalty. I do not agree with capital punishment because it is hypocritical to the morality of a human being. Our government is supposed to protect the individual's freedom. The one core freedom a human has is of his or her life. The death penalty should never exist because freedom of life is the one essential value of the people the government is supposed to protect. I'm not saying there aren't circumstances where murder can't be justified, but I am saying a government should not have a hand in whether or not one of its citizens should be alive or dead regardless of circumstance. Regarding murder, the only people who should have the hand of justice are the people who are involved in the situation. Such as self defense, one could justify murder if the situation entailed kill or be killed.

I exercised my principles according to this week's contemporary issues. One principle influenced by Taoism that I uphold in this argument is that life is sacred and shouldn't be treated with malice or revenge. Furthermore, the principle of freedom for me is what I recognize I value very highly. In this instance, if a person killed someone that person still has the opportunity to become benevolent and help out his or her fellow man. If one simply decided that their life is no longer worthy because of a past action, that person's chance at helping others out is diminished. So the principle of freedom is very important to me.

To evolve my personal ethical well being, I must experience new things. I can only learn so much by discussing and studying subjects. I'm open to the idea that an experience can completely alter the way I view and treat life. For example, I would probably be more ethically sound if I actually lived in places in the world where food and water is scarce, and I would then not waste as much as I do today. Overall, I think that I have learned to not be an absolutist and to be open to the idea that I am forever changing from this class and these ethical studies.


This week I've commented on, Ashanti's blog. http://ashantijones.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-6-death-penalty-kill-for-kill.html?showComment=1335823844093#c2817070210928562286

Blog #5

This weeks contemporary issues were about abortion. When it comes to social/political issues I tend to be libertarian so in this instance I would be pro-choice, although I try not to have much of an opinion here considering I am a dude.

But, if I did allow myself free speech despite my testosterone I would say; A woman should be the only person dealing with what she wants to do with her body, and big brother government should have nothing to do with what she chooses... Unless the baby is more than a fetus and has a beating heart. Once there is a heart beating in a body regardless whether or not it is in a womb or not it's a human life and it should be treated as such. Again though, I am not an absolutist when it comes to a debate like this because I am not a woman and I do not have to deal with child birth.

So, I am not in complete agreement with Noonan because I don't believe cells in a body that act like a parasite should have rights. Although, I am also not in complete agreement with Warren because abortion 8 months into pregnancy is not abortion it is more similar to homicide. But finally, I have no say, I am male.

This week I've commented on Becky's Blog. http://becksbradley.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-5.html?showComment=1335195220478#c4635282948623075565

Blog #4

This weeks contemporary issue made me apply the Taoist beliefs specifically. Taoism would especially not be down with the whole idea of cloning. Cloning is completely unnatural and considering Taoism is based off of nature itself, it is against this whole notion of cloning and I agree. Cloning opens the door for people to use other people (clones/themselves) as tools for their own selfish desires. For example, if there is a man of Hitler's demeanor during the time of cloning, there's a high chance there could be an army of clones that try valiantly to eradicate the world of Jewish people, again. Furthermore, to use Clones to extend one's life by taking their organs devalues life and its quality because the possibility of death is what makes humans want to live in the moment and enjoy it.

I agree with Kass because of what cloning would do to families across the world. People wouldn't need the benevolent experience of child birth instead they could just grow another one of themselves casually. Personally having a mother and father has shaped a large part of my personality for the better and it would suck to live in a generation where this method of raising kids was vanquished due to cloning.

I commented on Becky's blog: http://becksbradley.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-number-four.html?showComment=1334081615346#c1382761834518785385

Blog #3

What I have learned about human beings throughout my studies is that a human is smart individually, but, people are dumb collectively. A society is corrupt to the individual as it is designed to help the majority of people instead of the individual. Therefore, more times than not individuals become victims to systems that sacrificed the needs of the few for the needs of the many. John Locke has a problem with this because he does not believe an individual should suffer and have his or her personal freedoms be stripped for the help of the masses. This is a philosophy of his I can agree with because an individual's well being should not be overlooked by the will of a higher entity, being society. This philosophy relates to Taoism, as Taoism paints society as corrupt and contradictory to the natural way of life. A human being should not have to give up his or her free will for the sake of any society as long as that free will does not entail killing other human beings, or harming the free will of other human beings.

Karl Marx on the other hand, sees that the masses should be catered to. Karl Marx's ideals would seem to do away with the human characteristic of hoarding the majority of wealth in countries for their own selfish desires. By distributing wealth across the board, Karl Marx is onto a fair way to go about human life as a society. He also is very accurate in describing the flaws of society as an economic issue and that when the economy favors the few (bourgeosie) the many (proletariat) will eventually have no choice but to revolt. Going back to Taoism, I like these ideals Karl Marx wants to stick into society, and how they relate to Taoism. Taoism teaches there is no life "better" than another life, instead "better" is a corrupt mental perception and judgement. This idea of "better" that is seen in Capitalism, opens the window for greed as people begin to hoard their money, creating the mind state that the more money I have, the "better" I am. I personally believe that this idea of "better" is simply a falsified image of oneself that can be described as the ego, and is corrupt to the individual as the ego creates lies for the individual to live by. So, by living by Marxist's ideals, I believe the ego would be diminished and people wouldn't be tortured by the desires of being, "better," the Taoist inside of me tends to agree with Karl Marx in this respect.

I believe I can live by both of these ideals. Maximizing my freedom to use my will and create for myself is something I can take from John Locke to live a good life. As for Karl Marx, I see the importance of not allowing the desire and lust for material wealth to overcome myself. Karl Marx specifically resonates with me though because I believe his vision of the proletariat versus the bourgeoisie is very real today in the society we live in. I've been learning about Karl Marx over the past three semesters and the more I learn about him the more I see his vision in terms of how the proletariat is being oppressed by the bourgeoisie, and when the shit hits the fan, I would love to join the fight, just like what happened in 1776 and the Revolutionary War.

This week I've commented on Danielle Grosso's blog. http://daniellegrosso.blogspot.com/

Blog #2

 What personal principles did you adhere to before entering this course and where did they come from? Were they taught to you? Did you develop them on your own? How have our readings and discussions impacted those principles? Of the principles covered which are you drawn to the most and why?

The principles I lived by before entering this course were being kind to others, being empathetic with others, working hard for the people who put me in the fortunate position I find myself in today (at college) and exercising personal freedoms to create a peace of mind within myself.  The ideas to help people out and empathize with them have come from my parents who have worked very hard for my sister and myself. By observing them I believe that a better life is lived when it serves to help others live happy lives. Through observing them I have learned to apply these principles to my life.

Living with a lot of personal freedom is something I discovered by myself. I realized that, the less I did what I was told to do and the more I embarked upon personal projects, the happier I became. This path has also lead me to seek out philosophy because reading philosophy has helped me understand the significance of living with personal freedom and exercising my choices.

Existentialism is a philosophy that I have lived by for a long time but was unaware of it until I read about it. For example, all my life I’ve been taught that the more I pay attention in class the more I will learn, but, living by my own principles I’ve discovered this does not necessarily work for me. By choosing to write during certain classes that I don’t care about instead of paying attention, I’ve developed a better sense of who I am. The significance of freedom and personal choice in existentialism is something I gravitate toward and the more I read about it the more I realize why I live the way I do; freedom of choice inspires me to live happily and strive toward having many experiences in life.

Aristotle’s views are interesting as well, as he uses reason and virtues to live a happy life. This is something I find useful because it’s a practice in which people can exercise and strengthen the choices they make through using philosophy. To live a happy life one must make choices that help the individual understand how to live happily. This makes a ton of sense to me logically because the better one is at using reason, the better one can consistently find and use proper means to reach the human’s ultimate end; happiness.

        

Taoism, so far is the most intriguing philosophy we’ve gone over in class. The Taoist’s view that nature is divine and in essence is ‘God,’ appeals to me. While spending time in nature I feel enlightened, refreshed, and alive, this being said, nature is my heaven. Taoist philosophers use a lot of poetic language and metaphor to describe their philosophy, and this is something I can empathize with and understand very well. Through the analogy the Taoists used relating swimming in a river with life, I have an enlightened understanding of life’s nature. One cannot control his or her life with goals, expectations and desires because a river (life) is always changing and moving. When a swimmer wants to go down the opposite way of the natural current, they run into many difficulties as the current’s flow pushes them away from their desires. Therefore desires create unnecessary and disruptive movement. On the other hand if one goes with the current without desires he or she has an easier time going down this river, when it inevitably changes. These ideals give me a peace of mind in knowing I can put a smile on my face easier, by living within my needs of adjusting and adapting to life instead of spoiling my wants and desires. A swimmer needs to adjust and adapt to water in a river as the water so naturally adjusts and adapts to him, the swimmer then becomes one with the river, and one with life. To fight this philosophy leads to struggle and anxiety. To live a more enriched and wise life, I believe I need to become free of desires and intertwined with the natural course of life, just as a swimmer must be wise to the river’s tendencies to become an enlightened swimmer. 




This week I will be commenting on Lachelle Rouse's blog.