3 ms·
I'm not sure that it's as straightforward as you claim. For instance, is conscription ethical? What about indentured servitude? You could easily argue these ar
by cyphar 8y ago
I'm not sure that it's as straightforward as you claim. For instance, is conscription ethical? What about indentured servitude?
You could easily argue these are violations of some human rights, but these sorts of things might be lawful orders.
And let's not forget, literal slavery was legal in America until the Reconstruction Amendments that outlawed it. Was it ethical that a responsibility of being an American citizen was that you may become a slave or a slave owner? Of course not.
In Australia we have very few constitutional or statutory rights (arguably this means we are in violation of several international human rights treaties). "You have a responsibility to your country" isn't a get-out clause from a government treating its citizens ethically. Just because something is the law doesn't mean it's reasonable or morally acceptable.
(I don't think the new legislation is a form of slavery, since that's a very hyperbolic way of phrasing things. But I disagree that "it's a lawful order" is the only factor that should be considered when discussing what is moral.)