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Is it immoral to care more about your close family (spouse, children, parents) than about strangers? Is it immoral if you care more also about your cousins, gra
by Hitton 6y ago
Is it immoral to care more about your close family (spouse, children, parents) than about strangers? Is it immoral if you care more also about your cousins, grandparents or uncles/aunts? Or does it become immoral when you care more about even more distant parts your family? Or when you care more about your neighbours? Or your compatriots? Where do you draw a line?
Caring more about people who are closer is biological instinct. But if you want to call biology immoral...
- colinmhayes 6y agoBiological instinct has no effect on morality. All else equal, yes it's immoral to care more about your family's well being than strangers, but the downhill effects of that are disastrous due to unhappiness it instinctually causes. Because of that it is usually moral to care about those you are very close with because society would collapse if we didn't.
- zepto 6y agoOk - but that seems like a loophole in your position that renders it moot. Since all things are not only never equal, but we can never even tell whether they are or not and since all decisions have an impact on personal happiness and ultimately too much unhappiness would cause society to collapse as you point out, then it is always moral to care about one group more than another if that is a condition of happiness.
- colinmhayes 6y agoIt is moral to care more about those your life is linked with only to the extent that it allows you to remain productive.
- zepto 6y agoSo productivity is a requirement of morality?
- Hitton 6y agoDo you consider wasting your time on HN immoral, because you could be helping people (or earning money to help them) instead?
- colinmhayes 6y agoNot when I'm getting paid:) I do donate 20% of my income plus employer match to effective non-profits, although I admit I could be doing more.
- Bobbcatt 6y agoWhy don't you donate 21%? You are immoral by your own standard. What's the point of having insanely lofty standard that you yourself cannot and will not meet, just so you can go online and call everything immoral?