Heathens, what are the non-religious arguments for incest being wrong?
genetic malformations?
@tj So incest is fine if it doesn't make a baby with genetic malformations?
Is it ethical then to make a baby with genetic malformations at all then?
It is unethical to engage in behavior that is likely to harm another. Increasing the odds of a congenital defect due to inbreeding is likely to harm another, and therefore unethical.
How does this logic apply to something like abortion?
@realcaseyrollins
If you believe that the fetus is a person, you must be against abortion. If you believe it is just a pre-sentient growth, then you can be in favor of abortion.
There is no middle ground between the two.
As an analogy, if you believe that slavery is wrong, it's not enough for you to not own slaves, you must work to free the slaves of others.
@tj @Jagahati @realcaseyrollins
Is it then appropriate to rephrase the earlier comment as :
"It is unethical to engage in behavior that is likely to harm anything I believe to have personhood"?
And is personhood a belief or an objective reality?
@Jagahati @SecondJon @tj The implications of not having an objective standard of personhood can be dangerous.
@realcaseyrollins @SecondJon @tj
That’s quite an understatement. Just look at the Eugenics movement for a start.
Too young? Too old? Too sick? Too pigmented? Too handicapped? Too stupid?
Well it will be castration for you if you are lucky and useful, death if it will cost too much to feed you.
Not a clear net benefit to society? Well… that makes you a useless eater…
All of this “Godless Morality” slowly cooks down until all you have left is.
“Might makes right.”
“I can, so I do.”
@SecondJon @tj @realcaseyrollins
Can personhood be proven objectively? Scientifically? You wouldn’t want faith or belief creeping in the backdoor of this ethical framework after all.
So if not…
Should you include a definition of why one person’s beliefs about the personhood or non-personhood of some other object are being should be preferred over any other?
How do you determine who’s set of beliefs apply in a given circumstance or context?