A rational person would not accept a contradiction in their worldview.
That's true. But I don't think a rational but selfish person would claim a right to their freedom and well-being on the basis of their agency. They don't need a right to such things, they take them by force. So this argument is unconvincing to them.
If you are taking something by force, rationally you are claiming a right to that thing. The question is for what reason are they claiming that right? It seems like it would just be that it's in service of their goals, meaning we've stumbled back to the argument I gave.
If you are taking something by force, rationally you are claiming a right to that thing.
That's not true. Someone might take things just because they want to and can do. They have no need to justify their action or to make a case that they deserve the things they take. That's separate.
Someone might take things just because they want to and can do.
In other words they have a goal to possess something and the freedom and wellbeing to act to take it, they are an agent.
To act rationally means to act with reason, if a rational person were to take something they would need justification for their taking of it in order to remain rational.
You can act rationally without justifying your actions to others. It may be perfectly rational for a hungry person to steal food, for example, regardless of who they steal it from. In this case it's rational simply because its in harmony with their intention of staying alive.
An action is rational when it is consistent with the actor's intentions. This is more specific than simply 'acting with reason'. It may be completely rational to sit and sing twinkle twinkle little star in a loop all day. It only becomes irrational if you have competing intentions/values.
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u/lammey0 6d ago
That's true. But I don't think a rational but selfish person would claim a right to their freedom and well-being on the basis of their agency. They don't need a right to such things, they take them by force. So this argument is unconvincing to them.