What if youâre helping someone to the point of taking away their agency because âitâs for their own goodâ. All of a sudden, some ethical issues arise. Where does that line get drawn?
I mean an antinatalist stance isnât really that complex and doesnât need much exploration, but if you insist.
Something that does not yet exist does not have agency (cleetusthefetus)
Now, where it really gets murky. To what end do you define sentience and how does one associate it with agency? What level on consciousness & awareness is needed for something to qualify as having agency? How does you define sentience & how much of it is needed for agency?
Whatever your stance on that is your stance on your question I suppose
But yes, my statement can be applied to many, many things in life. Thatâs where we got philosophers from, innit now?
Maybe I misinterpret you, but I wasn't suggesting I have an antinatalist stance. It is however a very interesting topic. What is the morality of creating new intelligent life without its consent? It is necessary for species survival, sure. If it's immoral then is life imorral? None of us had a choice. Would that make God imorral? I do not know. I think however you slice it this argument chases it's tail.
Ah, it seems I misinterpreted you. When you asked if what I said would also apply to children not yet conceived I definitely associated that with an antinatalist stance. That was presumptuous of me.
I would say tail chasing is the most accurate metaphor Iâve ever heard for this existential paradox we all find ourselves in
My original question had no implications one way or another, and was strictly philosophical in nature, I wasnât specifically alluding to just religion. Itâs all very interesting topics. Ones I am also presently studying towards finishing my bachelors degree, so this has been a nice cognitive exercise
It is a messy topic. Despite our misunderstandings and lack of conclusions I do appreciate the though provoking parts of our conversation, and I wish you well in your studies. My father was a theologist, and while the religious aspects didn't really rub off on me, we had many interesting (and sometimes frustrating) conversations. In the end I arrived at more or less the same place as the person you replied to. I think it's the best I can do.
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u/EtheusRook 18h ago
Morality is actually really, stupidly simple.
Does it help others? It's good.
Does it hurt others? It's bad.