Peterdjones comments on Pluralistic Moral Reductionism - Less Wrong

33 Post author: lukeprog 01 June 2011 12:59AM

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Comment author: lukeprog 09 June 2011 12:03:44AM 3 points [-]

My thought process on sources of normativity looks something like this:

People claim all sorts of justifications for 'ought' statements (aka normative statements). Some justify ought statements with respect to natural law or divine commands or non-natural normative properties or categorical imperatives. But those things don't exist. The only justification of normative language that fits in my model of the universe is when people use 'ought' language as some kind of hypothetical imperative, which can be translated into a claim about things reducible to physics. There are many varieties of this. Many uses of 'ought' terms can be translated into claims about things reducible to physics. If somebody uses 'ought' terms to make claims about things not reducible to physics, then I am suspicious of the warrant for those claims. When interrogating about such warrants, I usually find that the only evidences on offer are pieces of folk wisdom, intuitions, and conventional linguistic practice.

Comment author: poqwku 11 June 2011 12:08:06AM 2 points [-]

What reasons are there for doubting the existence of categorical imperatives that do not equally count against the existence of hypothetical imperatives? I can understand rejecting both, I can understand accepting both, but I can't understand treating them differently.

Comment author: Peterdjones 11 June 2011 09:56:05PM 0 points [-]

What reasons are there for doubting the existence of categorical imperatives that do not equally count against the existence of hypothetical imperatives?

The set of non-ethical categorical imperatives is non-empty. The set of non-ethical hypothetical imperatives is non-empty. Hypothetical imperatives include instrumental rules, you have to use X to achieve Y, game-laying rules, etc.

Comment author: poqwku 15 June 2011 12:28:41AM 0 points [-]

How exactly does this answer the question?

The set of non-ethical categorical imperatives is non-empty.

I agree. Epistemic imperatives are categorical, but non-empty.

The set of non-ethical hypothetical imperatives is non-empty. Hypothetical imperatives include instrumental rules, you have to use X to achieve Y, game-laying rules, etc.

Right, those are examples where non-ethical hypothetical imperatives often show up.

So how does this add up to a reason to think there is a case against categorical imperatives that doesn't equally well count against hypothetical imperatives?