Nisan comments on Open thread, November 2011 - Less Wrong

4 Post author: Oscar_Cunningham 02 November 2011 06:19PM

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Comment author: Nisan 03 November 2011 06:20:39PM *  -2 points [-]

Those of our ancestors who were slaves did not like being slaves, and those who were oppressed by monarchies did not like being oppressed. Now some of them may have supported slavery and monarchy in principle, but their morality was clearly broken because they were made deeply unhappy by institutions which they approved of behind a Rawlsian veil of ignorance.

Women didn't like the particulars of gendered oppression, so we've clearly made progress by their standards.

EDIT: Why the downvotes?

Comment author: MixedNuts 03 November 2011 06:28:57PM 3 points [-]

Actually, victims of oppressive systems often support them. Many girls get clitoridectomies because their mothers demand it, even against their fathers' wishes.

Comment author: Nisan 04 November 2011 07:25:36AM 0 points [-]

Yes, you can find ways in which victims are made to be complicit in their oppression. But it's not hard to find ways in which victims genuinely suffer, and that's all that's needed for an objective moral standard.