Comment on Could evolution have selected for moral realism?

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 05:46:52 GMT

But your initial mix of evolved and encultured values are all you have to go on.

I don't think this statement is expressing a factual question. If it is, hopefully "I could generate values randomly" is a workable counterargument.

It's also not even clear quite what you mean by "initial" mix. My values as a 3-year-old were much different than the ones I have today. My values prior to creating this post were likely different from my values after creating it. Which set of values is the "initial" one that is "all I have to go on"?

Where does inculturation stop and moral reflection begin? Is there any reason to distinguish them? Should we treat growing up in a particular society as an intuitions permutation of a different/preferred sort as happening to have a certain train of philosophical thought early on?

Abdul grew up in an extremist Pakistani village, but on reflection, he's against honor killings. Bruce grew up in England, but on reflection, he's in favor of honor killings. What do you say to each?

I think most LW readers don't see much sacrosanct about evolved values: Some people have added layers of enculturation and reflection that let them justify crazy stuff. (Ex: pretty much every "bad" thing anyone has done ever, if we're to believe that everyone's the hero of their own life story.) So we LWers already enculturated/reflected ourselves to the point where bare-bones "evolved" values would be considered a scary starting point, I suspect.

Infuriation and "righteous anger" are evolved intuitions; I assume most of us are past the point of endorsing "righteous anger" as being righteous/moral.

A person who abandons their religious faith after some thought is using the value "rational thought" against "religious belief." This person was lucky enough to have "rational thought" instilled by someone as a value, and have it be strong enough to beat "religious belief."

Do you consider God's existence to be an "is" factual question or an "ought" values question? I consider it a factual question myself.

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