Ben Ceci – Ethics – Module 3

  1. Is it more important to be a good person or to perform good acts (virtue ethics vs. action ethics)?

I think that it is more important to be a good person because most people typically think before they act. Good people usually have positive thoughts and are often genuine and kind and therefore, they perform good acts because it is a part of who they are. The way that I look at it is that the main difference between a good person and a person who performs good acts is that a good person has a foundation. Being a good person is all that they know. If you simply perform good acts but are not a good person, you might get upset if those same kind acts are not reciprocated. I also think that people can tell whether your heart is into it or not when you perform acts of kindness. If you are a bad person doing good things, I don’t think that your good actions are as effective. A good person does the little things that make a difference more than any one action can and for that reason, I think that being a good person and having that foundation is more important than simply performing good acts.

  1. Does the process by which decisions are made matter more than the outcomes of these decisions (procedural justice vs. distributive justice)?

As a person who is very close with my family and close friends, this question is one of the tougher questions that I have ever had to answer. Being raised and taught to be a loyal person, I think that the process by which decisions are made matter more than the outcomes of the decisions. I believe that the most important things in life are not things, but rather people and the relationships that you have with them. There will almost always be another opportunity that comes your way, but if you try to screw somebody over or put yourself and your wants before the needs of somebody else, that can sever relationships forever. I believe that you have to see things in the big picture and examine the outcomes of the result of the decision and go from there. I am also a big believer in karma and that if you act as a good person and try to do something good for somebody else, people will remember that and in the future, they will return the favor, whether the desired outcome is reached or not. I believe that people knowing what you did for them can go a long way and that as a good person, you should try to do the right thing and make the best decision that you can.

  1. Do the pleasure and pain of non-human animals matter as much as the pleasure and pain of humans (speciesism)?

As a landscape architecture student, I have studied ecology and the effects that humans have on animals. The professors put a lot of emphasis on designing in sustainable ways that can both accommodate humans and animals. Before I studied landscape architecture, my point of view was that animals take resources from us as well, and it is just a dog eat dog world, with an everyman for themselves kind of mentality, as far as animals go. However, learning how much we have evolved as a species and how humans are tool makers really changed my perspective on that. The idea of sustainable development has taught me a lot about being less selfish in the design process. Being that we are tool makers, we have destroyed many animals’ habitats, separating families, and leaving some animals without a home / more susceptible to predators. I think that because we have the power to do these things, we have to be responsible and realize that we share the earth with these animals and treat them no differently than humans. We take care of our pets like they are members of our own family, and we must treat these animals the same way. This includes slaughtering animals and using them for food. Humans do not need animal products to survive and we should really think twice before consuming them.

Ethics Views- Julie Cardillo

1) Is it more important to be a good person or to perform good acts (virtue ethics vs. action ethics)?

Ultimately, I believe that it is more important to perform good acts and to be altruistic as opposed to just being a good person (virtue). The reason I say this is because one can be a good person, but if they don’t take action, then they’re not making an impact like those who do take action. I have always been a supporter of the common phrase, “Actions speak louder than words,” because it is so true. One can say that they are a good person all they want, but if they felt strong enough about a matter, then they would try to take a good action. When one performs good acts to help others (altruism), as opposed to just being a “good person (virtue),” they are bettering the thing(s) that they feel so strongly about (rather than just having good thoughts about something, but doing nothing about it). Now, I understand that often times taking action can be difficult (i.e. wanting to end world hunger). However, one can contribute in the best way that they can to help by donating canned goods, working at a soup kitchen, etc. Even the smallest good action can make a change. All of these reasons are why a person who performs good acts is better than one who is a good person.

5) Do the pleasure and pain of non-human animals matter as much as the pleasure and pain of humans (speciesism)?
This is a difficult question for me to answer because I am an avid animal lover. However, I do believe in Darwin’s “survival of the fittest,” and it is quite obvious that humans are the dominant species (anthropocentrism). Thus, (all though it kills me to say) human pleasure and pain matters more than animal pleasure and pain. Humans need to do all that they can to survive and live comfortably. That means we needs to kill animals for food, clear animals’ homes (forests i.e.) for homes/stores/etc, and other things that are necessary for humans to live that affect animals’ lives. With that being said, I think that humans go the extra-mile when it comes to contributing to society that animals. Also, we should prioritize taking care of our own kind first (human welfare). For example, if both a school and a puppy shelter were on fire, it would be more ethical to save the children and teachers of the school first than the puppies. However, I think humans should have some governance when it comes to certain things we do. For example, people who kill animals for “fun” take the whole concept of “human lives mattering more than animals’” out of proportion. Just because animal lives don’t matter as much as humans doesn’t mean animal lives don’t matter at all, and it doesn’t give people the right to abuse animals. 
 
6) Is my own life worth more than the lives of others, the same, or less (selfishness vs. altruism)?
My life is worth the exact same as anyone else’s. No one is above or below me. Often times, many people classify others above or below them due to gender, race, financial standpoint, culture, beliefs, etc. However, at the end of the day, we are all humans. As humans, we are in this together. We need to survive, we need to reproduce, we need to get along with each other. Why should someone be considered to be more worthless than someone else? There is nothing that makes anyone better than the rest of us. No matter what someone’s status is, my life is no better or less than theirs. We, as humans, are all equal, and our lives matter equally. I know that many people will disagree with me, but I think that criminal lives matter too. Sometimes many people are jailed for minuscule reasons. What if a person was jailed for stealing bread for their family? Just because they are considered a “criminal,” does not mean that their life is worthless. Or what if someone committed a small-level crime, but realized that they were wrong? Everyone makes mistakes; no one is perfect. As for murderers and those who commit serious crimes, I still think that their lives are worth the same. Consider this, if someone(rich, poor, white, black, homosexual, etc.) committed a serious crime, they should receive the same punishment for their act because their lives are worth equally. For example, a white man shouldn’t receive less punishment for a murder than a black man.