[extropy-chat] Playing Go & demandingness in ethics

[Jeff Medina]

On 1/4/06, Samantha Atkins <sjatkins at mac.com> wrote:
> > [Jeff said:] Now given that many people interested in transhumanism express an
> > interest in the ethical arguments for various technological
> > developments, the permissibility of enhancement, the right to
> > morphological freedom (whether others consider what you're doing
> > 'enhancement' or not)... why are the demands of our alleged beliefs
> > nigh universally ignored?
>
> I do not make such arguments generally.

This statement, as well as the other comments you gave, indicate
pretty clearly that you are not one of the people referred to by the
statement "many people interested in transhumanism express an interest
in [certain related ethical issues]". So none of the questions apply
to you; you're arguing against the given, not addressing the question
(which assumes it).

Now there's nothing wrong with spawning a new thread of conversation
and disagreeing with the claim that people have to care about anyone
else -- disagreeing that there are any moral obligations at all, in
effect. But that's distinct from what I'm curious about, so we would
be talking past one another. Or, to put it in a way that coheres with
your view, I'm interested in the questions I posed *answered from the
point of view of those who personally place value on being of benefit
to [a.k.a. helping] others.

Best,
--
Jeff Medina
http://www.painfullyclear.com/

Community Director
Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence
http://www.singinst.org/

Relationships & Community Fellow
Institute for Ethics & Emerging Technologies
http://www.ieet.org/

School of Philosophy, Birkbeck, University of London
http://www.bbk.ac.uk/phil/