A Reflection of
My Learning
I learned a lot during this course. I learned about ethical arguments on several topics.
I learned about other people and how they may or may not behave in a given
situation. I also learned how the different
theorists argue a case. But I primarily
learned about myself. How I treat people
, how I come to decisions and conclusions,
how bias affects me daily, and what I need to do to think ethically and
behave morally.
These were not easy lessons for me to accept, much
less think them through. I had to admit
to my limitations. I had to look myself
in the eye and tell me the truth.
I now understand some of the more polarized topics in ethics. I have an opinion on them, and I know why. The course was very demanding on me in terms
of time and emotion and I am better for it.
I will take away many lessons from this course. The three that I want to discuss are not necessarily the most important, but
lessons that had an immediate impact on me.
One where I thought I knew the answer and learned I was at least
partially wrong. One where I had to
accept that I had been lying to myself about since I was a child. And one where I disagreed with the majority,
and successfully argued my position. My
takeaway lessons are the golden rule, religion and racism, and the ethics of
eating animals.
The
Golden Rule
I have been practicing the golden rule in my life
since I was a young man. Over the years,
I came to see it as the best way to interact with people and the morally
correct way to treat people. What I
learned is that even if the Golden Rule is the best tool to use when interacting
with other people, it simply is not enough.
LaFollette (2007) taught us that morality concerns the interests of
others” (p. 15). We should not act or
behave in ways that will hurt or harm other people. This fits well with the Golden Rule. But if my behavior indirectly harms, creates
the risk of harm, or fails to prevent harm, it becomes less certain whether I
acted morally or not.
When things are not clear we compare them to an
accepted standard for determination.
That standard is ethics. Ethics
goes well beyond personal interactions and allows us to consider activities beyond
relationships e.g., lying, punishment, and animal rights.
I continue to use the Golden Rule because I am
convinced it is the best way to establish relationships between people. But when I am not sure or want to evaluate
both sides of an argument, indeed, there is ethics. The Golden Rule combines true empathy and
compassion with the human spirit and it is powerful. Johnathan Huie (2011) argues that if the
Golden Rule is taken and applied literally, it can cause more harm than it does
good. The lesson becomes be like me. To
this, Huie (2011) provided compassion as the solution. “The humanitarian view is that compassion is the bedrock of morality”
(para. 11). I argue that without empathy, compassion can be insincere.
My takeaway… The Golden Rule is timeless, powerful, and
profound (Putnam, 2006), but it is incomplete without ethical standards and
norms. I immediately changed how I think
about the Golden Rule and ethics. They
are an inseparable part of the journey to living morally.
Racism
This was by far the hardest lesson
for me. Simply reading the material made
me defensive as it seemed to insinuate that I was someone or something I am not. I read the material defending against or
objecting to or rationalizing my behavior to nearly every remark the author made. When I was finished reading, I could not
discern the real purpose of the chapter nor any of the points the author
made. I had to calm down, open my mind,
and re-read the entire chapter to understand what Lafollette (2007) was trying
to say.
I grew up in the 60s and 70s in
Georgia, times that marked the birth and early growth of the Civil Rights movement
in the United States. I was young and did
not understand what the movement was all about, but it was violent, explosive,
and in your face and quite honestly, it scared the hell out of me.
I emerged from that period and joined the Air
Force proudly proclaiming my status as a non-racist. I served an entire career without incident and raised two
children to respect human life regardless of color. I raised them to understand that no matter
the differences we had on the outside we are all the same inside.
Then over thirty-five years later I
am reading a book that tells me that the blatant, outward forms of racism are
gone, only to have been replaced by a new form of racism, formed by habits and
the role of social institutions (Lafollette, 2007). Racism is alive and well, but today it hides
in employment applications, policies, and processes (social institutions). It also hides in the thoughts of
individuals. Thoughts that are automatic
responses to situations and unfavorable to different racial groups, especially
African Americans (habits). LaFollette
(2007) provided example after example to which I had to plead guilty on a
personal level. I had lied to myself for
decades. According to LaFollette’s (2007) description of the new racism, I am
racist through habits I picked up as far back as my childhood. I fully understand the social institution contribution
to racism as well. In both cases, we are
completely unaware until it is pointed out and explained. Then it is obvious and it demands action.
Slavery occurred and ended long
before my existence. None of my
ancestors owned slaves. However, the
effects of slavery still linger. I am as guilty as the next person and unless I
and those like me can change those habits and the way we think, racism cannot be
eliminated.
Habits that are as deeply ingrained
as these are resistant to change. Change
is slow, intentional, and beyond our willpower.
“Habits are changed not by private willing, but (a) identifying and (b) then
altering the conditions that make and sustain our habits, and finally, (c) by
substituting and sustaining a more productive habit for the old detrimental one”
(LaFollette, 2007, p. 80).
My takeaway… we are all responsible
for our behavior and correcting it when it goes astray. I immediately began identifying the issues I must
change and have embraced the change process.
I am ashamed and embarrassed to say that I still have some work to
do. I will, however see it through to
the end.
The Ethics of Eating
This course was not easy for me. I
seriously struggled early on and considered dropping the course, but I received
encouragement to work through it. I am glad that I did. The ethics of eating does not have a profound take
away like those previously discussed. It
does, however, have one that is important to me.
The ethics of eating asked the
question: is it ethical to eat animals?
My answer to the surface question was of course it is, that is why they
are here. The end. Underneath the surface, it seemed like the
entire world was saying just the opposite.
I panicked at first wondering whether I had missed something in the
reading. Then I began to doubt and
second guess my convictions. Finally, it
occurred to me that if eating animals was unethical, that would make me immoral. I am certain that I am neither unethical nor
immoral.
I am not much for arguing, in fact, I
truly dislike it. But, I found their
argument inconsistent and dependent on stirring the emotions of the
opposition. It was then that I realized
what I needed to do, which is what I should have been doing throughout the
course: understand and believe in my position and defend it.
I did an adequate job countering the argument
presented to me and I provided additional information supporting my position. I did not end the debate or convince anyone
to change their position and move to my side.
I satisfactorily made my point.
What I did do is remind myself that
there are some subjects that I understand and enjoy more than others. That does not mean that the subjects I
understand less are unimportant or that I should not fully participate in an
attempt to learn more. In fact, these
courses are the ones I should put the most effort into. Everyone has something to contribute.
Contributing to the course results in feedback.
Feedback promotes learning. There
is nothing earth-shattering or new in my discovery. I have known it for a long time, yet I still
nearly allowed frustration to rob me of an opportunity to learn something new
or enhance what I had previously learned. This is an elementary-level take away. I hope I do not forget it again anytime soon.
~Pete
References
Huie, J. l. (2011, August 13). The Golden Rule is not
always golden. Retrieved from http://www.mind4joy.com/2011/08/golden-rule-is-not-always-golden.html
LaFollette, H. (2007). The practice of ethics. Malden,
Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing.
Putnam, M. S. (2006). Reflections on the golden rule.
Global Ethics University. Retrieved from http://www.globalethicsuniversity.com/articles/thegoldenrule.htm
Enjoyed very much
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