Week+6+Eron-+Ethics


 * "If I have seen that from an ethical point of view I am just one person among the many in my society, and my interests are no more important, from the point of view of the whole, than the similar interests of others within my society, I am ready to see that, from a still larger point of view, my society is just one among other societies, and the interests of members of my society are no more important, from that larger perspective, than the similar interests of members of other societies... Taking the impartial element in ethical reasoning to its logical conclusion means, first, accepting that we ought to have equal concern for all human beings." (Peter Singer)**

Having a discussions about ethics or codes of ethics and what ethics might mean in a professional sense, personal sense and community sense is always bound to bring much and varied comments. It was interesting to me the focal point that seemed to be drawn out of todays lecture and tutorial, and that is the focus on "problems" students may have, and the issue of physical contact seemed to bring the most emotional discussions. It seems to me that what some people were saying was that in some ways ethical standards may contradict the values they hold and that this contradiction provided a dilema they felt was unable to be overcome. I wonder though, if it might not be more helpful, instead of seeing sperate "issues" that need answering or solving, maybe we need to have a broader view than that. Maybe looking at codes of ethics and conduct as a way of seeing ourselves in a broad context may help give at least a little insight into the dilemas raised. Even though we are individuals and have individual values based on our lifetimes of experience, and we hold dear to these values because they inform the decisions we make about how we live, we are not acting in a void. Every action has some kind of consequence. In many situations we may be able to determine the conseqence and therefore make judgement calls about the outcome of our actions. But can we do this in all situations? Can we be fair and balanced and make decisions based on equality. Will our actions, based on our own emotion, be in the best interest of the whole community ( the class, the school and beyond), even if we are acting with the best intentions. A code of ethics in a school may solve issues around the dilemas of judgement. It also makes explicit the expectations the community has of its members in terms of how they relate to each other and how they may best take responsibility for themselves and each other. But for such a code to to be truly effctive in it needs to be more than a prescriptive list of acceptable and non acceptable behaviours. It needs to a fluid and evolving discussion between all involved about what is going to continually serve the interest of all. It needs to be part of the background colour of the school that informs the very nature of the community it is there to protect. By having this ongoing discourse, all parties involved seem naturally to then take responsibility ensuring its effectiveness as it gives them a role that they have played a part in creating.


 * "Since the narrower or wider community of the peoples of the earth has developed so far that a violation of rights in one place is felt throughout the world, the idea of a cosmopolitan right is not fantastical, high-flown or exaggerated notion. It is a complement to the unwritten code of the civil and international law, necessary for the public rights of mankind in general and thus for the realization of perpetual peace." (//Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch// -Immanuel Kant 1795)**