Gabrielle Cuebas
September 8, 2008
Dr. Chaffee HUP 104
The foundation of every society in the world is based upon morality. In simplest terms, morality is about the customs and values shown through ones character or community. For some, it helps them distinguish the difference between right and wrong. For example, one country may have a unique code of conduct that authorizes certain behavior as right and wrong; good or evil. Robbing a bank is illegal in America. Serving time in jail or doing community service would be the right thing to do and justify that behavior. My personal moral values did not develop fully from society. I behave a certain way and make decisions based on experiences of my own and those of others. The following sections are answers derived from questions based on my moral values.
I do not believe we have a moral responsibility towards the unfortunate. How do we know that the reason misfortune has befallen them is not because of their own actions? Besides poverty that makes people unfortunate, it is ones own actions that bring misfortune, such as lying, adultery and stealing. It is very hard to tell when someone on the street or in handcuffs is in that state because of bad luck or because of their own doing. It is dispiriting to see someone homeless or ill, but sometimes it can be dangerous to help a stranger because we don't know what his or her intentions are after we help them.
I have made damaging decisions in the past and I was very angry and confused because I wondered why no one wanted to help me. However, it was my fault I got in trouble, so it was my responsibility to get myself out. One cannot expect people to look out for them if they will not even look out for themselves. Every individual is responsible for his or her actions. So unless I know why one is unfortunate, I do not feel obliged to do anything for them.
I think it is absurd that animals should suffer through experiments for our benefit. If human beings are so desperate to have such a good quality life, then they should be the ones being tested on. Scientists seem to forget the fact that animals are living, breathing beings. They are no different from humans accept that they cannot communicate with us or express themselves. They feel pain the same way we do. We have no way of truly knowing that the product they were tested with is hurting them.
So many things are being tested on animals are useless. It doesn't mean that they won't function in the way that they are supposed to, but there are thousands of products that scientists and inventors have already created for us without animal testing. There is no point to test on animals for a product that already exists. So why torture animals for products they are NEVER going to use? Once the testing is done, the animals are left for dead unless what has been done to them has not harmed them.
Animal testing is unnecessary. If scientists were to suggest that we should test dog shampoo on a human being as an experiment, people would probably respond to them in outrage and say that is the most ridiculous idea they've ever heard? How could testing a human really prove how the product will affect the animal? If anything is to be experimented on to improve the quality of our lives, it should be us.
I do not agree with sustaining life at all costs. A good example of this is the life support system. If the patient is going to remain comatose for the remainder of their lives or is terminally ill then there is no point in keeping them alive. It doesn't make sense to live as a vegetable until death, or even worse, suffering through pain for a disease that is ultimately going to kill them anyway. For the terminally ill patient, what keeps them alive is most likely hurting them. I would never want to make someone suffer through that. Thankfully I have never experience something like this, but I know that I would make the decision of ending someone's pain. It would be a very difficult decision to make, but people need to detach themselves emotionally for a moment and realize the reality that everyone needs to die at some point.
When it comes to someone confiding in me with a secret, I usually keep it to myself. However, if the reason behind it can harm them, I do not think it is wrong to divulge that secret. Trust is a very big issue among society these days. It is important for people to know they can have confidence in someone because that also shows a sign of reliability.
I will ultimately look out for the person's and my own interest. Telling the secret would benefit them because it is a sort of protection that I provided them. Not telling it can also be my disadvantage because I may never know what can go wrong if I didn't and that person may end up angry with me for not taking action. I would rather know that I made a positive difference (even though the person who confided in me may not agree) than not have done anything, because the result of that could have been much worse.
I strongly believe that regardless of race, religion or gender, everyone should be given equal opportunities. This issue is usually found in the work force. Those characteristics have absolutely nothing to do with how well someone can take on a task. It is very sad to see people taken advantage of. Everywhere I go, especially in restaurants, I notice that the hardest workers are the immigrants, whom barely receive an income, let alone respect.
However, I do believe that it is important that if people want to be taken seriously in this world and be respected then they should make it their priority to be equal in this world. Sometimes it's hard for me to pity these people because most of them don't even want to get an education or learn the English language. Aside from that, no one should ever be considered inferior compared to anyone else because no one is better than anyone else is. For example, I know several filthy rich people, who may have a blooming social life, but their family is a wreck and they aren't loved. There are also people out there who feel so superior because of their intelligence that they look down upon others, making it very hard to make friends.
So far, in my youth, I have learned from my family and society how to live my life a certain way. Nevertheless, I feel that I guided myself through my journey of discovering and understanding what I believe to be my moral values. Although one's community and family may play an immense role in the choices we make in our lives, it is really one's duty to learn about life on their own, whether through personal or public experiences, because everyone's beliefs are always conflicting. People need to think for themselves without being dictated by some chief ruler. My moral values are part of who I am and I will continue to develop them on my own.