 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
I come now to the second ground of dispute, namely, where one party, but not the other, considers acts of certain kinds , quite apart from their consequences. Slavery may be condemned on this ground by a believer in the rights of man, or by a person who agrees with Kant in holding that every individual human being should be an end in himself. But the issue is clearer where some definite tabu is involved. Hindus think it wicked to kill a cow, even when it is in great pain. Humanitarian English people think it cruel to keep the cow alive in such circumstances.
Source: Bertrand Russell: Human Society in Ethics and Politics, 1954, chapter 8：Ethical Controversy
More info.:https://russell-j.com/cool/47T-0804.htm
* a brief comment: original text in Japanese, translated with DeepL.com (free version)
There may be people who think that taboos such as not killing cows or not eating pork are simply beliefs in superstition. Instead, issues like "euthanasia" seem to be something we Japanese could consider as our own concern. Some Japanese believe that allowing euthanasia, even if the person is suffering greatly, is not a good thing, while others think that in such cases, euthanasia should be allowed if it aligns with the person's wishes, after confirming their intention.
By the way, following this, the text mentions, "The Amish in Pennsylvania have a moral abhorrence of buttons, and will suffer persecution sooner than send their children to State schools." I thought it might be because in Pennsylvania state schools, students are required to wear uniforms with buttons. However, I didn't understand why buttons on uniforms would be considered unacceptable. Although ChatGPT couldn't provide an answer, Google Gemini offered the following detailed response:
"The Amish people prioritize a simple way of life and dislike adornments. Buttons are considered ornaments, so the Amish avoid them for moral reasons. In state schools, wearing uniforms with buttons is generally mandatory. Therefore, the Amish people refuse to send their children to state schools, anticipating persecution because of their rejection of buttons."