Comments on: Legislate Morality!

By: The Daily Planet » Blog Archive » The Carnival Of Principled Government: Presidential Birthdays Edition

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 03:05:08 +0000

[...] Shaun Connell who definitely has Reason and Capitalism has a great satire on “Legislating Morality!“. [...]

By: Lord of Numa

Lord of Numa — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 06:12:58 +0000

Haha nice. I was halfway through the second paragraph, thoroughly convinced that you were serious, and then I looked at the name of your blog and your Ayn Rand quote, and it hit me that this was satire.

Very nicely done
StumbleUpon has yet to let me down.

By: Patriot1

Patriot1 — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:46:32 +0000

I think religious extremists like you should get yourself killed and ask God what he thinks on the subject, then ask him to send you back to tell everyone. Being as dedicated as you are, I am sure he will send you back.

By: Sebatinsky

Sebatinsky — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:46:17 +0000

I am /not/ a christian, but I must emphatically disagree with you. To say that we shouldn’t “legislate morality” is foolish – what, then, is the basis of our laws? I largely agree with you on the specific issues you raise, but that’s a matter of legislative theory. That is, while morality must be the basis of our law, they ought to be based on broad moral principles, rather than specific moral decrees.

For instance, it is a moral stance to maintain that someone ought not be allowed to kill because every person has the fundamental right to life. It is also a moral principle to state that no person ought to deprive another of his or her rights. In fact, these are some of the broad moral principles that the U.S. Government is based upon. (They boil down to Lockian social contract theory, basically)

That does not mean, however, that a very /specific/ moral judgment about pornography ought to be legislated. The reason for this is not the moral qualities of the value judgment being made, but rather, the conflict between legislating this and our broad principles. We allow the government to sanction persons who violate another’s rights. We do not, generally, allow it to punish anyone for actions that do not violate our broad moral principles, even if those actions do violate more specific moral principles upheld by a majority of citizens.

This is, incidentally, my rationale for the legalization of marijuana, and perhaps harder drugs – the actual crimes committed under the influence are already illegal, and the actual act of imbibing a substance denies no one their rights.

By: dogg1

dogg1 — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:41:50 +0000

yeah i’m drunk but i’m still not buying nothing written here
oh, can’t be stoopid then innit!!!!

By: Sharpie

Sharpie — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:40:19 +0000

>>Note: The above is satire. I

By: Concerned

Concerned — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:34:37 +0000

Oh thank God… it WAS satire. I got about halfway through your rant on pornography and skipped the rest. My bad. xD

But seriously… not cool. =P

By: Concerned

Concerned — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:32:38 +0000

I hope this is a satire piece… because if it isn’t, then you are one ignorant kid. You want a government that controls what people think and feel? Go to Uzbekistan. Go to Russia in a few years. Go someplace other than America. The United States was founded on the ideals of independence… not independence from other countries, but the independence of the individual from the state. If you think you’re doing the Founding Fathers and our society a favor by supporting legislation that puts walls up around us, then you, my friend, are gravely mistaken.

Put down the Bible and pick up the Constitution. It’s better for your health.

By: monica

monica — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 00:37:48 +0000

you gotta be muslim right?

By: Lydia

Lydia — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 19:51:56 +0000

Nice.