Yesterday evening we enjoyed another great conversation at the 2nd Honors Salon. Sam McFarland expertly introduced the topic and the conversation was lively and wide-ranging, revolving around empirical and ethical questions. Here are some key points and questions we discussed:
- How do we best measure identification with all humanity? (see the scale developed by Sam McFarland)
- What is the relationship between varying degrees of identification with all humanity, maturity, and actual ethical behavior?
- Why do so many people seem to be so indifferent and how can we relate to them in ways that make them less indifferent?
- What is the relationship between the ‘self’ and the other, between egotism and altruism, and how might this be re-framed in ethically beneficial ways?
Just like for our first conversation, we again had 19 participants, with many coming back for the second time. This is a really good turnout given March midterm madness and that is was a cold and wet early March evening.
The first series of the Honors Salon on why we think, feel & act the way we do, continues on Tue, Apr 2, at 7pm with a discussion of The Intuitive Dog and Its Rational Tail. We will explore why good people are divided by politics and religion and what we can do about it.
Join the conversation!