She Sells Sea Chels
Sep 6, 2018 · 1 min read

[Response]

It’s a problem because beliefs (particularly moral beliefs) are guides for action. A belief that triggers no action is like a light switch that isn’t hooked up to a bulb.

As for the second part: no, contingent is not subjective-plus-consensus. Contingent is “universal principle plus world in which we actually live”. Consensus is one possible trait of the world in which we actually live, and so there are moral truths contingent on consensus (some of which are listed in the main article), but there are many other contingent moral truths.

I’m transgender, and acceptance of trans people is one example close to my heart. If it were the case that transition did not help trans people (it does, but suppose that it didn’t), and if it were the case that accepting trans people did not make them healthier people (it does, but suppose that it didn’t), then the morality around trans issues would change dramatically. In that world, I think the ‘trans people are mentally ill’ line would fly a lot better, and that there’d be a very good argument for suppressing trans status. The fact that that line doesn’t fly, and that there isn’t a good argument for suppressing trans status, is only an ‘accident’ of the world in which we actually live, where transition and acceptance do help. If tomorrow I were presented with overwhelming evidence that the facts are not what I believe them to be, my moral judgment would change.

Does that make sense?

    She Sells Sea Chels

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    There are three things that matter in the world. Desiring to do what's right, knowing what's right, and actually doing what's right.