Ethics
Ethics: “In contrast to science, religious and belief systems employ an understanding of the universe not simply to explain how things are, but to express how things ought to be. Religious or spiritual cosmologies are embedded in metaphysics and ethics so that they may help to give moral direction to life. Buddhist cosmology, for example, envisages planes of spiritual existence and an infinite number of universes.”
SUSTAINABLE HISTORY AND THE DIGNITY OF MAN by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.56
“Knowledge therefore relies on not only sense experience, but also reason, both of which are filtered by interpretation. Yet, decisions based on accepted knowledge must be guided by ethics, not in terms of how to acquire knowledge but in terms of its application. While we should seek certain knowledge, ethics have a role in applying it to everyday life in order to safeguard human dignity. This “ethical right of passage” is likely to become all the more important.”
SUSTAINABLE HISTORY AND THE DIGNITY OF MAN by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.130
The book “SUSTAINABLE HISTORY AND THE DIGNITY OF MAN” proposes 7 Prerequisites of Transcultural Synergy and Universal Axiology. These include: (1) dialogue; (2) agreed upon rules and ethics of dialogue; (3) mutual understanding; (4) tolerance and respect; (5) mutual learning; (6) identification of a moral minimum; (7) reduction of the technological gap; and (8) fair representation.
SUSTAINABLE HISTORY AND THE DIGNITY OF MAN by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.448
In the book on “Global Biosecurity”, ethics implications of New Technologies are outlined: “Some people may argue that “moral imagination is more important than scientific imagination.” When we think of ethics or morals, the first thing that comes to mind is distinguishing between right and wrong, such as the Golden Rule (humans should not be treated as means to an end but as ends unto themselves), or a code of professional conduct, such as the Hippocratic Oath. The most common definition of ethics pictures it as moral philosophy, as the study of values and customs of a person or a group. Ethics could also be defined as “a method, procedure, or perspective for deciding how to act and for analyzing complex problems and issues”. Some of the key ethical principles include respect for life, doing good (beneficence), doing no harm (non-maleficence), justice, and freedom of moral decision-making. Most importantly, ethics is by its nature crosscutting and multidimensional.
GLOBAL BIOSECURITY: TOWARDS A NEW GOVERNANCE PARADIGM by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.70
Ethics Discussion
Ethics: “Human nature as we know it is, nevertheless, malleable and “manageable”. It may be radically modified as a result of advances in bio-, molecular, nano- and computational technologies. It will therefore be essential to establish a clear code of ethics regulating the use of these technologies sooner rather than later.”
“EMOTIONAL AMORAL EGOISM” by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.17
“In time, as we acquire greater knowledge of the neurochemical components of every emotion/thought and behaviour, we will be able to modify human nature. This means that we should be aware of the potential of abusing that knowledge and the need for codes of ethics that ought to be formulated earlier rather than later. Whether our future will be a post-human future is at present highly debatable: “Far from being an exhausted
concept or failed project, being human is a question whose possibilities are very much open to intellectual inquiry and practical realization”. Deciding whether we will cross humankind’s final technological frontier may be our ultimate ethical challenge.”
“EMOTIONAL AMORAL EGOISM” by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.130
Ethics in sum
Ethics in sum: “Postmodernist ethics derive from the belief that deconstructivism, which aims to dislodge concepts through critical discursive analysis, has to help to undermine social institutions that are implicated in maintaining unequal power relations that are necessarily based on exclusion of alternative forms of knowledge and, ultimately, other realities.”
“EMOTIONAL AMORAL EGOISM” by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p. 154
“Company blogs could be a powerful tool in corporate ethics of the future, as they add a “human touch” to the companies’ usual interaction with the clients and allow the customers to get in touch with a real person who would read their comments, post their own, and spread the message to thousands of similar clients”.
THE EMERGENCE OF BLOGS AS A FIFTH ESTATE AND THEIR SECURITY IMPLICATIONS by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.23
“Some blogs will develop into highly reputable information sources and their authors will gain credibility close to that enjoyed by mainstream journalists. In this case, of course, bloggers will have to increasingly adhere to codes of ethics similar to those fostered by the media. Other bloggers will continue to write passionately about their hobbies or interests, but will be viewed by their readers as “experts” in their chosen field rather than as
journalists.”
THE EMERGENCE OF BLOGS AS A FIFTH ESTATE AND THEIR SECURITY IMPLICATIONS by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.139
“In their efforts to solidify their reputation and be treated more like a respectable and credible source of information rather than a technological curiosity, political bloggers need to come up with certain common ethical guidelines that will define the selection of information posted on blogs, their content, and the quality of responses. A number of authors have already attempted to come up with such ethical guidelines and produced so-called “blogger codes of conduct.” CyberJournalist.net, a news and resource site that focuses on how the Internet and other new technologies are changing the media, published “A Blogger’s Code of Ethics” as early as 2003.”
THE EMERGENCE OF BLOGS AS A FIFTH ESTATE AND THEIR SECURITY IMPLICATIONS by Nayef Al-Rodhan, p.151-152Key Paragraphs
Ethics, Geopolitics, Human Nature, International Relations, Conflict Theory, International Security, Global Security, National Security, Altruism, Globalization, Global Justice, Political Justice, Political Theory, Moral Philosophy, Social Theory, Neurophilosophy, Philosophy of History, Diplomacy, Existentialism, History of Ideas, Statecraft, Theory of Knowledge, Political Philosophy, Human Civilization, Dignity, Ethics, Moral Philosophy, Innate Knowledge, Philosophical Approach, Multilateralism, Neorealism, Transcultural, National Security