Foundation series : Enlightened morality (I)

The appeal to Reason in morality is more than a theoretical issue. It is an exhortation to right action. It stands against the sacrificial morality of the True Believer - cultural protectionism, dogma, conformity, traditionalism, tribalism - and the violent morality of the True Destroyer - crime, violence, emotionalism. The rational man and the spiritual man is, by definition, an iconoclast.

The surface of the Earth is soft and impressible by the feet of men; and so with the paths the mind travels. How worn and dusty, then, must be the highways of the world, how deep the ruts of tradition and conformity !
Henry David Thoreau

There are certain values and virtues which are also present in spiritual understanding. In this first part, I will examine two of them, non-violence and compassion.

1. Non-Violence.

Violence is unanimously decried as an evil deed. However, this moral judgment is usually not followed very closely in practice. People use patriotism and obedience to justify their involvment in wars. People favour incarceration and capital punishment for victimless crimes. In general, we only dislike violence when it is applied against ourselves, but we use it liberally, both in our daily lives and in important issues.

A rational understanding of action must lead to a rejection of the initiation of violence in all cases. I've already mentioned that our well-being depends on other people. By using violence, we bring upon us the anger and wrath of the people around us, as well as that of rational social institutions. We hurt other people, and by doing such, we hurt the society we live in.

The only situation where violence is justified is in self-defense, to protect your own livelihood and life. As long as violence is not initiated, then none should exist. If violence exists, then it should be contained with a minimum of violence.

Violence is not only evil because of its social effects, but also because of its mental effects. The use of Reason requires the freedom to think independently and make our own decisions. Coercion, on the other hand, is a denial of that freedom. If I point a gun at you and tell you to do something, I am preventing you from freely making your own decision, in an ethical sense. I am preventing you from using the fruits of your rational faculties. If the government, or the church, or

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