What are the roots of disgust? Why are some things repugnant (to most of us, most of the time) while other choices are simply matters of taste, not worth arguing about? Why do some cultures find eating some substances repellent, for instance, and others feel precisely the opposite? More violently, why do we tend to refrain from eye-gouging in even the most desperate circumstances unless trained to overcome inhibitions against it? Why are chemical and biological attacks viewed as morally unacceptable, but putting a supersonic chunk of metal through a person (in times of war, facing an enemy, if properly authorized) is ok? What makes torture wrong, even when its goal is to save lives?
Sunday, February 13, 2000 at 17:15:20 (EST) = 2000-02-13
(correlates: FourthGradeTwerp, TradeOffs, BarbarismTomorrow, ...)