Grandpa Kim on the topic of duty

[tbontob]

Hmmmm.

The only real point I was making is that every individual should have the right to question anything which attempts to remove his right to decide things for himself.

So, if someone says I have a duty to do something, I should have the right to question whether in fact such a duty does exist, instead of doing a knee-jerk reaction to comply.

Or if someone says I am selfish when I want to do or not do something, I should have the right to question whether in fact I am selfish, instead of doing the knee-jerk reaction to comply.

Duty and the accusation of selfishness are only two of an arsenal of weapons a manipulator can use to get what he wants.

But until we accept that we have the right to question whether there is in fact a duty or whether we are in fact selfish, we will be susceptable to the manipulations of unscrupulous people.

The person's ethical system as well as the ethical system of the society he lives in will play a major part in that person's decision whether a duty (or selfishness) exists or not.

If a person decides he doesn't owe a duty and acts on it, it is possible he may contravene a law of the society in which he lives or becomes the object of censure by his neighbours.

As such he may be "wrong" according to the morays of society and be punished for it. But that is the chance he takes in making the decision to decide things for himself. He is responsible for his actions.

It is my personal choice that I would much rather run the risk of making a "wrong" decision by choice than by making a "wrong" decision" by virtue of a knee-jerk reaction.