Frameworks and Decisions - Assignment Example

 The main theme of the article is the discussion of the current system of the study of ethics and how it has evolved into an indispensable part of school’s curriculum. Almost everyone and just as many people have become self-proclaimed experts of ethics without truly understanding what this entails. Gordon Marino aptly puts it “take any given profession and there is another profession called the ethics of that profession.” The author substantially tackles that this overlooks other equally, or more important aspects, such as the ability to have a valuable self-reflection that would inevitably render a more righteous individual in relation to more practical scenarios. Is he accurate in what he says? Yes, to a great extent Marino calls it intuitively to point out the reality of the teaching of ethics. It is quite true that ethics is being taught in almost all fields and discipline but this does not in any way guarantee that those who partake of it would automatically make the right choices in the future. It is true that there is bioethics, legal ethics, medical ethics and all others of the genus but this in no way has it proven that arbitrarily mandating the students and other individuals would mean that there would be less of any malpractice in the future. The old Greek viewpoint of Socratic origin does make one wonder whether or not virtue could be taught. What is the moral challenge? The greatest moral challenge is to first get to know one’s self in a contemplative and accurate way before being able to definitively claim that ethics may be imparted. This in its entirety gives out a deeper understanding of the almost ludicrous title that Marino has given his article. “Before Teaching Ethics, Stop Kidding Yourself” challenges each person, especially those who teach it, to have a deeper psychological understanding of who we are so that we may be able to envisage our line of reasoning when faced with a moral dilemma. This makes for a tangible approach to teaching ethics. The outcome of “we will look at this tomorrow” according to Marino is that we distance ourself from our moral knowledge, is this true? I deeply understand this sentiment because the lapse of time between now and that concept of “we will look at this tomorrow” is ample time to give any person for him to be able to reconcile his moral knowledge with justifications that he would have easily made without it. “Until finally we come to our senses and convince ourselves that the convenient course is the righteous course” (Marino 2004). But this could also go the other way wherein the extent of time provided may be enough to persuade one’s self to do the right thing and not to walk away from a virtuous judgment that he must make. This would in fact depend on the state of morality that each individual possesses. Task 2 What legislation is important for service provision in your discipline? Please write your discipline and the full title of the legislation and how it relates to the community’s moral standards. Legislation in Biomedical Science Perhaps the most controversial legislation that pertains to Biomedical Science recently is the Stem Cell Laws. The most pressing issue regarding this is the public funding for stem cell research that has been denied by both the Bush administration and the Obama administration. The most debated in this topic is Embryonic stem cell research is not totally banned in the country where states such as California has Proposition 71 and New Jersey has a law that also allow human adult stem cells and germ cells to be used. California is the more liberal with the approval of a law that allows the use of cloned embryos. In perspective, the possibility of human cloning is still against all United States laws. Task 3 Did this man act morally? Why /why not? Yes, because in his own moral knowledge he acted for the greater good rather than to be able to rescue his own family. In his own hierarchy of what could be considered morally good and what is not. He was convinced that by saving the town leader and his family over his own, he acted according to the dictate of his moral conscience and by this he acted morally. We may have different perspectives on what is morally virtuous and not but it is in acting on what you know and believe to be right which makes it moral. This man acted on good utilitarian grounds. But was it the right thing? Is the cultural context a factor in your deliberations? What other response could be made and what would be the ethical justification for it? It may be easy to categorize that the deed was purely on utilitarian grounds but this may also be inferred in terms of a rational choice theory. Certainly it is not a natural choice to allow the death of one’s own family for the survival of another but we cannot conclusively argue that the man’s act is immoral though it is unacceptable for the majority of people. The rational thinking of the man led him to the belief and knowledge that by saving the town leader he will be able to help more people despite the grief of having to lose his own family. In addition, the facts are not entirely complete as it did not provide the actual state of the people under the rubble. Perhaps there was a greater chance for the other family to survive over his wife and children. This brings to mind the notion that it is not choosing right from wrong which is the greatest of all moral dilemmas that one can face, rather, it is choosing between two rights which will determine the degree of character that makes for a righteous individual. The man was faced with this predicament under catastrophic circumstances. This makes it difficult to render judgment purely on a subjective basis because choosing one over the other does not make either choice inherently wrong. Bibliography Garfinkel, M. (2004). Genome News Network [online]. [Accessed 15 November 2011]. Available from: . Marino, G. (2004). Before Teaching Ethics, Stop Kidding Yourself. Chronicle of Higher Education [online]. 50, [Accessed 15 November 2011], p.B5-B5. Available from: . Read More