Oops, let me rephrase that to be more clear. “The only true terminal values are happiness and goodness.” Thanks. I do think it’s like some sort of inherent property of the universe or something.
To me, saying that it’s an inherent property of the universe sounds like “this is the way it is for everyone, and this is the way it always will be”. I don’t think either of those things are true. You’ve previously said that you think it’s true for the overwhelming majority of people, not everyone. I’m not sure what you think about “this is the way it always will be”. A simple argument against that is that you could just rewire someone’s brain to produce different drives.
Of course, this is just what I interpret “the only true terminal values are happiness and goodness” and “I do think it’s like some sort of inherent property of the universe or something” to imply. I sense that it’s a common interpretation, but I’m not sure.
Anyway:
1) I think semantics aside, we agree that a good deal of people posses these as their terminal virtues. (I think it’s less common than you do, but I do agree that it’s true for a good majority of people)
2) Semantics may be annoying, but they’re important for communicating, and communicating is important. It’s my impression that your writing could be a lot better if the semantics were improved.
To me, saying that it’s an inherent property of the universe sounds like “this is the way it is for everyone, and this is the way it always will be”. I don’t think either of those things are true. You’ve previously said that you think it’s true for the overwhelming majority of people, not everyone. I’m not sure what you think about “this is the way it always will be”. A simple argument against that is that you could just rewire someone’s brain to produce different drives.
My position has become a bit more extreme then. I am guessing it’s true for everyone, and I do think the universe itself is behind it. I suppose it could change, sure. Whether it’s an “inherent property of the universe” might come back to that word “inherent” and whether or not you think “inherent” includes “eternal.” I don’t think we disagree about anything real here.
1) I think semantics aside, we agree that a good deal of people posses these as their terminal virtues. (I think it’s less common than you do, but I do agree that it’s true for a good majority of people)
Only a majority? So do you think: (1) Some people have no desire for personal happiness, (2) Some people have no desire for goodness, or (3) There is some other psychologically motivated end-in-itself that can’t be traced back to one of the two?
To me, saying that it’s an inherent property of the universe sounds like “this is the way it is for everyone, and this is the way it always will be”. I don’t think either of those things are true. You’ve previously said that you think it’s true for the overwhelming majority of people, not everyone. I’m not sure what you think about “this is the way it always will be”. A simple argument against that is that you could just rewire someone’s brain to produce different drives.
Of course, this is just what I interpret “the only true terminal values are happiness and goodness” and “I do think it’s like some sort of inherent property of the universe or something” to imply. I sense that it’s a common interpretation, but I’m not sure.
Anyway:
1) I think semantics aside, we agree that a good deal of people posses these as their terminal virtues. (I think it’s less common than you do, but I do agree that it’s true for a good majority of people)
2) Semantics may be annoying, but they’re important for communicating, and communicating is important. It’s my impression that your writing could be a lot better if the semantics were improved.
My position has become a bit more extreme then. I am guessing it’s true for everyone, and I do think the universe itself is behind it. I suppose it could change, sure. Whether it’s an “inherent property of the universe” might come back to that word “inherent” and whether or not you think “inherent” includes “eternal.” I don’t think we disagree about anything real here.
Only a majority? So do you think: (1) Some people have no desire for personal happiness, (2) Some people have no desire for goodness, or (3) There is some other psychologically motivated end-in-itself that can’t be traced back to one of the two?