The evil that is utilitarianism

A month ago, I linked to Charlie's piece on the murder of George Tiller.  Today, I link to his related post and share the wisdom found therein:

In my essay, I was trying to find the limits, if any, to a philosophical idea known as utilitarianism, aka "the end justifies the means."

Political systems are deeply utilitarian. And, since abandoning our historic belief in a God who conveys truth, our secular culture has also embraced utilitarianism in the Utopian belief that the moral choice for all is the one creating the greatest benefit for the greatest number of people.

Dr. Tiller's murder was designed to achieve a good end (saving unborn children) by means of an illegal and immoral means: murder.

Many were horrified by the act, but not, interestingly, by the utilitarian ethic that Tiller's assailant practiced. We practice utilitarianism ourselves whenever we break the speed limit to get to work on time, or illegally download a movie or song because we can.

In fact, the US House's vaunted American Clean Energy and Security Act, aka Cap and Tax, is a perfect example of utilitarian thinking. On the theory that government must save us from ourselves by reducing CO2 emissions, the House bill will tax all forms of "non-renewable" energy production and use in order to force a more rapid adoption of "clean" energy. The bill will cost jobs, raise prices, increase taxes, and probably make the US less competitive. In the eyes of Congress and the White House, those are costs worth paying if it means reducing America's carbon footprint.

The end justifies the means.

We may hate what Tiller's murderer did, but we don't disagree with his core end-justifies-the-means idealism — utilitarianism can be quite useful at times!

The Christian faith as lived and preached by Jesus rejects the idea that a wrong act can become right if it results in a useful outcome. At the end of his life, Jesus himself became a victim of that sort of thinking:

[The High Priest Caiaphas justified Jesus' death, saying,] "You don't realize that it's better for you that one man should die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed." — John 11:50, NLT

Though innocent, Jesus was unjustly executed to satisfy a mob and prevent a violent backlash by Roman authority.

It is always tempting to make such bargains. We think we are wise enough, powerful enough, even shrewd enough to turn lead into gold, evil into good.

But utilitarianism is a moral shortcut, and moral shortcuts inevitably lead to trouble.

He's got more, go read it all and inwardly digest it then sit and ponder what was written.

I think it'll do the reader good.  I do.

Comments

[Locutisprime]

Yankees talk funny? Imagine that. ;-)

[David]

Yankees talk funny...... What's that for Can't understand it because I'm not American