Utilitarian Philosophy - Saab General Bulletin Board - Saabnet.com
The banner above is an advertisment - if it asks you to download software, please ignore.
Site News -
[General | Members | C900 | 9000 | NG900 & OG93 | 93 | 95 | NG95 | 99 | Sonett | Vintage Models | Clubs | Other Cars | FAQs | Gifts | Member Photo Galleries | Member Directory | Classifieds | Manuals | *Buddy Registry | *Mileage Registry | Polls | What's New | Raffle | Photo of the Month | Sponsors]

General Bulletin Board
[Subscribe to Daily Digest]
(Search Author's Posts: e.g. Keyword:username)*Members Only

[Main General Bulletin Board | BBFAQ | Prev by Date | Post Followup ] Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
Utilitarian Philosophy
Like This Post: - Subscribe to Daily Digest for this Bulletin Board
Posted by OKSaabs (more from OKSaabs) on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 11:18:45 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: Ethics Question for SAABNET Sages!, The Situation Room, Tue, 20 Jul 2010 18:04:09
Alert me when someone posts in this thread:
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup

While you have many ethical philosophies to potentially guide you in making this decision, one handy one would be Utilitarianism which states, in a nutshell, that you should always act in a way which does the greater good for the greater number. To apply this, you first have to figure out who benefits and who suffers by your actions (greater number), and you have to figure out the degree of benefits/sufferings (greater good)

So, for example, if you say what you know and the client leaves yet your present firm does not suffer from the departure, then a Utilitarian would possibly speak because the potential good greatly outweighs the potential suffering. If, on the other hand, speaking your mind would cause your present employer to lay off employees and to lose corporate value, then a great many people could suffer while only a few would benefit, causing a Utilitarian to probably keep quiet because of the amount of suffering his actions would cause. If, on the third hand, the client will suffer because of your silence, then you have to weigh that as well.

It can get complicated, but it causes you to think of who in the big picture profits/suffers from your actions, and it causes you to consider the relative weight of your actions on the various groups and individuals which could be affected. In this way, the ethical decision is about more than your own "sense" of rightness and more about a reasoned approach to a complex problem.

posted by 156.110.35...

Posts in this Thread:
Alert me when someone posts in this thread:
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup
Post a Followup

No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.

Name: Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
E-Mail: (Optional)
Re-Enter E-Mail: (Confidential & Secure - Not revealed to other users!)
Note: Please check your spam folder for BB responses.

Subject:

Posting rules are simple - No for sale/wanted ads may be posted here - use the site classifieds.
You may not cross-post your message to multiple BBs.
Not permitted: political/religious topics and being disrespectful (personal attacks, insults, etc...).
 Site Members do not see any red text, inline ad links, bottom of page anchor ads, box ads, or anti-spam check.

Message: (please no for sale/wanted classifieds - post those in the Saabnet.com Classifieds)
Links are now automatically made active, no need for any special code (or use the Option Link field below) - don't put links in () or end with a '.'
To add inline images to your post, use [img]http://www.domain.com/img.jpg[endimg] (or use the Optional Image Link field below).

Links are now automatically made active, no need for any special code (or use the Option Link field below) - don't put links in () or end with a '.'
To add inline images to your post above, use [img]http://www.domain.com/img.jpg[endimg] (or use the Optional Image Link field below).
Optional Link: (e.g. http://www.saabnet.com/)
Link Title: (Optional)
Optional Photo/Image Link: (e.g. http://www.saabnet.com/img.jpg)
Photo/Image to Upload: (Please be patient while file uploads)



StateOfNine.com
SaabClub.com
Jak Stoll Performance
M Car Covers
Ad Available

The content on this site may not be republished without permission. Copyright © 1988-2024 - The Saab Network - saabnet.com.
For usage guidelines, see the Mission & Privacy Notice.
[Contact | Site Map | Saabnet.com on Facebook | Saabnet.com on Twitter | Shop Amazon via TSN | Site Donations]

Random Saabnet.com Member Gallery Photos (Click Image)
This is a moderated bulletin board - Posting is a privilege, not a right. Unsolicited commercial postings are not allowed (no spam). Please, no For Sale or Wanted postings, SERIOUSLY. Classifieds are to be listed in The Saab Network Classifieds pages. This is a problem solving forum for over 250,000 Saab owners, so expect to see problems discussed here even though our cars are generally very reliable. This is not an anything goes type of forum. Saabnet.com has been a moderated forum since 1988. For usage guidelines, see the Saabnet.com Mission and Purpose Page. Please remember that you are not anonymous. Site Contact | Site Donations | Other Sites by SP - Poverty2Prosperity.org | Run Club Menlo Park | ScreenBot


Site Members do not see red text instructions, bottom of the page anchor ads, or box ads.
Click here to see all the Site Membership Benefits!