Reference no: EM132563800

Question 1: When do you act purely out of self-interest? Do you ever sacrifice your own interests for those of others? Discuss the contrast between these. Do your answers reinforce or provide difficulty for holding ethical egoism as a viable normative theory?

Question 2: According to Utilitarianism, the end justifies the means. Can you think of a time when you justified some action in order to achieve what you saw to be a greater good not only for yourself but for others? Can you apply this to the behavior of a large scale institution such as a corporation, church, government, or school (i.e., grammar, high school, college, university)? Choose one and discuss (i.e., corporation, church, government, school).

Question 3: Most of us live by rules. What are the most important rules you live by? What were the most important rules in your family? Could you will those rules to be universal? What rules have you rejected as you have gotten older? Discuss.

Question 4: In 1759 Benjamin Franklin said "those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." After 9/11 the US Government passed the Homeland Security Act aimed at preventing further terrorist acts but at the same time giving the government the right greatly to curtail many of our rights of privacy and freedom. Have you ever felt your own or the rights of family and friends disregarded or trampled by the government? On the other hand have you had occasion to appreciate the safety net that the government provides in supporting your rights? Discuss.