The Means Against The End

 

Out of all the ethical frameworks discussed the ones that struck me the most is utilitarianism vs. Kantianism. Kantian ethics is considered to be deontological in that it holds that at action is right in and of itself without appeal to consequences. Utilitarianism bases its understanding of right action on consequences. For Kant, lying is simply wrong because of the practical reason that it’s simply wrong, without any appeal to consequences. For John Stuart Mill, lying is ok as long as it creates more happiness and the least pain, for the greatest number of people affected by that action.

This got me thinking not only about business ethics but also the practical things in life. Even before learning Kantianism and Utilitarianism, in my mind I already had this “philosophical arguments” right after watching Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Captain America’s objective was to hijack Hydra’s developed data-mining algorithm that can identify and kill individuals who might become future threats to Hydra’s plans. That, and of course, to save the world. From Hydra’s point of view, it simply is practical since they have the ability to prevent and eliminate current and future threats against the organization. Even innocent children will be killed as long as the algorithm, “Project Insight”, has detected a behavioral pattern that can threaten Hydra. Project Insight in itself is already at the extreme side of utilitarianism since their priority is to protect the organization at all costs, even killing the lives of the innocent. We all know that it’s fictional, but what if utilitarianism abounds everywhere in the world? If a man got caught from stealing a cellphone, will it be for the greater good if we just eliminate that person instead to avoid future thefts? Will we be in a better situation if people who committed and have a potential to commit crime are all eradicated to prevent further wrongdoings and ultimately create more happiness to the world?

 

I’m glad our justice system doesn’t work and think that way. We all have our duties, and we have a stringent requirement we’re bound to obey even if the consequences are not the best. This is why we’re not only bound to make our decisions based on utilitarianism and kantianism alone. Justice and fairness, rights, care, and virtue are other principles in ethics that should also be taken into consideration in order to consider a comparative treatment to others, and how our moral character can contribute (or obstruct) human lives.