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[–] Sadistic_Bastard 0 points 5 points (+5|-0) ago 

I'm confused, what do you mean?

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[–] Reow [S] 0 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago 

What I mean is this: Is there a higher purpose to morals, or are they a vain belief? Do they produce anything that is objectively good in this world, or is the harsh nihilistic truth that they are self-imposed shackles and flagellation?

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[–] Sadistic_Bastard 0 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago 

Thank you for the clarification! I believe that it depends entirely on the moral in question. Not killing? More than an inconvenience, because it's probably in our nature to protect our species and not just killing people left and right. That's supported by a lot (if not all) cultures having restrictions against it. Waiting until after marriage to have sex? Just an inconvenience.

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[–] Calorie-Kin 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago  (edited ago)

Oh yes, definitely. Societies agreed on certain morals because those were beneficial for them. If you think about like.. Murder for a second: murder doesn't benefit most societies, because the society's main goal is to stay alive. When you have people killing each other, it's bad for the tribe (because it reduces the number of people).

This can be applied to any and all morals in all civilizations. Lying is another one, a society that's built on lies is one that crumbles. No one trusts anyone, and no diplomacy can take place. So it's in the society's best interest to weed out the liars.

Many people have different views on this, but in my opinion true altruism doesn't really exist. Veganism, for example, isn't really done for some greater good. It's done because of the understanding that meat and dairy are harming the environment (your kids' kids and your society) and our bodies (yourself), as well as the animals around us (potential companions).

Donating to charity isn't a selfless act as-well, because deep down, it's rooted in human behavior. You're donating to those who need help because if you were in the same situation, you'd want people to donate to you. You could get cancer tomorrow, or get hit by a car, lose your house, whatever the cause.

Religious morals (like donating to a church/obeying the one true god/whatever) is a selfish act, it's an attempt to get a spot in heaven.

Morals are just there to keep societies intact. We made them up, and we're sticking to them because that's what we figured out works best over the span of thousands of years of developmental evolution.