Verified Document

Ethics And The Law Term Paper

Ethics and the Law It is morally acceptable for the law to require people to do things for their own self-development?

"Political theory is a branch of moral philosophy, which starts from the discovery, or application, of moral notions in the sphere of political relations." This statement, indicated in the literary work, "Two concepts of Liberty," summarizes my personal views on law and self-development. I believe it is morally acceptable to require people to do things for their own self development. Aspects such as making children attend school, requiring high schools to offer basic curriculum courses, or requiring systemically viable institutions to be certified, I believe, all are morally acceptable laws. Although society overall benefits from the self-development of its own constituents, the world benefits as a more educated population continues to drive economic prosperity (Berlin, 2000).

Few would argue over the merits of self-development and its obvious advantages. However many believe that it's up to the individual alone to decide upon personal aspects of self development. Within a vacuum this theory seems plausible, as America, the worlds most powerful country was founded on liberty. However, when juxtaposed against the massive and sizeable collapse of past years, this theory loses its power. I therefore would argue that morally acceptable laws are great for self development, but they also protect society overall. Aspects such as globalization have cause increase competition from globally dynamic institutions. America manufacturing is losing competitiveness. Our children are falling behind in both math and science scores as compared to their Asian counterparts. All of these aspects are, in some way, correlated to laws requiring people to do things for their own self development.

In the literary work "What's wrong with Negative Liberty," the author explains many of the nuances of the concept of liberty. In many instances, liberty can be a detriment to society when used in an illogical manner. Therefore, the article insinuates that laws should be morally acceptable and provide for the overall well-being of society. Negative liberty, the work argues can ultimately abate the overall influence...

The article describes negative freedom as a means of what an individual can, and can to do within the context of society. Therefore, freedom is defined as individual independence from others. This has the potential however to create factions and alliances that could ultimately undermine the American political and economic system. Positive Freedom as the article illustrates, defines freedom as a collective unit rather than distinct individuals. I believe, it is through positive freedom that morally acceptable laws can be practice and implemented. The article further illustrates that through positive freedom, society can help realize a point of self-actualization. During self-actualization, individuals find meaning within their own personal lives, within the context of societal norms and behaviors. As such, it would be morally acceptable, under the concept of positive freedom, to have laws that facilitate the overall notion of self development. Under the concept of negative freedom however, these arguments have little standing. In fact, negative liberty desires the freedom from hindrance in regards to individual activities. This concept argues against moralist interventions. These freedoms believe in the notions of freedom of speech, movement, and religion. However, unlike positive freedom, these notions do not necessary need to further society (Oakes, 1996).
Due primarily to the two very divergent aspects mentioned above, I believe it is morally expectable to have laws that require individuals to do things for their own self development. As a nation, as indicated above, our society must evolve. Competition is fiercer, technology is more profound, and society is becoming more demanding. As such, laws that reinforce continual improvement ultimately benefit society. Furthermore, self-development even protects society in many respects. Through the ability to be more productive in the case of farming, or the ability to reduce systemic risk in regards to banking, or the overall interpretation of the preamble of the constitution, society ultimately benefits. Through these benefits society will realize a better quality of life, and a more robust economic system. Therefore, I believe the benefits of such behavior and laws far outweigh the costs. Although some opponent may say that laws for self development ultimately infringe on individual rights, I would vehemently disagree. America has the deepest, widest, most transparent capital markets. I have the best Universities, and one of…

Sources used in this document:
Now, "more perfect," "justice," "common," "general welfare," "blessings of liberty," and the limits of "liberty" themselves, are all moral concepts. In addition the interpretation of "domestic tranquility" with respect to attempting to better determine individual rights, social order, preventing crime, and capturing and prosecuting criminals is yet another moral term. In these instances, many of the major moral purposes of the Constitution are to help us be law-abiding so that we are an evolving country, rather than merely a stoic and obedient nation. I therefore believe, it would be remiss, and wrong, to make laws or to try to interpret laws in court without any regard to their moral meaning, moral significance, or moral consequences insofar as these impact justice, liberty, general welfare, the common defense, and domestic tranquility.

1) Berlin, I. (1958) "Two Concepts of Liberty." In Isaiah Berlin (1969) Four Essays on Liberty. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

2) Oakes, J. (1996), What's Wrong with "Negative Liberty." Law & Social Inquiry, 21: 79 -- 82. doi: 10.1111/j.1747-4469.1996.tb00010.x
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Ethics Law Case Critical Thinking
Words: 1206 Length: 4 Document Type: Other

Ethics, Law Case, Critical Thinking Title VII of the Civil Rights Act permits retaliation claims because they help to prevent situations in which workers who are unlawfully discriminated against pursue those discrimination law suits. Were Title VII of this act not to permit retaliation claims, then there is a possibility that Regalado would have dropped her law suit of discrimination against the company both she and her husband worked for, just

Ethics Law
Words: 685 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Legal Ethics Surrounding the Love Canal Tragedy Love Canal Law/Ethics In 1979, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) filed a lawsuit against Hooker Chemical Company and its parent corporation, Occidental Petroleum (EPA, 1979). The Department of Justice (DOJ), acting on behalf of the EPA, charged these corporations with creating an imminent and substantial danger to health and the environment, by violating the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking

Ethics Case Study: To Rescue Others at
Words: 994 Length: 3 Document Type: Case Study

Ethics Case Study: To Rescue Others at What Risk? What is the Ethical Dilemma? An ethical dilemma in the words of Fletcher, Holt, Brazier, & Harris (1995) "occurs when there are at least two possible courses of action that may be taken but each option is problematic" (p.7). With regard to the case study under consideration, the ethical dilemma each and every individual who has succeeded to make it to the roof

Ethics and Decision Making a Definition of
Words: 2275 Length: 6 Document Type: Essay

Ethics and Decision Making A definition of ethics broadly stated could be as that 'ethics is the science that deals with conduct in so far as this is considered as right or wrong, good or bad.' (Shapiro; Stefkovich, 2001) The word 'Ethics' has its root in the Greek language where ethos was the word used for a custom or usage for individual groups. This later moved on to mean the general

Ethics and Regulation in the Professional Asset Management Industry...
Words: 1038 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Ethics and Regulation in the Professional Asset Management Industry Asset management is an operation that involves the diligent management of the investor's funds in a professional way. The asset manager thus is an agent hired to do the job on account of his or her peculiar financial ability. Professional firms that are into asset management thus have duties not only to the investors, but also to the stock market, the financial

Ethics in Law Enforcement
Words: 2406 Length: 8 Document Type: Essay

Ethics in Law Enforcement Ethics are what almost anyone would define as a person's determination between what is good or bad, or more accurately what is right or wrong. Although many of these attitudes can be a product of parenting or other factors in one's maturing environment, ethical decisions could also be a product of environmental factors that are outside of the control of individuals. It is difficult to determine where

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now