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Thank you for participating in the Dialogue on Foreign Policy. The interactive web site is now closed. The Minister's report will appear on this web site once it is released.

This Forum is bilingual, and participants post messages in their language of choice.

Ethical Relativism

Contributor: Fleabag

Date: 2003-04-02 20:40:00


Ethical relativism is the crux of the current imbroglio between Israel and Palestine, the US and the rest of the world, China and the rest of the world... ad nauseum. It is THE central issue which must be focused on by the entire world.
Is it right? Does someone with the might become right?
Israel considers the 'occupied territiories' as 'Judea and Samaria', biblical lands that God himself promised to the Jews. The Muslims act on their own belief system, saying that Abraham (Ibrahim) and his tribes were once the chosen people of God, but went astray, and Mohammed was the latest 'Prophet of God' (or Allah). The US says 'God Blesses America'.
The common denominator is that none will accept questioning of their systems. All believe in the use of force to 'defend' the 'absolute' legitimacy of their systems.
The rest of the world is deeply affected by each, and therefore has the right to question each.
The UN is the only legitimate place to do this, and all nations must become a part of this.
I would like to see Canada at the head of 'worldwide' deliberation of the right to 'ethical relativism', if only because we have put ours aside, to a certain degree, to become a multi-cultural, peaceful, democratic yet socially valuing country that the world could learn from.

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Ethical Relativism

Contributor: Fleabag

Date: 2003-04-02 23:58:36


I should quote my sources, sorry. Ethical Relativism as defined by Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language (published by Portland House, 1989), defines ethical relativism as:
1. the view that moral standards and principles are relative to the nature of the particular society in which they exist and admit no outside criticism or evaluation."

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Ethical Relativism

Contributor: codc01

Date: 2003-04-03 03:17:16


On another note, a small interesting article:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/comment/0,10551,928532,00.html

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