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Ethical Philosophy…In PracticeEthical Philosophy…In PracticeEthical Philosophy…In PracticeEthical Philosophy…In Practice http://www.meetup.com/Ethical-Philosophy-Discussion-Group-of-East-Portland/

Thinking Clearly in a World of NonsenseThinking Clearly in a World of NonsenseThinking Clearly in a World of NonsenseThinking Clearly in a World of Nonsense Because the bull shit gets so deeps you have to spout wings to fly above it.

Topic for September 4, 2016

Natural Morality The Real Moral Code, it could not be more clear!

ICNBMC!

Summary Having pondered the fundamental question of ethics (what is good and therefore, what should we do?) consider Plato’s question: is it best to be thought of as “just”, but in fact be “unjust?” The unjust man fools everyone and gets every benefit while the just man is exploited. Odysseus, Jesus, Darwin, St. Augustine, Kant, Bentham, Freud, Hitler, etc. have since added their insights from experience.

Let’s run a thought experiment. Imagine what the Unjust Man would look like today. Then look around to see if we find him in our midst? How is he treated by society? What if the ultimate ethical code, what is right for YOU to do, is to:

1. Acquire the support/protection of groups; nations, religions, political parties, corporations, etc. by pretending loyalty to them, using word and symbolic deed,

2. advertise your loyalty to them, loudly and often to maintain their good will, 3. be actually loyal to nothing, no group, ideal, nation, employer, religion, beliefs, etc.,

4. betray them (quietly) when it is to your advantage,

5. Blame the Consequences on Someone Else! 6. Never admit any of this!

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Success is ALWAYS Based on the Protection of the Group

No infant can survive without the protection of someone, the smallest unit being a parent, usually a mother. Without fangs, claws and instincts, humans must rely on others. Still better than a mother, a nuclear family protects the infant. The family is then dependent upon the clan, the tribe, city, state, nation, whatever level its technology can achieve. It is society’s sophistication, division of labor, food production, clothing, shelter etc. that makes survival possible. As an adult, the person continues to rely upon the good will of society. If this doesn’t sit well with libertarians, let them test it by living in the woods

without manufactured goods.

However, in America today, a corporation’s legal obligation is to internalize income

and externalized expenses, to privatize profits and socialize costs. Following this model, a company dumps its manufacturing wastes into the rivers and skies, etc. It pays its employees as little as possible, often less that subsis-tence. (Walmart, McDonald’s etc. employees need food stamps to live.) Society makes those low wages possible. Then the corpora-tion minimizes its taxes. If that is not betraying the society that provides it with streets, police protection, currency, food stamps for its employees, etc., what is? On the other hand, if it were widely recognized, society might refuse to provide all those free services. That is why the corporation strives to stay on society’s good

side by public relations, advertising, bribes to politicians called “campaign contributions,” etc. Note how the PR image of the employee (left) and the actual employee (upper right) appear…

not so much alike.

Did you know that the average cost to society of food stamps, medical care, etc. for the employees of a single McDonalds is something like 1 ½ million dollars a year?

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PR campaigns tell people that Wal-Mart is sexy and they should not complain.

They buy it because they are ignorant of the system and its inequalities. They are vulnerable to attractive fantasies and false choices1. Therefore, we all pay taxes so that McDonald’s franchise owners can be millionaires. We pay taxes so that corporations can get huge tax breaks. The much advertised Oregon Lottery does not increase money for education, only decreases corporate taxes. Who benefits from all this? Corporate shareholders! If you’re thinking “But I have Wal-mart shares in my IRA.” How many shares? 100? In 2013, the number of outstanding shares of Wal-Mart was 3.2 billion. Some people own millions of shares. (Interestingly, outstanding shares have declined from 4.2 billion in the past ten years. They are being concentrated in fewer and fewer hands and therefore “reverse stock splits” make them easier to manage.) So, society pays for laws, courts, police, streets, etc. and the PREDATOR CLASS uses them for its PRIVATE PROFIT,

then laughs at us for being suckers…

which we are.

Since the vast majority of people are too poorly educated to understand this, revolu-tions are rare. When they occur, the predators hide for a while, then come out later. The prey (public) is always there, ready to be picked clean. It’s Natural Selection.

Each new generation quickly forgets what was done for it by previous generations and rationalizes its ease. Individuals are grateful for a job or feel better off than (visible) others or simply entitled. They identify with the elite, buy another “trickle down” theory, go to war for Wall Street shouting Remember the Alamo, 911, whatever. That is how the people are distracted into losing whatever they have.

1 Merchants of Doubt can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YmRovaSYkE. It clearly explains how large corporations and industry association manipulate public opinion.

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Rights embedded in constitutions are whittled away by lawyers and judges, for their profit. Politicians make promises but once elected, forget them for their profits. Judges wear priest-like garb and pretend to speak for a higher power “the law,” as if it were anything more than the rationalizations of other men

for their profit. Priests put on a big show, claiming to speak for gods who always line up with the rich, for their profit. The elite send their kids to elite schools where they learn how to “play the game.” The poor go to poor schools where they are taught patriotism and self sacrifice. (The rich try to make the poor schools even poorer, limiting competition.) In this way, wealth and status are passed from generation to generation. Likewise, the poor pass on traditions of gullibility and self sacrifice, as if it were something more than ignorance reinforced by training.

Thus the world has always been…and will always be.

<<< This is a soldier saluting a box containing the bones of another soldier (one of millions) so disposable that he was literally blown to pieces. The living soldier sees that as praiseworthy. It never occurs to him that he is equally disposable.

Forced by hardship, the masses finally catch on and adopt the moral code of the predator class. Fewer and fewer serve the interests of the group2 (community, nation, clan.) Thus societies rise and fall. So it’s only a matter of time, and for the individual, TIMING.

The ethical thing is to

Follow the The Natural Moral Code into a good place at the right time,

and not be in a bad place at any time.

2 At the end of the Roman Empire, native born Romans had wised up. The middle class (yeomen farmers) had been destroyed by the predator class which stole their land and solidified its wealth with laws. They were not about to pay taxes for the good of the whole. Even the uneducated poor knew that the empire NOT RUN for THEM. The Roman army was composed of “barbarians.” Many poor aristocrats actually fled Italy to live among them. Rome limped along until the new barbarians destroyed the aqueducts. Without infrastructure the society collapsed. The predator class suffered just like the poor, but it could not help itself, then or now.

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It’s Not Like You Have A Choice

It’s not a choice, we live with The Real Moral Code in the same way we live with gravity. (If you are even alive right now, it is because your ancestors obeyed it.) Sociopaths are born at a predictable rate (4 % of the population.) The elite train their children to be sociopaths. The only choice an individual has is to decide how much of a victim he is willing to be.

All patriotism, religions, moralities, etc. are promoted to make the individual help-less prey. Whenever The Real Moral Code is mentioned, the prey feel a sense of horror (while at Harvard Business School it is acknowledged and perfected.) It’s the same horror people felt when first introduced to the heliocentric solar system, the germ theory, etc. Therefore, although it could not be more clear, it should never be discussed.

Six Steps to Moral Perfection

#1 Seek the Protection of Large Groups by Pretending Loyalty

Only by the protection of a group (nations, states, religions, businesses, etc.) can an individual survive. Such protection is acquired by claiming loyalty. All such claims of loyalty however, are only stratagems to mislead others into sacrificing for your benefit. This is completely understood by the predator class which uses it relent-lessly. Trump, Romney, etc. plunder the consumers and workers, hide their profits offshore, then cynically ask for votes as a “job creators.” (Mitt got 47 % of the votes.)

Then Pretend Loyalty to Smaller Groups

Publically claim solidarity with the larger society and privately with smaller groups (even if their goals are totally different.) This is what it meant by “all politics is local.”)

It is easily done by simply repeating their sacred words <<<<<<<<<<< and dressing in their tribal costumes. The smaller groups will not care about you duplicity thinking they are outsmarting the larger group. If they do complain about your betrayal, use the time honored trump-cards of “business is business”

or “my hands are tied” or “I found Jesus” or “I’m sorry, I promise to spend the rest of my life teaching others not to make the same mistake.”

But keep your profits!

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Shakespeare said it best.

“Smile and smile and be a villain3.”

It always works. >>>>>>>>

# 2 Advertise Your Loyalty by Imitating the

Clothing, Language, Values, Beliefs, etc. of Your Supporting

Groups

Internal public relations are very important. Loudly claim loyalty to your supporting groups. Flags, clothing and ritual slogans are enough. Most people are slow (if not incapable) of seeing the conflict between your words and your actions.

For Example

<<<This propaganda piece associates policemen with com-munity virtues; protestors with selfishness, laziness, treason, etc. In reality, the police serve the ruling elite. Here again, special uniformed tribal garb assumes noble and uplifted virtues4. Individual clothing variations

represent base and selfish motives.

CLOTHING MAGIC – When he looks like X, he becomes X. Having learned this at Yale, John Kerry always dresses for his part. When a lowly soldier in a war for the other people’s profits, he advocated transparency and accountability in government. Once inside government, he promotes a secret police state at endless war. He is now a billionaire, richly rewarded for his obedience to The Real Moral Code.

ICNBMC!

3 It is so engrained in them that they can’t see it in themselves. For example, the Supreme Court is now considering Affirmative Action. When discrimination against blacks was practiced for centuries, it was considered perfectly constitutional. But when discrimination was against white men, the most careful constitutional scrutiny must be applied. 4 But Never Make A Spectacle of Your Privilege The big difference between how it traditionally worked and (America’s

contribution to the process) is public relations. In the good old days, the elite would drive their golden chariots over the bodies of starving children and complain about the bumps. America’s elite have learned to mind their public image. They wear the same4 clothing styles and hide their wealth in portfolios and fenced communities. The key is to keep from looking too privileged, while being very privileged. There is no limit to what you can enjoy if you obey The Real Moral Code.

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WORD MAGIC - When you utter a “magic” word, people assume that something actually happened in the real world. For example, giving money to a political candidate (to get something from him, why else?) is not a “bribe,” it is a “campaign contribution.” A “campaign contribution” does not “buy” his “vote”, it only “gains access.” It’s how you convince someone that a “wolf” is actually a “sheep.” Oddly, the more formally educated a person is, the more likely he is and to be vulnerable to word magic. The more educated can easily convince the less educated that a “wolf” is actually a “sheep,” or that “bribes” are only “campaign contributions.” (Never say “quid pro quo.”)

The word you use changes the thing itself.

Class action suits against big corporations are now “frivolous law suits,” injured employees are only “disgruntled,” etc. Our allies are “freedom fighters”, our enemies are “terrorists.” The evidence of global climate is “the jury is still out.” even if it is, it’s not the fault of humans, if it is, then it’s too expense to address, even if it isn’t, it’s too late to do anything about it.5

Interpret Everything To Your Advantage

Make up an interpretation of events, conditions, whatever and repeat it over and over. It only takes three times to be believed.

But Never Believe Any of It Yourself

It is only propaganda invented to justify your benefits. If you fall into the trap of actually believing it, you will violate Rule “3. be actually loyal to nothing…,” If you violate that rule, you will be betrayed by those who don’t.

#3 Be Actually Loyal to Nothing We humans invent abstractions to justify our own private desires. Philosophies, religions, nations, etc. are just ways to justify what we want for visceral reasons. The Ancient Greeks justified enslaving non-Greeks with barbarians are born to be slaves; white Americans justified enslaving Africans with the Biblical mark of Cain. Wall Street justifies too-big-to-jail with free-markets. Wars are

justified by defense, even if the enemy is living in a hovel on the other side of the planet. Corporations justify deregulation by claiming that small businesses (who they prey upon) need help and that they are “job creators.” It’s all a con game to justify 5 See Merchants of Doubt from page 3.

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personal survival. After survival, interests turn to safety, power, wealth, ego, influence, sex, sadism, violence, whatever feels good. To borrow a phrase, use religion, patriotism, philosophy, lofty principles, etc. to

baffle them with bull shit!

# 4 Betray Your Support Groups when its profitable

Never let actual loyalty cause you to operate against your own interests. This is such a common feature of the predator class that it is accepted without comment. Fox News is destroying America by waving flags and claiming patriotism. Look anywhere and you will find the actions of leaders in conflict with their stated goals. It isn’t even noticed.

A Few Recent Examples

Examples of Natural Morality are everywhere, once you focus your mental eyes.

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a law (Civil Rights Act) set up to protect black citizens from being denied-the-vote in Southern states. It had been going on for centuries; is even described in middle school text books. The judges knew the history, why the law was enacted, what would happen if they were struck down. But loyal to their own groups, knowing full well what was already planned and ready, five judges claimed ignorance of what would happen. It immediately happened. Their allies, within hours, passed laws excluding black voters. These judges picked up their paychecks and claimed patriotism. The same court struck down safety zones around abortion clinics (set up to prevent attacks from anti-abortion zealots.) The same judges then extended larger safety zones around themselves. The system could not be more clear.

Once seen, it’s so obviously common, just call it ICNBMC!

The most successful diplomat in history was Talleyrand. It was said of him that “He has no principles, only appetites.”

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# 5 Blame (the Consequences) on Someone Else

Good practitioners of Natural Morality plan ahead and are ready when the victims feel pain. Blame someone else for the results of your actions, the more powerless the scapegoat the better. They used to blame the Jews, commu-nists, “the Yellow Peril”, etc., today its school teachers, immi-grants, Muslims, gays, terrorists, etc. To Republicans, any-thing with “Obama” attached to it works, and everything has Obama attached to it. Some of my favorite examples are gun deaths are caused by gun control and mortgage foreclosures were caused by irresponsible (poor) borrowers.

# 6 Never, Ever Admit Any of This

If anyone has the bad form to mention this, accuse him of starting class warfare. Which, as noted by Adam Smith, is going on continuously.

Deepthroat, a Casebook Example of How It’s Done

Senior FBI official Mark Felt secretly leaked information about Nixon’s Watergate intrigues (for personal, not patriotic reasons.) He continued to work for the FBI but was later convicted of unrelated crimes. Not knowing that he was Deepthroat, the courts gave him no prison sent-ence, Reagan pardoned him and higher courts finally over-turned his conviction. He got the benefits of the group, betrayed it, kept in good favor and never suffered for his crimes against the nation he claimed

to serve. He did it all so effectively that most people do not know the true story. Later he got Alzheimer’s Disease and even he didn’t know it, but he kept his gov. benefits. I give Natural Morality a grade of…well, can’t violate Rule 6. Do we see the sorts of things mentioned above actually going on in America? Are these examples of Supreme Court decisions, corporate PR, churches, political campaigns, economic theories, etc. real? Did I just make that stuff up? If you think those things are

really out there, maybe The Natural Moral Code is how it works. <<<<< He’s doing just fine. “Smile and smile and be a villain.”

What do you think?

SebastianSebastianSebastianSebastian Zebadiah Zebadiah Zebadiah Zebadiah Twit, Twit, Twit, Twit, September 2, 2016, 2016

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Later Reflections

As long as you can keep other people paying the bills and the benefits flowing to yourself, YOU’RE GOOD! That was best articulated by George W. Bush. He never served a minute in Vietnam nor felt more discomfort than a hangover in Austin. Decades later he explained the lesson he learned from the Vietnam War.

“You don’t loose if you don’t quit.” Other people suffered, he enjoyed the benefits. Why quit? Finally all world powers collapse in exhaustion. The rich take their profits, move to nice resorts, “sit on the sidelines” and see themselves as smart. The soldiers and taxpayers are dead or impoverished. Then a less hollowed-out society steps in and takes over, and ultimately does the same.

It’s Human Nature and Natural Selection.

The only question is simply put HOW STUPID ARE YOU?

Other Time-Honored Techniques

Relocate: Location is very, very important. Live in safe, prosperous places which are ironically, the neighborhoods of crime families. Unrestrained by law, they keep order.

Associate yourself with popular historic figures and events - All Democrats and even Republicans, now claim that they marched with MLK. In fact, they all opposed him.

Associate with High Status / Powerful Groups, the higher the better: When hated

minorities, Irish, German, Jewish immigrants changed their names and tried to blend in. Now rich and respected, they proudly proclaim their heritage.

Take Bribes! (A Bribe By Any Other Name smells as sweet) – Wall Street firms today routinely hire the wives and children of politicians. Ted Cruz’s wife, the mother of two young children, is a Wall Street executive. Could it just be a bribe? If questioned about your dishonesty…

Assume the moral high ground, use righteous indignation to present yourself as morally outraged, a victim of abuse. Accuse the observant of cynicism, racism, bigotry, anti-Semitism, political agendas, treason, socialism, race warriors, etc. Then carry on as before.

If Moral Outrage Doesn’t Work, Claim Stupidity – It’s no crime to be stupid. It worked for Reagan in Iran Contra, Bush I in the S & L collapse, Bush II in Iraq, etc.

Then think of yourself as simply smarter than everyone else.

The Golden Rule: You do this for me NOW, and I’ll do that for You LATER,

then don’t.

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A Few Famous Practitioners

Josephus (a Hebrew general at Masada) deserted his side, joined the Romans, wrote his version of events, lived long and prospered, is remembered today. ICNBMC!

In Letters From A Birmingham Jail, MLK outlined how all his friends

opposed the movement. It would have upset their finances or status. Today everyone claims to have supported him. ICNBMC!

John F. Kennedy famously said “ask not what your country can do for you, ask rather

what you can do for your country.” What he could do for his country was to become president. What I could do for his country was be an infantryman in Vietnam. ICNBMC!

Condelizza Rice asked “who would have known” that bombing Iraq would make them dislike us? As a small child in “Bombingham,” Alabama, she bene-fited from the civil rights movement, integration, voting rights

laws, etc. Then as an adult, she joined conservatives who opposed everything that had made her life possible. Having joined a high status group, she claimed

stupidity about Iraq and was rewarded with a professorship. ICNBMC!

John Yoo criminally redefined and reinvented torture (defined by the Geneva Convention which he could not change) with the same result. ICNBMC! Hillary Clinton voted for the invasion of Iraq when it was popular.

Later she claimed that she was deceived by Bush. (I and many others were not.) She betrayed her supporters for her personal benefit (to avoid criticism.) Now she claims stupidity and asks for our votes. It will work, because it always does. ICNBMC!

Obama campaigned for government transparency. In office, he demands secrecy for national security, exactly like his predecessor. He is the biggest prosecutor of whistle blowers in our history. Using the Sedition Act of 1917, his behavior is an appalling betrayal of democratic government.

Bush, Romney, etc. raped the economy and then asked for our vote. Now Donald Trump promises to fix everything, completely, in one week but doesn’t say how6. Millions of people support him because well…it always works.

ICNBMC!

The only moral thing is to do the same.

6 Hitler and Nixon are the most famous advocates of I’ll fix it but won’t say how. Each promised peace and prosperity but were actually planning war and disaster.