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September 28, 2006
Lee Harris: The Pen, the Sword and the Pontiff
When moral midgets attempt to transform questions about the nature of Islam into questions of morality, their reasoning usually runs like this: "if we say so-and-so about Islam, certain negative consequences will follow, therefore, we must not say so-and-so about Islam." Leaving aside the consequences of not saying certain truths about Islam, what is our moral duty to truth itself? Lee Harris explains: The Pen, the Sword and the Pontiff
[...]The argument underlying this attack may be summarized as follows: Morally responsible speech or writing must take into account the consequences that such speech or writing may have on others. If it is bound to inflame certain groups, to cause the death of innocent people, to increase tensions, and to endanger whole communities, then it is morally wrong to engage in such speech or writing, and anyone who does so deserves to be attacked by all morally responsible people.The ethical issue that is raised by Madeleine Bunting is no trivial one, and it should gravely concern us all. Morally responsible human beings should always be aware of the consequences of both their words and their actions on others. Yet morally responsible human beings also have another duty, and it is an equally solemn one -- it is the duty that they owe to their intellectual conscience.[...]
Posted by Ruy Diaz at September 28, 2006 8:59 AM
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