- Capitalism and Alternatives -

you a chemical reaction?

Posted by: Gee ( si ) on September 08, 1999 at 11:23:27:

In Reply to: 'Self-interest' still explains nothing posted by Samuel Day Fassbinder on September 07, 1999 at 22:31:11:

: SDF: How so?

Supporting leaves during hard times drains too much. Hence they lose them.

: SDF: Nope. It tells us that the central point for YOU is him and his values, because YOUR IDEOLOGY believes this to be so. We still HAVEN'T BEGUN an exploration of why people do what they do.

Then lets look at your view of people as reactive chemicals whose behaviour ha nothing to do with anything except which 'chemical' happens to be mixing with it at anotehr time. That tells us absolutely nothing (and does bring up the contradiction that you appear to occlude yourself from it, or are you bounf to answer this in a certain way because its caused the appropriate reaction)

: SDF: "Self-interest" still means nothing. People are not motivated by "themselves," they have real, nameable motivations. Lust, altruism, hunger, curiosity, pleasure, agony, each of these explains something. "Self-interest" doesn't.

Each of the above are values relates to self. You save your brother because *you* value his life, you buy a mars bar because *you* want one, you want to find out about bicycle gears because *you* believe its useful knowledge.


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