Gato_Solo
Out-freaking-standing OTC member
Sorry cat but we've been having similar problems since I was a kid (and probably long before that). Remember legionnaires disease? AIDS started over two decades ago. Christ when I was in my twenties we had people poisoning bottles of Tylenol. Remember "post-traumatic stress disorder?" When I was a kid a lot of vets had it but everyone called it "shell-shock." I don't really think the incidence has increased so much as it's gotten shoved in your face more. I will say this though. The politics of fear has gotten a lot more prevalent over the last ten years or so. There's not more to be afraid of, but there is a much higher percentage of "authority figures" telling you that you should be afraid. It's a way to keep the sheeple in line. If you say it enough it becomes the reality. Don't let yourself fall victim to it, you're to good a person for that.
For the vast majority of people, ethics are strictly situational.
Here's an example:
Is it okay to kill someone? Depends on the circumstances, doesn't it? Don't the ten commandments say "Thou shalt not kill?" I can't remember any "depending on the circumstances" part but virtually everyone who accepts the ten commandments interprets it this way. I'll bet my criteria for killing someone are similar to yours but I'll also bet that they're not exactly the same. I consider myself ethical and from what I know of you I think you are too. Which one of us isn't really? I don't think there's a correct answer to that question.
Re greed, it's a survival trait. It's not necessarily needed right now to survive but I very much suspect that one day it will be again.
Umm...A couple of things. The original Hebrew text said "murder", not kill. Through time, and laziness, it transformed into 'kill'. Most of this came about during the reformation, but I digress...
Circumstances are the key to all behavior. Even soley perceived circumstances. Doesn't matter your upbringing, your training, or your convictions. Under the proper circumstances we could all be rapists, murderers, or thieves. There, but for the grace of God, go I...