On Liking Moral Things

I am not sure that this puts one in the same boat as the Pharisee, but if you like traditionally moral things, well that is not quite the same as making moral choices. It is certainly helpful to feel a strong, powerful urge to decent, moral, domesticity- far more easy to simply adhere the the rule set. If the rule was Thou Shalt Not Eat Chocolate, and you had a strong preference for the much blessed Butter Pecan, well, you are simply not making the same sacrifice as the one who really likes chocolate.

There is, perhaps, another point to be made, in that it is getting a lot harder to actually get the moral things, and those that like the moral things are, in large part responsible, because those that like moral things don't go on much about expanding the moral franchise, so that more people can have moral things. For instance, they look at the merely shacked-up and say, 'tut-tut' and don't put much thought into how fraught with danger modern marriage law, feminism, and lack of decent jobs has made things. The moral infrastructure is in terrible disrepair; to some extent at least, it would do you well to think about moral things like products- if moral things are available, then more people will choose them, and even some of those that I mentioned above who don't like moral things might do so, for people are occasionally convinced by your moral arguments.

Occasionally, too, an immoral thing can go under the radar, rationalized because it props up, improves, cares for, or maintains all your lovely moral things.

Anyway, there are a great many moral things I like, and I've recently watched the first season of House of Cards, and the Underwoods don't appear to like moral things at all. If they were to try and be moral, well they'd almost immediately be more moral than me, since they would be choosing what to do out of principle, rather than simply liking moral things. I do have principles as well, but they are moral things too, and since I like them, in one sense my collection of them is no more morally impressive than the philatelist's collection of stamps.