Would you say that our survival insticts are the basis for our moral decisions, ie i dont kill you simply because there is no benefit turning into it feeling wrong in the future over time.
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cdPlaya363
ANSWERS: 2
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There is a certain primitive level of moral constraint which is driven by survival: this is mostly just the fear of consequences. In a complex social network, there are many unwritten rules which guide behavior, and those who learn the rules and the consequences for violating them tend to get more "benefits". But this is a very low level of moral development -- I would call it "pre-adolescent", because it's the kind of morality a child has: break the rules and you get punished. There are a number of important levels of moral development which are more mature than this, including abstract morality (right and wrong as general abstractions), social responsibility (I'm responsible for making things work around me because it's my world), and universal identity (I see myself as having a shared identity with others).
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I would day that it is much, much more sophisticated than this, the level of logic you describe is appropriate, perhaps, to ants an similar. In the particular case of humans, we have a fantastically sophisticated system of communication, of rewards and services. If I leave you alive, the range of services you can afford me are enormous. Even if you don't become my sexual partner (if you are the appropriate sex), you can guard my children, share your food with me, protect my back, take a turn of the night watches, give me a leg up, hunt with me... Dead, you are so much meat, which will go off if not eaten - and no more. I am not stupid. Co-operation, if you will do it too - is fantastically better then merely not killing each other. THE big trick of humanity is realizing this. And THE big losers are those who don't realize this and try to fight society.
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