Is an immoral person simply another individual who's values oppose yours?

Question

Female rape for instance. Some have no problem with it. Others do. Who's right and who's wrong? Or are both belief systems justified?

Answer 1

There are certain universal values that are held by the vast majority of humankind. Acting in opposition to these values is immoral. Committing an unprovoked act of violence, such as rape, against another person is wrong and immoral.

Answer 2

Anything which invades another's personal space/freedom without their consent is criminal.

Answer 3

It depends on what we're talking about. If someone says that rape in any of its forms is acceptable, I would call them immoral. If they say that all rape should be answered by the death penalty, I would disagree, but the death penalty is acceptable for a lot more people than rape is.

Answer 4

Any system of morals includes those things that we have acquired from our upbringing and adopted as our own in later life.

To claim that immorality lies only in this who believe differently is arrogance in my opinion.  Even if I am essentially a good person (in my eyes and those of others), I will still have moral's that close friends might have issues with.

I would make the claim that actions such as rape- with a female or male victim- lie without the common set of moral values that we claim to hold dear as a society.  True, there are those who can develop a belief that accepts such things as rape as morally neutral, or even good, but these people can rarely get along with the bulk of western society.

Certain other civilisations in the past, and cultures today, have developed around different moral codes to those we accept today.

It is not even as simple as saying that only beliefs that cause no harm to others, physical or otherwise are "good morals".  History has shown that which I might constitute as such today was not so by most people at some point, somewhere in the past.  Even definitions such as "rape" have altered over time, and even within our society today.  Examples include:

Those cultures who use sexual violence as a means to control others, or;

Some feminists who hold that only males can actually commit the legal act of rape, or;

The historical view in some cultures that forced s*x beween husband and wife cannot constitute rape because "the man has a right to s*x with his wife".

This does not mean that I am unaccountable for my beliefs and morals, and the actions that derive from them.  It does mean that, in some aspects of life, my morals may differ from the bulk of the rest of my community or peers, but it is up to me to decide what I believe to be right, and accept any consequences should I transgress social or legal boundaries.

This is a good question, but not one that can be easily answered.

Gadgitgirl...: "Wrong is wrong" is actually, um, wrong.  What constitutes right and wrong is not, and never has been, a fixed concept in just about any circumstance.  Even murder has been seen as right by some people, and at certain times accoding to laws in some places.

Answer 5

Rape is a crime which reinforces the abjectification of a person...all about exerting power, control and dominance, predicated on the fact that they physically out power, or terrify their victim...men also experience rape, but by other men! For some 'people' to have no problem with that makes me shudder, as that's not just a difference of a opinion thats moral bankruptcy and we may as well admit to having lesser morals than the beasts in the field!

Answer 6

Wrong is wrong. Simple. Even if you look at "voice of reality's" (haha yeah right) answer you will see. By him using rape as punishment instead of a joy should show you that even those who are grossly ok with it understand that it is bad and immoral. So basically, yes everyone know it's bad, some don't care.

However other things that are based on morals can be debated.

Edit*

Owains, Don't confuse something so simple. There are things that are clearly bad. There are also things that are debatable. I'm not going to agree that someone who rapes or murders may be morally upright, I don't care whats going on in their head, its wrong. I suppose do on to others as you would have done to you, If you wouldn't mind being bent over and screwed against your will, or you wouldn't mind someone breaking in or kidnapping your children and killing them, I suppose then, this line could possibly be a little blurry..

I agree that some moral convictions are taught. However, I don't agree that they are not immoral if its ok in their head, it makes them f*cked in the brain.  Call me judgmental but I live by an easy set of rules.

Answer 7

Rape is immoral; what's even more immoral is those girls who use rape to get revenge and or an excuse as to why they turned up pregnant; I have met a few of those in my day.  A woman and or man who has really been raped would know and understand how demoralizing it really is; the last thing they'd be doing is using it as an exuse or a tactic of revenge; what a sick and revolting thought..  

To answer your major question; no the person is not immoral who disagrees with me; they just disagree.

Answer 8

Many people do seem to define morality simply by the concepts they agree with and those they don't.

I think there are absolutes - murder, child abuse, violent assault etc. - and that's what the law is for. We need to have a basic line; society couldn't function if people who thought murder was morally acceptable were allowed to kill as many people as they wanted.

The closest to an objective definition is immorality is any act that affects other people negatively without their consent. But of course, some issues are still not clear; some people believe abortion is morally wrong because the child doesn't have a choice, others don't believe an unborn baby is yet a human being.

I think morality is a personal characteristic... we all have our own set of morals, based on our own experiences. There are different levels of morality too - with some things, we can accept that other people may have a different opinion and not judge them for it. With other issues, like rape, most people would be shocked at someone who thought it was acceptable. I guess we have to go by the law in that case, although the law does get it wrong sometimes.

Society's morals change over time, but I think in the end we have to trust our instincts, and take each situation as an individual case.

Interesting question!

Answer 9

Huh?

Anyone who thinks any rape is OK has no sense of morals.

No, morals aren't up for grabs, are not whim or arbitrary preference.

Harming others is immoral, for instance.

Answer 10

If you ask this question seriously then you have gained very much respect in my eyes.  The question of societal views vs. an individual.  

Is it really unjustified to rape anyone?  Or... are there some who deserve it?   I truly believe some deserve it.  Though, I would not break such a law since it's consequences are far too harsh in a general sense.

Anyone who uses s*x as a tool to manipulate someone deserves to be raped, as far as I'm concerned.  That's what we call eye for an eye.  Even if it's the left one for the right one. (I mean aside from a few free drinks at the bar)

Sure, any random idiot can simply accept that "OOOOOh!  my god!  rape is totally bad!  It's the worst! OMG OMG OMG fruity toot cakes!  Well, that's what everyone else says, even the TV!  Whoa like totally whoa!"

But it takes someone with a mind of their own to question such a thing.

Kris W brings up a good point.  For some odd reason, the fools of society have chosen to believe that rape is worse than murder.  Well....  You give me a call next time you're murdered and we'll see just how good you feel that at least you weren't raped.  'nuff said.

Answer 11

As far as I am aware rape is a criminal offense - or did I miss something?

Answer 12

Not immoral but to set up rape as an ultimate crime is selfish.

   Murder comes to mind as the ultimate crime.

Then again all violence is wrong.

No one thinks rape is " no big deal". Just some think it is more serious than other heinous crimes.

        Anything can be justified.

  If you can  believe in something even if you stand alone  against many then it is more than likely to be right.

      

If you only have the "courage" to believe in something when in the company of like minded people then more often than not it is wrong.

Answer 13

Well it's more of a majority rule thing. Immorality is relevant to the society in question. In order to make your belief system justified, you just have to either outnumber, or outgun your opponent. Though hopefully most people agree rape is wrong.

Answer 14

No. The beliefs of an immoral person are self-contradictory. This leads to more or less immoral actions. Whom he or she speaks against is irrelevant.