Study Journal 1

The other type of assignment that we have is a Study Journal: at least three points from each day of the section we're talking about in class. This round is going to be a little short because I've missed a couple days of the module because of goings-on related to recently having had surgery on my wrist. Here goes!

September 8:

• The aim of ethics is to do good and to become good. I'm reminded of the saying that goes something like "Watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character." It's not enough to know what is right and wrong, that knowledge must be ingrained and applied in life.
• Ethics vs. Morals: Then and Now - Aristotle's ethics and morals were the same thing. Today, they're separate concepts. Ethics are secular and evolutionary. Morals are religious and immutable.
• "An ethical man follows, while a moral man acts", which goes hand-in-hand with another thought mentioned in class, "An ethical man knows it's wrong to cheat on his wife, but a moral man wouldn't". Again, the juxtaposition of knowing and doing.

September 15

• "Facts are stupid things until brought into connection with some general law"
• If you're given a fish, don't simply dismiss it, take a closer look. This is related to a reading assignment in which a man studying entomology is given a fish and told to "look". Too many of us don't pay any attention to anything unless we're directly affected by or interested in it. As related to computer science, ethics is the fish - something none of the CS majors really want to talk much about, but need to be concerned with anyway.
• Knowledge in itself is not the end, but the vehicle. It should not simply be gained, but used to do and to become something more.

September 17

• Can laws be unethical? Certainly. Think of Nazi Germany. Think of Missouri's extermination order against the Mormons. Simply because it is passed into law does not make it ethical.
• When you share the gospel, just share the message. Prof. Dougal shared a story with us about sharing from the Doctrine and Covenants with a man with whom he worked. Had this Evangelical Christian man known the source of the scripture, he may well have rejected it, but the word of the Lord is recognizable to any who actually seek to hear it.
• "He that takes offense when it is not intended is a fool. He that takes offense when it is intended is a greater fool" - I believe the quote was from Brigham Young. This is not something with which I struggle, but it is, nonetheless, food for thought. A fool can mistake an innocent comment for an offensive one, but if offense is intended, it is all the more foolish to go along with the intent.