Discussion 1:

The topics that I have chosen are the following: (1) universal statement of human rights;

and (2) refugee (escaping persecution, war, or death) crises. I personally think that both of these

issues are important in our world and there is never a time that both of these topics became

irrelevant. Between these two, the topic on refugee is a more specific topic yet it tackles on many

issues that are relevant in the past and in the present time, especially with how the world

experienced wars in different centuries, which still exists until now.

The existence of war may also be avoided if we allow our own ethical principles to

govern our relationship with other people. The last stage in Kohlbergs six stages of morality

involves a Universal Ethical Principle which is a point in a persons mind where he or she

believes in a societal idea in favor of the people like equality, commitment to justice, etc.

(Omrod, 2010) wsThis is important for people to engage in a dialogue, experiment on different

methodologies, assess these methods and prove of its legitimacy. (Newton, 1998) These

scholarly writings are important on the topics herein described because it is important for a very

relevant issue like that of human rights for the readers to understand fully the topic through the

help of credible authors to whom everyone can rely on. Opinions matter but the perspective done

through a study which is approved by experts on the field could help more in making other

people understand the relevance of the topic.

There are three ways one can critically analyse sources to determine its credibility. First

is to look at the publisher of the article itself. Second is to research on the credentials of the

author. Last, read and scheme the entire article to see if there are inconsistencies. Upon

establishing the all the criteria mentioned, one may establish the credibility of a source, whether

in print or online.

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Ormrod, T. M. (2010, July 20). Kohlberg's Three Levels and Six Stages of Moral Reasoning.

Retrieved October 05, 2017, from https://www.education.com/reference/article/kohlbergs-

moral-reasoning/

Newton, L. (1998). Hale Chair in Applied Ethics. Retrieved from http://www.rit.edu/~w-

ethics/resources/manuals/dgae1p7.html

Discussion 2

According to Newton, Ethics is about human beings (Newton, 1998). Also, Newton

emphasized that humans have minds, or as the philosophers call it, a rational nature (Newton,

1998). We have the sense of what is right or wrong. We have the capacity to discern whether our

acts are ethical or not. These ethical acts are in accordance with our nature as human beings and

these are done for all of us to prosper. Being ethical is also necessary for us to grow, for growth

is always attributed to the things that we do morally.

One ethical dilemma I had was during an exam when I failed to study efficiently. There were

temptations on how I can get by the exam with the assurance that I can indeed still get a high

grade. There is a decision point there on whether to copy answers from my classmates or to abide

by my ethical principles and do the right thing which is to be honest and take the exams based on

the knowledge I have at that moment. Fortunately, I did not give in to the temptation of copying

my classmates answers because the consequences of such immoral act can be more detrimental.

This is where the importance of liberal arts comes in. If it were not for the liberal arts subjects

in college, being morally upright in every challenging situation could be harder for me. With all

the liberal education that I took up in college, I learned to think holistically and be mature

enough to discern what is moral from immoral. This also implies that an educated man has the

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duty to influence other people to be ethical. With all the knowledge that a college-educated

person has, he or she can help other people who did have the same education that he had to

further understand the true meaning of being ethical.

Reference:

Newton, L. (1998). Hale Chair in Applied Ethics. Retrieved from http://www.rit.edu/~w-

ethics/resources/manuals/dgae1p7.html

Response to Peers:

(1) One of my classmates mentioned that to be ethical means to do more than what is

merely acceptable. An example would be that of influencing others by directly telling

them whether their acts are ethical or not, regardless if that person listens or not. I

agree to this statement because as human beings, we ought to not just practice ethics

but to also make others practice it. A personal act of one may have no major effect to

the society but an act which prompts others to be morally upright leads to a more

prosperous community of rational beings.

(2) Another classmate emphasized that to be ethical means to be responsible with ones

actions and that one should also think first before acting. This is also a relevant take

on being ethical because as rational beings, what is expected from us is that we can

think and discern right from wrong. We can eliminate our animalistic tendencies by

thinking. As human beings, we do have a decision point in each of our actions and

this is exclusive to rational beings. We may all have the tendency to be irrational

because of our emotions but the mind should always be dominant in every decision

point.

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(3) According to one of my classmates, ethics has standard principles and does not vary

from one person to another or from one culture to another. Regardless of ones race,

place of birth or background, all men must have the sense of what is right or wrong.

This is true and if only this perspective on ethics is abided by all countries, there

could be fewer conflicts and if so, these conflicts can be resolved through dialogue

and not through the use of arms. By having a standard view of ethics, people may

give more importance to the value of life.

(4) Lastly, the importance of listening has been emphasized by one of my classmates

when it comes to being ethical. This listening is used for the conscience, which is

very essential with how human beings discern whether their acts are ethical or not. By

this conscience, men are directed towards choosing what their heart tells them to be

the right action in a particular situation. It is sad that most people do not listen to their

conscience and just act based on what benefits themselves, and not what is best for

the entire community. By listening to ones conscience, selfishness may be eradicated

and selflessness may prosper.