Arguing from American Ethical Standards

1.      Ethical Argument Overview 2.      Narrowing Your Ideas for the Ethical Argument a.        Arguing from the Christian Ethical Standard b.      Arguing from American Ethical Standards c.       Arguing from Medical Ethical Standards 3.      Common Mistakes 4.      BRAINSTORMING 5.      Steps-to-Success

Arguing from American Ethical Standards

The chart of ethical principles (below) may assist you if you are writing an ethical argument using American Laws as your ethical standard for proof/defense.

American ethical standard Declaration of Independence The Constitution/Bill of Rights Ethical Principles: ·         All ‘men’ have rights. ·         “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (HERE). ·         Natural/Inalienable Rights: Rights which belong to us by nature and can only be justly abridged through due process. Examples are life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness (HERE). The government must secure and protect all American humans’ natural right to life, liberty, and property. ·         Humans (children) are not property. ·         Private Property: The natural rights of all individuals to create, obtain, and control their possessions, beliefs, faculties, and opinions, as well as the fruits of their labor (HERE). One’s life is his/her own not another’s to control. ·         One human’s rights can only extend until they bump up against another human’s rights. When one’s freedoms overlap my freedoms, then a limit must be made. ·         Equality: All individuals have the same status regarding their claim as human beings to natural rights and treatment under the law (HERE). ·         Liberty: Except where authorized by citizens through the Constitution, government does not have the authority to limit freedom (HERE). ·         Limited Government: Citizens are best able to pursue happiness when government is confined to those powers which protect their life, liberty, and property(HERE). ·         Private Virtue: The idea that, in order to sustain liberty, individuals must be knowledgeable and must conduct themselves according to principles of moral and ethical excellence, consistent with their rights and obligations (HERE). ·         Civic Virtue: A set of actions and habits necessary for the safe, effective, and mutually beneficial participation in a society (HERE). NOTE: The content above is not all-inclusive of American ethics.  These areas are simply agreed-upon standards of the laws of America.