Comment on there is a special place in hell for these scientists

• Sturgist@lemmy.ca ⁨19⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  Science and Ethics — the age old enmity between “I wanna know” and “I’m not allowed to find out” “Am I able to find out without doing something monstrously inhumane”

  FTFY

  source

  • luciferofastora@feddit.org ⁨18⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    I simplified for comedic effect. You’re absolutely right that the “compromise” would be finding some humane and ethical solution, but “The most effective and direct way of finding out is cruel and callous” isn’t quite as snappy.

    I guess my point is that sometimes even if it’s illegal you can get away with it if done correctly, with ruling party aligned stated goals…or you have access to a shit tonne of money and powerful friends.

    That kinda dodges the conflict by not engaging with ethical concerns at all. I feel like calling it a solution would be morbid, but it does make the problem stop being a problem…

    source

    • Sturgist@lemmy.ca ⁨17⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

      That kinda dodges the conflict by not engaging with ethical concerns at all.

      I guess I…kinda lost the plot a bit when I wrote the second part, eh?

      There’s ethics…and then there’s what the government in the country a scientist operates in views as “morally and ethically acceptable”.
      Stem cell research was banned in most places for a long time. The US is banning CRISPR, if I remember right, the OG Nazis, Soviets and Empire of Japan (and honestly basically everyone else too, just those are the three that were highlighted when I was in school) rubber-stamped and funded research that should warrant execution by vivisection…die by your own methods and all that.

      You’re right it’s not really a solution. However the realities of modern society means that there’s room within what is morally and ethically acceptable in any country to operate in both a humane and inhumane fashion. And if it doesn’t then money and connections to those in power allow further leeway to be an example of humanity at it’s best…or a monster in a human suit…

      source

      • luciferofastora@feddit.org ⁨11⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

        I guess I…kinda lost the plot a bit when I wrote the second part, eh?

        I think I got where you were going, I was just saying that someone trying to find a way around the legal restrictions indicates they’re not actually concerned about ethics, just about not getting in trouble for it. In that context, the problem “How do I do this in an ethically acceptable manner?” is “solved” with the answer “I don’t care”.

        Generally, laws are the standard solution to ambiguities. Ethics are a murky and often subjective topic, so it makes sense to form some sort of common agreement on what is okay and what isn’t. And where there are laws, there are gonna be cunts proving exactly why we had to write it down in the first place…

        source