This is perhaps one of the most fundamental philosophical questions. Addressing this question brings us to a philosophical fork in the road, and how we answer will likely have fairly major consequences for our lives.
Is there an ought? Is there at least one thing that people should (ought to) do?
I’m not talking about conditional oughts, such as “If you want to maximize your fuel efficiency, then you ought to be sure your tires are properly inflated.” No, I’m talking about a universal ought that applies to people just because they are people. Here are some simple (and perhaps, not too controversial) examples of what some might suggest should be valid oughts:
- People ought to have healthy eating habits.
- People ought to stay indoors during lightning storms.
- People ought to refrain from murder.
I’ll write more on this topic in the future, but I wanted to get the question on the record now as I’m currently working on this notion (and particularly, its implications) quite a lot.
Jack
