03-14-2007, 01:50 PM
The fact that you're online and behind the screen of your computer does not exempt you from being a moral person. Cheating, for example, is explicitly not condoned on the site. The veil of the internet has brought danger to our moral well-being. It seems the excuse of being someone else online, by having other goals than you might have in real life, such as training or getting weapons, by having your own unique name that separates you from others. But this separation doesnt merely end between you and other plays, but between yourself and your morals.
This is obviously a broad topic, so I want to break it down to a particular case: stat-altering items. I feel that there hasn't been a real breakdown of why we, the Battledome public, generally dont condone the use of these items. And, in the wake of the Scroll Potion, I will apply this argument to rationally prove why we should, as players and people, to stop the use of these stat altering items.
The General Thesis:
I will begin the argument with a strong leverage point: All of what we think is good and bad in REAL LIFE ought to be applied equally on Neopets. There are, of course, limits to this argument. The site's games condone heavy gambling, which in real life would be a huge concern. It also would condone fighting as a form of entertainment, and so forth. My argument, however, does not claim that we shouldn't do these things such as battle - that's the whole point of the game. However, our behavior is not exempt. How we treat one another is what this leverage point entails.
With that being said, things like stealing from others, verbally abusing others, scamming others, and so forth, should not be condoned on the site.
To staple this point: The Golden Rule best explains this above argument, that there are things that we do and dont condone. The Golden Rule is a rational explanation for what we ought to do. For example, if you do not wish to be stolen from, then stealing from others is something that you should not do.
Thus, the argument for stat altering items is taking form: If you dont want your hard worked items disappear into thin air, then you should not do it to others. If you do not want your pet, that has been painted a rare color, to be turned in a Yellow Chia, then you should not do that to others. If you do not want to lose 5 Intelligence points, then you should not do that to others.
I think I raised a couple of eyebrows. That last sentence seems to evade most people, that is, they think "Whats so bad about 5 Intelligence points?"
My first response is an argument from principle: the notion that you took something that does not belong to you, no matter the value or quantity, is still a wrong action. For example, if I broke into your home (when you were not home) and stole a penny, this would still be theft due to principle. I invaded your privacy (a principle), sifted through your belongings, and stole a penny (a principle). In principle, taking what does not belong to you is also bad. This argument is in conjunction with the next argument.
My second argument is from the Golden Rule: If you dont want 5 Intelligence points taken from you, then you should not take it from others.
Some people have a problem with that. Some think that it's such a minute amount that it would not matter. The problem is, a vast majority agree that they would not want a single stat point taken away from them, no matter how minute. The few that deviate from this agreement only show moral depravity from a group that agrees this should not be condoned (mainly due to principle).
Lastly, some argue that the Scroll Potion exists as an item, therefore it should be allowed to be used.
This argument I find to be a direct concern: Dont weapons, bombs, and our physical strength in real life allow us to take the lives of others? The mere existence of an object does not allow you to automatically condone its use. Drugs, for example, exist, but the fact that is has a multitude of reasons not to do it gives a compelling case against the usage. The point is, just because an item exists doesnt make its use acceptable.
The argument is simple, and I know I cant exhaust the many arguments that exist for and against usage, but I want people to (hopefully) comment on this so we can have a discussion about whether or not we ought to be able to use items like the Scroll Potion.
This is obviously a broad topic, so I want to break it down to a particular case: stat-altering items. I feel that there hasn't been a real breakdown of why we, the Battledome public, generally dont condone the use of these items. And, in the wake of the Scroll Potion, I will apply this argument to rationally prove why we should, as players and people, to stop the use of these stat altering items.
The General Thesis:
I will begin the argument with a strong leverage point: All of what we think is good and bad in REAL LIFE ought to be applied equally on Neopets. There are, of course, limits to this argument. The site's games condone heavy gambling, which in real life would be a huge concern. It also would condone fighting as a form of entertainment, and so forth. My argument, however, does not claim that we shouldn't do these things such as battle - that's the whole point of the game. However, our behavior is not exempt. How we treat one another is what this leverage point entails.
With that being said, things like stealing from others, verbally abusing others, scamming others, and so forth, should not be condoned on the site.
To staple this point: The Golden Rule best explains this above argument, that there are things that we do and dont condone. The Golden Rule is a rational explanation for what we ought to do. For example, if you do not wish to be stolen from, then stealing from others is something that you should not do.
Thus, the argument for stat altering items is taking form: If you dont want your hard worked items disappear into thin air, then you should not do it to others. If you do not want your pet, that has been painted a rare color, to be turned in a Yellow Chia, then you should not do that to others. If you do not want to lose 5 Intelligence points, then you should not do that to others.
I think I raised a couple of eyebrows. That last sentence seems to evade most people, that is, they think "Whats so bad about 5 Intelligence points?"
My first response is an argument from principle: the notion that you took something that does not belong to you, no matter the value or quantity, is still a wrong action. For example, if I broke into your home (when you were not home) and stole a penny, this would still be theft due to principle. I invaded your privacy (a principle), sifted through your belongings, and stole a penny (a principle). In principle, taking what does not belong to you is also bad. This argument is in conjunction with the next argument.
My second argument is from the Golden Rule: If you dont want 5 Intelligence points taken from you, then you should not take it from others.
Some people have a problem with that. Some think that it's such a minute amount that it would not matter. The problem is, a vast majority agree that they would not want a single stat point taken away from them, no matter how minute. The few that deviate from this agreement only show moral depravity from a group that agrees this should not be condoned (mainly due to principle).
Lastly, some argue that the Scroll Potion exists as an item, therefore it should be allowed to be used.
This argument I find to be a direct concern: Dont weapons, bombs, and our physical strength in real life allow us to take the lives of others? The mere existence of an object does not allow you to automatically condone its use. Drugs, for example, exist, but the fact that is has a multitude of reasons not to do it gives a compelling case against the usage. The point is, just because an item exists doesnt make its use acceptable.
The argument is simple, and I know I cant exhaust the many arguments that exist for and against usage, but I want people to (hopefully) comment on this so we can have a discussion about whether or not we ought to be able to use items like the Scroll Potion.