I enjoyed reading your thoughts this morning. Recently, I listened to an episode from the podcast of Sam Harris on the moral landscape. It came out within recent days. I thought his discussion of the topic of morality deeply interesting and persuasive, and not the norm in addressing the topic. In academic discussions of this it often leaves one going round and round and round endlessly on the topic of morality.
I'm not sure I understand what most people mean by "tolerance."
Do the weak "tolerate" the predations of the strong? Do the ignorant "tolerate" the injustice of which they are unaware? Does a parent "tolerate" the misbehavior of their toddler or their teenager?
If there is something that we judge to be harmful and that we are in a position to address, I would not call the abstention from action tolerance. I think our direct experiences are more accurately characterized as things like cowardice, resignation, uncertainty, curiosity, etc.
Perhaps it helps to think of tolerance as an engineering concept rather than a moral one. In engineering, tolerances are limits, and they are traded off one against another. The aim is for a good fit, not a perfect one. We may be able to talk of a perfect fit, but if we try to instantiate it, we will quickly realize that if we try to push past certain tolerances, we don't get perfection, we get friction leading to breakdowns.
I enjoyed reading your thoughts this morning. Recently, I listened to an episode from the podcast of Sam Harris on the moral landscape. It came out within recent days. I thought his discussion of the topic of morality deeply interesting and persuasive, and not the norm in addressing the topic. In academic discussions of this it often leaves one going round and round and round endlessly on the topic of morality.
Thanks! I'll try and find the podcast and give it a listen. ☺️
🙏
I'm not sure I understand what most people mean by "tolerance."
Do the weak "tolerate" the predations of the strong? Do the ignorant "tolerate" the injustice of which they are unaware? Does a parent "tolerate" the misbehavior of their toddler or their teenager?
If there is something that we judge to be harmful and that we are in a position to address, I would not call the abstention from action tolerance. I think our direct experiences are more accurately characterized as things like cowardice, resignation, uncertainty, curiosity, etc.
Totally agree that the near enemy of tolerance is cowardice. Takes some discernment to figure out which side you're on.
Perhaps it helps to think of tolerance as an engineering concept rather than a moral one. In engineering, tolerances are limits, and they are traded off one against another. The aim is for a good fit, not a perfect one. We may be able to talk of a perfect fit, but if we try to instantiate it, we will quickly realize that if we try to push past certain tolerances, we don't get perfection, we get friction leading to breakdowns.