Are we born with a moral core?

[Trilecce]

So, why aren't we all good?

We choose who we are good to. No one is thoroughly evil.

[Maria Sharapova]

It always irritates me when the discussion of good vs evil, free will, ect is brought up for didcussion. The word "Evil" and its application to humans/the human brain is such an illusive concept. Often when people ask this question its almost as though they ask without realising that the brain is, for the most part, 50-100 billion nerve cells or neurons that constantly interact with each other "carying" messages through electrochemical processes; meaning, chemicals in our body (charged sodium, potassium and chloride ions) move in and out of these cells and establish an electrical current. To derive "evil" from this complex biological process, for me, is absurd to say the least.

[Peterski]

It always irritates me when the discussion of good vs evil, free will, ect is brought up for didcussion. The word "Evil" and its application to humans/the human brain is such an illusive concept. Often when people ask this question its almost as though they ask without realising that the brain is, for the most part, 50-100 billion nerve cells or neurons that constantly interact with each other "carying" messages through electrochemical processes; meaning, chemicals in our body (charged sodium, potassium and chloride ions) move in and out of these cells and establish an electrical current. To derive "evil" from this complex biological process, for me, is absurd to say the least.

You just very superficially described the discernible surface of these processes taking place in the brain, but not the forces behind them. For me as a law student the concepts of good and evil are very useful. Whether you blame evil on chemical processes or on free will, it is essential that evil should be rooted out the society - we need to punish accordingly and isolate from the rest of the society people who do evil.

[War Chef]

Sounds like a Christian dilemma of some built-in conscience. The argument is often used to explain how Eskimo's could still get to heaven without knowing who Christ was (before missionaries arrived).

The way I see it, anything that stirs up the waves in my mind & disturbs its calm should be avoided.
I know if I punch a random old man in the face I wouldn't sleep well that night.
I don't want to aggravate my mind, & for some odd reason whatever I do to another affects my mind, even if on the surface I'm not bothered by it, something is boiling beneath my awareness.

I wonder how Stalin slept at night.

[de Burgh II]

When we are quite young, we merely have a naive outlook of the world around us painted to us through the societies we grow up in. Our cognition at this stage isn't fully developed yet; which is why we have a more "optimistic," carefree attitude which makes these minds more malleable to the norms and standards of society to abide by.

Nevertheless, before I digress too far away at the topic at hand, our mind is more "self/ego-centered" on their own needs because their minds haven't developed to the point where our mind's cognition extends beyond ourselves. Thus, our own "moral core" is a byproduct of our own experiences and teachings we are instilled with. Depending on a person's empathy for others will determine how "significant" our "moral core" will be in terms of potency.

[ÁGUIA]

It seems we do, interesting.

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/02/12/us...-morals-ac360/

[Hàkon]

It seems we do, interesting.

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/02/12/us...-morals-ac360/

They call it moral, I call it strategic; the babies favour the doll that is most helpful, i.e. most useful in terms of survival.

You just superficially described the discernible surface of these processes taking place in the brain, but not the forces behind them. For me as a law student the concept of evil is very useful. Whether you blame evil on chemical processes or on free will (if you believe in it), it is essential that evil should be rooted out the society - we need to punish accordingly and isolate from the rest of the society people who do evil.

The driving force is survival.

We partly owe our existance to cooperation, that is why what is deemed good is often synonymous with what creates social stability; having players of the same game play by the same rules makes for the fairest, most predictable and least violent kind of game.

I consider evil and good convenient definitions of propensities we all share; we take the path of least resistance once there's incentive (with incentive itself being multivariable).

Our ability to conceive of evil and good is inherent - if we can think of something, we are also able to gather the means to do it.
It all comes down to what tools we have at hand and what our situation asks of us.

[Sekarotuinen]

I believe that we are given our morality by God, and becoming closer to Him, strengthens your moral compass.