Are you a universalist or a particularist?

**Tooting Carmen** · 10-06-2019, 08:15 PM

In other words, which of the sentences do you agree with more?

(1) "What is right in one society must be right in all societies".
(2) "Each society has its own culture, mores and ways of operating, and let that be that".

**Tooting Carmen** · 10-06-2019, 10:17 PM

Anyone?

**Tooting Carmen** · 10-07-2019, 01:25 PM

bump

**Peterski** · 10-07-2019, 01:28 PM

Something in-between those two options. It depends on the subject of controversy.

Some things are universally right and if you do it differently, you just do it wrong.

Other things can be done in many different ways, all of which are equally right.

**Tooting Carmen** · 10-07-2019, 01:34 PM

Originally Posted by Peterski

Something in-between those two options. It depends on the subject of controversy.

Some things are universally right and if you do it differently, you just do it wrong.

Other things can be done in many different ways, all of which are equally right.

That's more-or-less how I feel too. All the same, I do believe there is a battle emerging between those who believe in a single language, culture and politics for all of humanity, and those who have a more pluralistic outlook.

**Tooting Carmen** · 10-07-2019, 01:39 PM

Take the issue of the death penalty, for example. I personally oppose it because I think it is a very dangerous power for the State to have, and also you cannot bring the person back to life if he/she is subsequently found to be innocent. Nevertheless, I respect the right of sovereign nations to maintain it if they so wish, which is in contrast to what NGOs like Amnesty International advocate, where even democratic nations like US, India and Japan that retain it are thus automatically blacklisted.

**Tooting Carmen** · 11-28-2019, 07:46 PM

bump

**Latinus** · 12-04-2019, 11:20 PM

More like 2, unless some of their customs are barbaric and harmful.
I remember reading somewhere about some tribes whose males have to endure some horrible/painful manhood tests/rites of passages in order to become "real men", I think that's completely stupid/humiliating/harmful, and it should be abolished.