u/asdfghlkje

Topics as follows:

Septober -

• Resolved: Outer space colonization is a moral imperative.
• Resolved: Keeping wild animals in zoos is immoral.

Nocember -

• Resolved: De-extinction is unethical.
• Resolved: The United States ought to vest ecosystems with legal rights.

Jebruary -

• Resolved: The use of artificial intelligence for offensive military operations is immoral.
• Resolved: The United States ought to substantially increase subsidies for renewable energy.

Mapril

• Resolved: The United States ought to provide a universal basic income.
• Resolved: In a democracy, a candidate for public office’s right to privacy ought to be valued above the public’s right to know.

What are your predictions for what wins?

Hi! I personally believe that it can. However, I am pretty new to philosophy, so please correct me if anything I say below is wrong!

My understanding of moral relativism: It does not deny that moral truth matters; it simply denies that a universal moral truth exists. It argues that morality varies because of the different experiences people have (different cultures, time periods, etc.).

My understanding of utilitarianism: In simple terms, maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain for people, with a focus on consequences.

So then, I would assume that most people agree that pleasure and pain are subjective. Thus, although utilitarianism is "universal" in the sense that it tries to maximize pleasure and minimize pain universally, it seems "relative" in the sense that what is pleasure and what is pain are different from person to person, depending on their experiences.

I guess the question is... if utilitarianism is universally promoting a subjective set of actions, is it really grounded in universal moral truth?

(Especially when the only universal part is saying "People prefer pleasure and dislike pain," which honestly sounds more like a descriptive claim about what "is" and not what "ought" to be.)

I hope what I said at least makes sense! But if its wrong (which it probably is), please let me know!