The Materialistic Culture and The Relativist Moral Standard
-- Introduction --
I cannot be passive. I just cannot just sit around and do nothing while I watch the corruption spreads everywhere all around me.
I just can't remain silent, and if there is any way at all, in which one can express his opinion without judging anyone, or without hurting anyone, then I am trying to follow this way to the hardest of my efforts. The last thing I mean is to hurt anyone in any way. I am prepared to do everything for all people that are not present on this page, just as well as those who are present.
So I do not speak because I am evil or because I wish to do anyone any harm. No, but because I consider it my duty to speak, and it is the reason why I read everything I read. And the reason why I study.
Always remember that I am fallible. And no one is without mistake.
Relativism vs. Absolutism:
What does it mean to have a relative moral principle or standard? It means to be selfish, to be driven by interest and profit, and to have the least concern about the other. To be relative, is equivalent to being a robot. Because it means to transfer the standard from an absolute, to the self. I think this is what they call Individualism.
In my opinion, individualism, relativism, and consumption, all have a single materialistic root. I will do my best to transfer my understanding to you.
I will describe now that being morally relative is in some cases, disgusting. Relativity is what is automatically promoted (whether intentionally or unintentionally) when spreading the ideology of consumption and consumerism (which vitalises Capitalism):
The following scenario happened to me in person, and I have heard the same story from other people:
Scenario 1:
That a father says: "my son owes me £20" when he really means it.
Absolutism point of view: The father is very selfish, because a child is the parents' life, the child is the parents' joy and they will ALWAYS do the best they can to educate the child, and give the child the best they can provide.
Relativism perspective: There is no such thing as ALWAYS, and in this case the absolute standard becomes relative to the interest of the parent. This is when the parent treats the child as a stranger, and he considers the child as nothing more than a burden. This is the reason why many western capitalist countries suffer from low birthrates, because the young are "enjoying it while it lasts". As you can see, it is a very materialistic perspective.
I will write another 2 scenarios in a later post.
Scenario 2:
When changing one's spouse is as easy as changing a pair of shoes. (Please note that in reality matters are much more complicated than this simple case. Here I am not judging anyone but only evaluating behaviours (keep in mind that I am not a philosopher/ethicist)).
Absolutism: from an absolutist perspective, the measure is love itself (in other words: sacrifice). This means that one loves his/her only spouse, respects and appreciates her/him and does all he/she can for her/him, despite all difficulty that the couple might ever face. The priority is ALWAYS given to the relationship/marriage itself.
Relativism: from a relative perspective, there is no absolute measure, there is no such thing as 'love will always last'. Love in this case depends. Depends on what? It depends on the best interest of at least one of the two spouses. In other words, the other is regarded as an object, once this object no longer suits me, I have no problem getting rid of him/her. This is equivalent to a spouse constantly asking himself/herself the question: does he/she suit me? And at the moment something does not suit the spouse anymore, the spouse walks away as if nothing ever happened, often leaving behind children. Often in this case you hear people saying things like: my spouse is leaving me because he/she found a better job in London (seeking his/her interest regardless of the other person). The spouse in this case does not care. A very selfish behaviour.
Scenario 3
(prevalent on a global scale due to globalisation, I.e. marketing efforts by multinational corporations owned by first world billionaires spreading first world consumption ideology):
When one says: "OOOOOOOOOH!!!! Oh Em Gee O M G I can't wait until eyefone 13 is realeasedddd so I can buy it!!! (he just bought eyefone 12.9 last month). Or when a grownup man says: “I can’t wait until I get the promotion at work so I can drive the new Porsche!" (He drives an ‘old’ 2012 Mercedes).
This is very common, and this is the result of the consumerism ideology. People are simple brainwashed with advertisements day and night, all brainwashing and trying to convince people with one thing: the more you consume the happier you will get.
Absolutist perspective: An absolutist golden measure sets a higher priority to the other, than the self. And this is where true happiness comes from: from giving. So the latest/smartest/fastest eyefone or car do not matter. And money can be spent instead on different kinds of pleasures.
Relativist perspective: You get it the rest.