IS RIGHT BLACK AND WHITE?

IS RIGHT BLACK AND WHITE?

What makes us human? What distinguishes and separates us from the technology that is being developed which emulates and even betters what we can do ourselves? One differentiator is ethics.

One of the arguments against Artificial Intelligence is that it will have no lived knowledge of right and wrong; that it may not behave ethically.

Does AI know what ethics is? We asked it. And this is what it said.

‘Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is the philosophical study of moral principles and values, focusing on what is right or wrong in human conduct. It examines normative questions about how people ought to behave and the principles that guide ethical decision-making. 

Here's a more detailed explanation:

Definition:

Ethics is a system of moral principles that guides our behavior and helps us make choices about what is right and wrong. 

Scope:

Ethics encompasses various aspects of human behavior, including individual actions, societal norms, and professional conduct. 

Key Concepts:

Moral Principles: These are fundamental beliefs about what is right or wrong, good or bad. 

Normative Ethics: This branch of ethics focuses on establishing moral standards and principles. 

Applied Ethics: This branch deals with applying ethical principles to real-world situations and dilemmas. 

Metaethics: This branch explores the nature and origin of moral judgments and values. 

Examples of Ethical Considerations:

Honesty and truthfulness 

Fairness and justice 

Respect for others 

Responsibility and accountability 

Integrity and trustworthiness 

Importance of Ethics:

Ethics plays a crucial role in shaping individual character, fostering social harmony, and promoting a just and equitable society. 

Ethical Frameworks:

Various ethical frameworks, such as utilitarianism, deontology, and virtue ethics, provide different perspectives.’

It seems AI has a pretty good grasp of it. 

The Law is all about right and wrong. It is the living manifestation of ethics.Therefore, it follows that lawyers are ethical. But life is not black and white and often lawyers find themselves in some very grey areas. 

In this issue, we examine what it really means to be a good, ethical lawyer.  And what can throw that off course. We hear the opinions of academics who have made this their life’s study, of lawyers whose life it is and of those just starting out in our profession, fresh with hope.

We talk to some lawyers who are dedicating their lives not just to pursue a career but precisely to doing the right thing, not for themselves but for the good of others.

We look at other professions - like the sports sector - and see the part ethics plays. And we hear the heartbreaking and inspirational story of a footballer who suffered racism, abuse, homelessness, addiction and cancer and went on to become one of the greatest sporting legends of all time.

Sometimes we need to just pause, to reflect, to not simply act in an almost robotic way in order to get through the long list of what we have to do. We need to ask if what we are doing is actually the right thing to be doing.