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Originally Posted by Zeraph
drj- I'm not sure you entirely realize what its meant when the ends justify the means.
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No, I do - let me clarify.
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For instance, stem cell research. At an extreme end we could purposefully end pregnancies on 40% of the population or on anyone who has more the one kid. Most people wouldn't agree there that the ends justify the means (even though the end is huge medical discoveries).
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If you asked most people why it would be bad to intentionally end nearly half of all pregnancies in order to harvest embryonic stem cells, most would probably rattle off the many potentially horrible consequences (i.e. "the ends") that would be actualized with such a policy, as the reasons why the "ends don't justify the means" in this case. But in so doing, they simply act like consequentalists without realizing it.
All ends of an action must be considered in order to judge whether means are justified, not just the particular one we might be aiming for or thinking of at the moment.
If we went with your scenario, the other unconsidered ends would be potentially disastrous. At the very least, individual liberties and personal autonomy would have to be demolished in order to carry out your hypothetical plan. The potential gains from all the extra research would have to be considered next to losses from a diminished value for personal liberty. Most wouldn't think it worth it. But either way, we're all still deciding this by the principle of "the ends justify the means".