Reply #60: individual may make the conscious decision to reject ethical aberrations

[LanternWaste]

However, the individual may make the conscious decision to reject ethical aberrations if they are in direct opposition to the moral code he had hitherto held growing up, if he allows his judgment to remain unclouded.

I certainly do not believe that anyone in the West believes that rape is part and parcel of the moral standard. I'd go so far in fact as to state that individuals who do indeed engage in that practice either work hard at justifying their actions to themselves, or simply suppress and deny the code of ethics we as a society hold-- but in neither case do I believe that that person actually believes that rape is conduct of a high moral standard.

The examples you mentioned (anti-Semitism and slavery) were both part of the cultural fabric for many, many generations. Hence, the individuals of those societies were brought up to believe that anti-Semitism and slavery were indeed "good" things. They were in fact, rewarded (whether directly or indirectly) for such behavior.

The same does not hold true in this case. The accused were not brought up in an environment which encourages, condones or tolerates rape as part of the cultural mores. Therefore, they are indeed acting directly against what they "know" to be right.