July 28, 2025 - Freedomain Radio - Stefan Molyneux
03:58
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| So I appreciate those thoughts. | |
| And my answer, and this is in my book, Universally Preferable Behavior, a Rational Proof of Secular Ethics of Freedom.com slash books. | |
| So the question is: can lying be universally preferable behavior? | |
| So if we were to say lying, you put it through the machinery, right? | |
| You put it through the algorithm. | |
| It's a pretty simple algorithm. | |
| Can it be universalized? | |
| And if you try to universalize it, is it self-contradictory? | |
| So can lying be universally preferable behavior? | |
| If you say lying is universally preferable behavior, what happens is you're saying everybody should want to lie and be lied to at the same time. | |
| Everybody should want to lie and be lied to at the same time. | |
| But if you want to be lied to, it's not a lie. | |
| You know, you go see a movie, like I went to go and see Superman, and I know it's not real. | |
| I know it's all fake. | |
| I know it's CGI. | |
| I know that's not really Superman. | |
| I know that's not really Lex Luther. | |
| I mean, I know that they're not fighting, you know, giant gremlins in New York and Metropolis or whatever. | |
| I know. | |
| So they're lying to me, but it's not like, it's called the suspension of disposition. | |
| I want to be lied to. | |
| In fact, if they don't lie to me, well, I might jump out of the movie theater early and get my money back. | |
| So if you want to be lied to, you know, tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies. | |
| If you want to be lied to, then it's not a lie. | |
| So lying cannot be universally preferable behavior. | |
| Now I say, not lying, can that be universally preferable behavior? | |
| Is it possible for everyone to not lie at the same time? | |
| Sure. | |
| Absolutely. | |
| Does it pass the coma test? | |
| Somebody who is in a coma, they're not lying, right? | |
| So not lying can be universally preferable behavior. | |
| And then the only question is, is it UPB or is it what called APA? | |
| So UPB is universally preferable behavior. | |
| APA is aesthetically preferable actions. | |
| Aesthetically preferable actions are things that are good and universalizable, but not enforced through violence. | |
| So if somebody assaults you, they're imposing the idea that assault is good on you by force. | |
| If somebody lies to you, they're not forcing you. | |
| It's like being late. | |
| It's like being rude. | |
| Again, assuming this is not a contract situation where they're stealing from you through contracts or anything, just, you know, social lies or whatever, right? | |
| So if somebody's continually late, they're not using force against you. | |
| So being on time can be universalized, but it's not enforced through violence. | |
| And therefore, you don't have the right to defend yourself against it through violence. | |
| If somebody's going to assault you or murder you or rape you or whatever it is, then they're violently imposing that principle on you and you have the right to violently defend yourself. | |
| That's universally preferable behavior. | |
| Lying, you know, if somebody says, oh, I caught a fish two feet long and it was in fact only 18 inches long, do you get to like take out your blunderbuss and shoot them? | |
| Of course not, right? | |
| I mean, you may not like it. | |
| It may be sort of negative for you or you may just be like, oh, all fishermen exaggerate and so on. | |
| Or like a man's height, a man adds an inch or two to every estimate. | |
| But it's not enforced on you by force. | |
| So lying is aesthetically negative behavior. | |
| And therefore, it's a good thing to not do because it can't be universalized. | |
| Telling the truth. | |
| Telling the truth can't be universally preferable behavior either because it can't be, it doesn't pass the coma test. | |
| People who are asleep aren't telling the truth and so on. | |
| So just not lying, like respecting property rights, a negative action. | |
| Don't rape, don't assault, don't murder, don't steal, right? | |
| These are all negative things. | |
| And so somebody who's asleep, somebody who's in a coma, is not doing those things. | |
| So they're not doing evil. | |
| So you can't say telling the truth is universally preferable behavior because that can't be universalized. | |
| You can't tell all the truth of everything at all times. | |
| Everyone can't be both telling and listening to the truth at the same time because you can't talk and listen as well. | |
| So it can't be universalized. | |
| But not lying can be universalized. |
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