Question
August 22, 2010 at 4:39 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 7 CommentsThis is a question I’ve been considering lately: if we have a particular talent or gift that would benefit mankind, and assuming adequate compensation etc, are we morally or ethically obligated to use it?
Readers (if I still have any), what do you think?
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You are only obligated to yourself, your family, and god (if you believe). Rearrange that order however you like. Once you have satisfied those obligations, what you choose to do for mankind and the world thereafter with your extra time and money is up to your personal morality.
Comment by R— August 22, 2010 #
I say, absolutely not. While it may be a moral good to use that gift for the benefit of mankind, it is not a moral failure to choose not to.
Comment by Comrade PhysioProf— August 23, 2010 #
Unless you have some ability that no one else has or can obtain, why are you any more bound to use the talent than those who may have it but never expended the effort to see whether or not they are as capable?
Or have you just been watching a Hitchcock marathon on TBS?
Comment by Prof-like Substance— August 24, 2010 #
As Comrade said-Absolutely not (and compensation has no part in any of this!). What would make you ask such a question?
Comment by brainDame— August 24, 2010 #
I ran across a description of a pediatric cardiac surgeon who is technically gifted, who says he feels obligated to do the work he does because of his high level of technical competence.
It made me think about the things in medical school that had been particularly easy for me, although I had not enjoyed them. They were mostly subjects I had spent a great deal of time on prior to medical school.
Probably if I were to compare apples to apples, the technical skills come much more easily than anything else in medicine.
Comment by hurricanejill— August 25, 2010 #
To throw a question back at you….what if you do/don’t have the passion? Or what if doing it makes you happy or miserable?
All things being equal though, benefitting mankind and being paid for it is an awesome thing.
Is this a medicine in general thing, or surgery in particular?
Comment by dragonfly— September 2, 2010 #
Also, we potentially benefit mankind in many ways. Being happy can make it easier. If it is killing you….it cannot be.
Comment by dragonfly— September 2, 2010 #