Ethics
Can there be a moral duty not to help? Suppose two persons, A and B. A suffers from an illness that makes him behave antisocially, at times constituting a danger both to himself and to others. B, a close relative, has been caring for A for many years, preventing A from the most serious consequences (jail/psychiatric clinic). However, A's state of health is not improving. Doctors suggest that B's help may indeed be counterproductive - they suppose that A needs to feel the consequences of his acts to find the strength to fight his disease. How to act in this situation, from a moral point of view? Imagine A, not 'supervised' by B anymore, injured another person. Even if the punishment helped A, what about the damaged person? And what if the punishment did not help?
Accepted:January 23, 2009
Accepted:
January 23, 2009