ABSTRACT
The subject that learned men call ethics is a wasteland on the philosophical map. From this impasse no system of ethical rules has been able to deliver itself. The golden rule says nothing against Hitler’s mystic adoration of the German “race,” against any man’s intrinsic values. By “intrinsic values” we signify the goals, beyond mere self-seeking, that animate a human being. Since the statement has the merit of honesty it well illustrates the fundamental lack of rationality that lies behind all such violations of the golden rule. The argument runs: “Roman Catholics know they possess the truth; therefore they should not permit others to propagate error.” The golden rule does not solve for us our ethical problems but offers only a way of approach. It does not prescribe our treatment of others but only the spirit in which we should treat them.
