Morality: The Law of Cooperation

Western philosophers struggle with the 'problem' of morality. I offer a simple solution...

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Morality: Relative or Absolute?

Dualism is an principle of nature. Things come in two complementary forms.

The question "Is morality relative, or absolute?" refers to the duality: Absolute / Relative.

Moral Relativism: To believe morality is relative, i.e. is defined culturally.

Moral Absolutism: To believe morality is absolute, i.e. is defined by Nature / 'God'.

"Nature, Red in Tooth & Claw."

Few people would disagree with the following statement:

Living organisms compete for resources. Competition exists in nature.

We know this is true, we experience it ourselves, as living creatures. It is an absolute fact of nature.

We understand the law of competition, and it's very simple to explain: Might Is Right!
The strongest shall prevail. The fittest shall survive (& reproduce more).

The "law of the jungle" is real, but it isn't the only "law". Societies have laws too.

The Opposite Of 'Competition'?

Every basic concept is a duality so 'competition' must have an opposite... What could it be?

The opposite of competition is cooperation.
The opposite of fighting against each other, is to join forces and work together.

Do we observe cooperation in nature? We certainly do.

Competition and cooperation are the two most fundamental relationships / strategies.

The principle of competition is well covered in Darwin's theory, but it's natural counterpart is not. Darwinism focuses predominantly on competitive relationships and largely ignores cooperative ones, although cooperation is arguably a more fundamental driver of evolution than competition.

This is a good example of how a perspective can become unbalanced by not recognising the natural duality of concepts.

The Two Laws of Nature

Nature contains two "laws": Competition, and cooperation. These are the two most fundamental form of relationship that can exist between two entities.

Right from the beginning, duality itself is divided into two classes: Complementary and opposing. One and many.

We see the interplay between the two strategies in every relationship between living things. Consider farming where we cooperate with animals and plants, only to kill and eat them at the end.

1. Law of Competition = "Might is Right" = Amorality / Immorality / Selfishness
2. Law of Cooperation = "Do unto others..." = Morality / Altruism

Within the context of nature, these are absolutes, and can be clearly defined & studied. There's no ambiguity in the basic principle.

So morality does have a basis in the absolute facts of nature.

A Scientific Definition of Morality

We now have a very simple, scientifically valid, and useful theory of morality that's founded on observation.

Morality = The Law of Cooperation.

Individual organisms may obtain survival benefits by cooperating with other individuals.
Those with greater ability to cooperate will have an evolutionary advantage.

Cooperation occurs at all levels of biological reality. Consider the mitochondria which powers all cells, they're separate organisms which cooperate with their host cell, for mutual benefit.

Cooperation is as embedded in nature as competition is.
Competition & cooperation are the two complementary driving principles of nature & evolution. They're "two sides of the same coin".

Which Law Is Superior?

In duality, cooperation comes first and competition follows. Dualities come in two forms, as complementary or opposing pairs. Complementary dualities must exist before opposing ones. There's more on this in the book.

I would argue biological organisms engage in cooperation far more than in competition, and that cooperation is the prevailing law in nature, not competition.

This theory predicts: Organisms invest more energy (on average) into cooperation than into competition.

Furthermore, it predicts that a competitive relationship is in fact an secondary effect of a more important cooperative one.

(E.g. Competition between males for females is driven by the need for a cooperative-relationship with a female, in order to reproduce.)

How does it predict these things?
Because Competition is Yin, and so has all the properties of Yin, and Cooperation is Yang...

As I've said before, I believe the removal of the Dao from the west, has created a dark-age in western philosophy & science.

The 'Golden Rule'

"The Golden Rule is the principle of treating others as you want to be treated. It is a maxim that is found in many religions and cultures. It can be considered an ethic of reciprocity in some religions, although other religions treat it differently." (Wiki)

The Golden Rule is the Law of Cooperation. / Morality.

Although it can be expressed in different ways, the underlying principle is universally true within nature.

The 'ethic of reciprocity', or the 'Law of Equal Exchange' is well defined by the (common-law) rules of contract.

I would argue that all organisms follow essentially the same rules as human contracts, because those rules actually define the mechanism of cooperation: Equal exchange.

The purpose of contract-law is to ensure equity / fairness in exchanges between people. It enshrines respect of free-will into law.

Contract = The Law of Free & Equal Exchange

Free-Will / Consent

Contracts must be entered into willingly, by free-will. It's the same as having "consent".

The difference between sex and rape is consent. The same applies to all crimes.

Coercion is a crime because it's a violation of free-will. What makes a contract valid is that it respects the free-will of both parties.

The contract's main purpose: To ensure both parties freely chose to enter into the arrangement.

What's A 'Crime'?

I would suggest that all crimes could be defined as violations of the Law of Cooperation.

We don't consider things crimes if they're done by entities we are not engaged in a cooperative relationship with.

It's not a crime if a lion eats your chickens, because you were not cooperating with that lion. You had no expectation of consideration from it.

It's not a crime if a hurricane flattens your home...

It is a crime if your neighbor steals your chickens, because you are in implicit cooperation with all other people in your society. The foundation of all human societies is cooperation.

Free Will

Free-will is Logos / Logic. It's the primary mechanism in nature which creates everything else. Everything in nature is made by Logic, which is Choice...

Everything in creation is made by free will, and so this is why "violation of free-will" contains all crimes within it. It is the primary crime, from which all others derive.

Morality is the "Law of Cooperation".

Cooperation: Individuals freely-choosing to work together for mutual benefit.

Respect of individuals' free-will defines morality.

I hope that all makes sense.