XPost: rec.arts.books.tolkien, alt.religion.christian.east-orthodox   
   From: hayesmstw@hotmail.com   
      
   On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 02:24:53 -0500, "Robert J. Kolker"    
   wrote:   
      
   >   
   >   
   >Steve Hayes wrote:   
   >> I'm not sure that I agree with your line of reasoning.   
   >>   
   >> Would you say that death is a punishment for getting cancer, or measles, or   
   >> pneumonia?   
   >   
   >Distinguish between an effect and a moral consequence. Punishment is the   
   >consequence of wrong doing. That is a moral principle.  Death the   
   >consequence of various and sundry physiological malfunctions. That is a   
   >cause-effect issue, not a moral issue.   
   >   
   >Unfortunately we tend to mix the two sorts of consequences in our   
   >thinking and language. Look at the word malfunction, for example. The   
   >mal in malfunction means -bad- functioning. But bad has a moral   
   >connotation even though we mean to say misfunction or dysfunction. That   
   >is not operating normally.   
      
   Punishment has legal connotations, however. Consequences are not necessarily   
   forensic.   
      
      
      
   --   
   Steve Hayes   
   E-mail: hayesmstw@hotmail.com   
   Web: http://www.geocities.com/hayesstw/stevesig.htm   
        http://www.geocities.com/Athens/7734/books.htm   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)