Editing 103: Moral Relativity

{{comic
| number    = 103
| date      = May 17, 2006
| title     = Moral Relativity
| image     = moral_relativity.jpg
| titletext = It's science!
}}

== Explanation ==
This comic plays on the similar sounding terms relativ''ity'' and relativ''ism''.

{{w|Moral relativism}} is a position in the philosophical field of {{w|ethics}} that holds that moral judgments are not absolute, but vary depending on the circumstances involved and the person (or people) making them. Philosophers who hold this kind of position are often mischaracterised as believing that 'it's OK to be self-serving, steal, and murder.'

The scientific {{w|theory of relativity}} predicts (among other things) that measurements of an object change the closer to the speed of light it travels: length contracts, observed time slows down, the notion of separated simultaneous events is relative, and so on.

Randall claims to have created a new philosophy called "Moral Relativity," which appears to be a mash-up of the two ideas, where things that are typically considered unethical become more acceptable as the subject's speed increases. This supposed theory of ethics is cited to explain why rap music, perhaps particularly {{w|Gangsta rap}}, which often has lyrics describing rape, murder, and substance abuse, is better when traveling at speed. Music videos for Gangsta Rap also frequently feature cars speeding on the highway. The graph is a parody on that of the {{w|Lorentz factor}}, which is the factor by which time is dilated and length contracted. 

Note that '''relativity''' in the Theory of Relativity (in ''physics'') came from the {{w|principle of relativity}}: the idea that equations describing the laws of physics have '''the same form''' in all admissible frames of reference (as opposed to ''moral'' relativity).

==Transcript==
:[A graph, rationalization as a function of speed, increasing exponentially with an asymptote at c.]
:Related to moral relativism, it states that ethics become subjective only when you approach the speed of light.
:That is, it's okay to be self-serving, steal, and murder as long as you're going really, really fast.
:(Note: This is why rap sounds better on the highway at 90 mph)

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Line graphs]]
[[Category:Philosophy]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Science]]