The same men who say global warming is a hoax, Obamacare has been failing for eight years, and abstinence-only sex-ed works are also convinced even basic gun control is an impossible and useless approach which would only make us less safe. These are also the dudes most likely to tell you black and brown folk have it too good, Obama is a secret Muslim born in Kenya, and Sharia law is being forced on American legal systems. I wonder if there's some sort of overarching thread or theme to all this.
It took me quite a while to understand the Kantian concept of treating people as 'ends in themselves' rather than means to an end. --Frankly, my philosophy professors and TAs at the University of Washington did not help with their circular definitions. I'm not sure they got it, either, but perhaps I was just dense.-- Not to offer an explanation of Kant*, but from my own perspective, treating people with dignity or as an end rather than a means entails acknowledging we all have our own situations, motivations, and needs. It means accepting that one approach will not work for everyone, and requires us to modulate our interactions accordingly. It necessitates an attempt to understand people, their thoughts and feelings, without jumping to hard and simple judgments. I try to follow through on this, as best I might, when I have the wherewithal. It is not easy, but interacting with people who seem to disregard these notions entirely only confirms the moral imperative. *Sti