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By Sally Dugman
One of the most fascinating writers about morality is Lawrence Kohlberg. I have read lots of his writings. He initially divided up morality into six stages. Some people are stuck on the lower levels or mid levels of his scale.In fact, when of that more high minded bent, one even becomes willing to lay one’s life on the line to serve the larger good as did my Catholic Worker friend of 35 years (The Catholic Worker Movement: A Definition), Scott Schaeffer-Duffy.
In fact, he protected a group of Muslim Bosnians from being murdered by Christian Serb soldiers holding machine guns pointed toward Scott’s chest as he shielded the would-be victims using his own body as a shield as he lined up Bosnian civilians behind himself and the Serbs, while swearing and grumbling at him, wouldn’t shoot him to get to them as they were afraid of repercussions from the U.S. government if they were to kill him as he had a sign on a little piece of paper on his chest and tied there like a necklace bauble attached to a string around his neck that announced, “I’m an American.”
Of course, he was scared in case one of the warriors might get twitchy and trigger-happy. So he knew that he may never see his wife, four children, other relatives and friends again. Yet he stood firmly still with his arms and legs spread while he signaled with a hand gesture to Bosnian women carrying babies and toddlers, old feeble folks, older children and middle aged adults to get behind him as he acted as a barrier between them and a clear, and certain death by murderous gunners.
So while we have narcissistic immoral or amoral psychopaths and Machiavellian sorts always ready to make life hell in exchange for their own personal gain (like Donald Trump), we also have in life the “angels” like Scott and his wife, Claire, always stepping forward to serve betterment for others as they move forward in life.
Meanwhile, Here you go if interested in more exploration of morality according to Kohlberg:
At this [a higher] stage, people follow these internalized principles of justice, even if they conflict with laws and rules. Page 2. Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development and Education. Lawrence Kohlberg (1969) . Yes, like many of my friends who have been in trouble with the law for their stances as they refuse to pay war tax and repeatedly protest weapon manufacturers, they prefer jail terms over going along with the crowd and accepting grotesque acceptance of widespread slaughter.-###-
Sally Dugman lives in and writes from MA, USA. She, with absolutely no equivocation, has no qualms about doing whatever is the most right ethically when in difficult circumstances. She, like Scott Schaeffer-Duffy, has also laid her life on the line and survived the ordeal.