If there was one north star to how I live my life, it's being practical.
As someone who was interested in philosophy from a young age, I was always fascinated by the topics of ethics and morality. For instance, Kant had this idea of "categorical imperatives", which, beneath its fancy name, just means that 1) we should live by a strict set of universal rules and 2) treat all humans as rational, valuable beings as opposed to tools. Famously, he posed: suppose a murderer comes to your door, looking for a friend hiding inside. If they ask whether your friend is there, Kant argued that you still must not lie, even if a lie might save your friend's life.
Now, the clever reader might suggest staying quiet and not saying anything at all, but the more interesting idea to me is less about edge cases and more about upholding a set of rules and principles to live your life by, after all, why is lying such a bad thing? If it isn't, we should all be able to lie!
If we set aside the idea that there are objective principles to follow, should everyone at least act consistently to their own rules and principles? In D&D alignment terms, it'd be really be about being lawful and abiding by your own set of rules and principles. At its core, it's about distilling your arbitrary choices and moral decisions into a set of universal rules that you can consistently apply to all facets of your life. If you decide that killing is wrong, and this is a principle to live your life by, even if they are [insert evil person here]. Think batman's no killing rule.
I think from a psychological perspective, there is comfort to be seeked from rules and principles. There's something deeply comforting about serving something larger than yourself and also following a set of clear rules to make decisions. Look at the % of people in the world who are religious!
In some ways, thiss idea of principles also extends well into the fabric of modern society itself. Whereas older societies and cultures would act on the whim of kings and gods, modern law clearly (as clear as the lawmakers can phrase XD) defines acceptable actions and unacceptable actions. This is enforced largely with the idea of a universal set of principles that must be followed within an area or jurisdiction, and very few exceptions exempt you from the punishment of the legal system. So apart from individual mental benefits, it also underpins a universal set of laws and principles which makes a society more fair, with clearer rules in which everyone can operate, and a larger set of guidelines bigger than the interest of any parties.
And I mean, the idea does just seem obvious and true right! I mean, what could be more fair then a set of ethics that act like the laws of physics? It's not like gravity acts on a whim or some people can walk on water! (some would argue people have walked on water, but that's reserved for divine beings)
Of course, with all that set-up, it seems like the "categorical imperative", or the general idea of universal priniples is a great idea! What a badass name by the way, sounds important.
But clearly we don't really operate this way as individuals or as a society. We lie all the time, to ourselves, to each other, sometimes maliciously, other times comforting white lies. The 2008 financial bailout did not ruthlessly punish greedy bankers but instead prioritised stabilising the economy. We are afterall (probably) creatures of free will. Really, there's nothing stop me from acting in my own interest. When you stop at a red light, there's nothing actually keeping you physically behind it, you can just run it and many people will if no one's watching.
{insert video of ant avoiding lines drawn on a page}
As such, I believe it is important to balance the principles and motivates from which we act with the practical consequences of our actions. In the real world, morality and ethics are messy and grey, there often isn't a right or wrong. We want to believe that the bad guys that inflicted pain and suffering will be punished, but sometimes, they are forgiven in favour of creating stability and reducing any chance of future suffering.
TBC -> need some kind of payoff