The best examples of courage: when small, weak, fragile folks put themselves in danger. But it is very interesting when large institutions with great resources take very small risks, because those actions move the whole society forward. McDonalds decides it can afford to enforce some humane standards on the slaughter of animals. A university divests itself of stock in destructive and dangerous companies. A governor makes a slightly risky appointment to bring new voices into the judiciary. A library goes public with the advice it has been giving privately about copyright issues -- contributing to the public consensus about fair use.
It is hard to applaud such acts, or even to notice them, because so little is really at risk, compared to protesters going to prison, soldiers going into battle, emergency personnel entering burning buildings. But I suspect that social progress happens by very small acts of courage, very small risks that then enlarge the circle of what is possible -- permanently. And that happens perhaps in the negotiation of personal relations and jobs and implicit contracts also, just as much as in large public affairs. The suburban wife who gets a job at the library once a week, the kid who quits swimming, the pet owner who gives his dogs an extra walk every day -- all of these may be renegotiating life at the most important level.
Sometimes I think that the problem with ethical thinking is that we look at the wrong size of thing.
Posted by shea0017 at July 7, 2004 10:59 AM