The news release of the confiscation of cell phones at a Texas Junior High school due to the sharing of indecent images of two female students at the school has prompted a series of questions in my mind. As a Christian, Bible reading, God-fearing, family-loving, law-abiding man, I find myself questioning how these things can happen and what kind of moral code is being instilled in our teenagers. With this question, I wonder about the advent of technology and how that will affect contractarianism, a concept that has existed historically and seems to bear out in progress and refinement in our society.
The idea of social contract theory is that if all things are within the realm of normal sanity and if life is in a typical day to day situation without any kind of critical experience, people live within a moral code established almost subliminally in a type of acceptance of right and wrong regardless of the laws set forth by man or by God. In other words, we somehow seem to know what is best for ourselves and for other people. An objectivist, a person who subscribes to the philosophical movement proposed by Ayn Rand, might say that the adherence to selfish principles ultimately serves other people by virtue of respecting individuality. It is your individual right to pursue excellence and to make social decisions that are in your best interest. For example if you are standing in line for a hamburger, you might be a little impatient at the slow line, but you choose not to express loud expletives at the workers who are delivering the burgers at a slow pace. You might choose to go somewhere else or you might offer a suggestion for improvement, but you also have a sense of what ultimately is best for you which might be to wait patiently for the burger in spite of the difficult circumstances.
But whatever the deep motivation behind a given behavior, there is no doubt that contractarianism exists in culture and in society both individually and collectively. We seem to have a natural understanding of what is moral and what is not apart from our governmental laws or religious training, embracing and seeking out the best behavior that suits our purposes either selfishly or selflessly regardless of state intervention. In contrast, a Christian, such as I, might posture that social contract theory is limited, however, by relativism and situational ethics and does not contain the unyielding requirements set forth by Biblical law. And this is certainly true.
While I have heard it stated that there is no behavior that a Christian can do that is any different from a non-Christian, I think the difference lies in those higher moral responsibilities that certainly may exist outside of Christianity but perhaps not as universally (yes, I recognize the logic flaw and the box I just opened!) nor as succinctly. Obviously there is a danger, a narrow slice, and in fact becomes anathema to categorize and label Christianity as solely being a system of moral choices or providing a cultural framework; yet it cannot be denied that it is part of societal gain. Even a devout atheist cannot ignore the moral good resulting from the permeation of Christianity in our world.
But let's return to our incident of the indecent photographs on multiple cell phones. This is not a religious issue and if the students were older, it would not be a governmental issue, but somehow, almost instinctually, we sense that the event crosses over into an affront to the unwritten social contract to which we abide every day. In the end, apart from our many failings as humans, we insist on embracing and practicing natural human decency that respects and honors the individual but protects the corporate and hopefully the innocent.
We fight for independence but seek to create a climate of good that benefits the most people. While the moral code of society may fluctuate some, and there is a floating relativism that makes us a little uncomfortable, we continue to battle for what is right and what is good. The flaws are rampant in contractarianism but it is also a concept that explains the sociological phenomenon that takes place when laws are not obviously governing a situation. We tend to adopt a behavioral pattern that is acceptable to the people around us and serves the greater good.
In our current case of the inappropriate photographs one of the problems, among many, is the lack of maturation of the individuals involved not to mention wisdom and judgment. This means that social contract theory is only applicable to mature individuals and even with this requirement, still does not supply the explanation for many of culture's current challenges. It is my hope that the students are punished for their actions and that cell phone usage be governed closely. It is furthermore my suggestion that an age restriction for particular technological activities be imposed on teenagers as they continue to learn how to apply natural human decency to their everyday lives.
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