Kant's Categorical Imperative In Law

Ethics is a set of standards of what is “good and “right” in one’s behaviour. Law is a system of rules that a particular country follows to regulate the actions of its members and may enforce it by imposing penalties. Since we were young our parents instilled in us what is right and wrong. Everybody’s ethics are different because we are being influenced not only by our parents’ beliefs, values and norms but also by the environment and society we live in. How one perceives things is different, how one deals with the situation is different because of our different ethics. “In law, a man is guilty when he violates the rights of others. In ethics, he is guilty if he only thinks of doing so... Act that your principle of action might safely be made

The categorical imperative has three different ways of saying what it is. Kant 's theory is an example of a deontological moral theory–according to these theories, the rightness or wrongness of actions does not depend on their consequences but on whether they fulfill our duty. Kant believed that there was a supreme principle of morality, and he referred to it as the categorical imperative. Kant believes that all three say the same thing, but debate whether it is true. The imperative is a way to choose how you will act. The first formulation is the formula of universal law "Act only on that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.” This is universalization. If you come up with something you have to think what would happen if everyone lived by it. The second formulation is “Treat another rational being as an end in himself, not as a mere means.”What Kant 's means by this is, we should respect everyone in their own rights, for who they are not what they can be used for. The third formulation is “Act as if your maxim would harmonize with a kingdom of ends.” This means that whatever goals we have for our lives, they must not jeopardize other people 's goals. Kant argues that a person is good or bad depending on the reasoning of their actions and not on the goodness of the consequences of those actions. He also argues that one can be a good person only if one is motivated by morality. I believe that categorical imperative is a good heuristic upon which to make decisions on because it is Kant 's golden rule, act as you would want all other people to act towards all other people. Act according to the saying that you would wish all other rational people to follow as if it were a universal