Selfishness

Is it always wrong to be selfish? Why or why not?

selfish: adj. Taking care of one’s own comfort, advantage, etc., without regard for the interests of others.

We spent the last 15 minutes of our meeting today exploring two thought experiments:

• The LifeBoat: Roger (the self-appointed captain of a lifeboat) suggests that NOT paddling over to a drowning woman, pulling her aboard, and sharing some food with her… is just fine! He justifies this seemingly selfish suggestion by claiming, "…It’s not our fault she’s drowning, and if we pick her up, we won’t be able to enjoy our extra rations. Why should we disrupt our cozy set-up here?"**
• The Nest Café: The Manager at a fancy coffee shop has found a way to make a nice profit, and keep prices low. She explains her secret, "…You see, all my staff are from Africa. They need to survive but can’t get regular jobs. So I let them sleep in the cellar, feed them just enough, and give them $5 cash each week. It’s great—they work all day, six days a week… …They choose to work here because it helps them, I make money, and you [the customer] get a bargain…"**

It may be easy to apply the definition of ‘selfish’ and conclude that Roger is guilty, but what about the Manager? Is she really being selfish? Is she doing anything wrong?

**The Pig that Wants to Be Eaten: 100 Experiments for the Armchair Philosopher, by Julian Baggini, Penguin 2005, pg64, 298.