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    A justification that appeals to existence as a net good t... — Carmelics
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    Challenges→Bringing a person into existence can be justified even though it involves imposing harms on that person, because existence is a greater good that outweighs those harms.

    A justification that appeals to existence as a net good therefore begs the question by assuming a symmetric weighing that the asymmetry thesis directly denies.

    ?Rate how convincing each reason is below to see the overall strength.
    1 reason for
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    Reasons For

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    Reason for
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    • 1.The asymmetry thesis holds that absence of pain is good but absence of pleasure is neutral, creating fundamentally unequal moral weight.
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    • 2.Appeals to 'net good existence' assume pleasure and pain deserve equal consideration, directly contradicting the asymmetry thesis's core claim.
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    • 3.Without explicitly rejecting asymmetry first, arguments for existence's value presume the very symmetric framework asymmetry denies as false.
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    Reasons Against

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    Reason against
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    • 1.Begging the question requires assuming the disputed premise; arguing for existence's value need not assume symmetry—it may simply deny asymmetry.
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    • 2.The asymmetry thesis itself makes controversial metaphysical claims about value that independently require defense, not automatic acceptance as a baseline.
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    • 3.One can argue existence has net good value while explicitly rejecting asymmetry on separate grounds, making the charge of question-begging formally invalid.
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    Consequentialism1 linkedBioethics1 linked

    Related

    Appeals to 'net good existence' assume pleasure and pain deserve equal considera...Begging the question requires assuming the disputed premise; arguing for existen...Bringing a person into existence can be justified even though it involves imposi...One can argue existence has net good value while explicitly rejecting asymmetry ...
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    The asymmetry thesis holds that absence of pain is good but absence of pleasure ...The asymmetry thesis itself makes controversial metaphysical claims about value ...Without explicitly rejecting asymmetry first, arguments for existence's value pr...

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