Regarding daisy2468's post
I think the key question here is, does the person come to harm as a result of posting material about them? Can I imagine in any way shape or form that my postings about Dad, have brought him into harm's way? Have they caused harm to anyone else?
And I don't just mean physical harm. Could Dad be disrespected by what I have posted about him, could he be mentally anguished by it? I have for example posted that he wear's nappies...is that exposing him to ridicule? If someone were to ridicule him for that, that person should be the one being ridiculed.
Mostly I am not posting about my father I am posting about what this disease does, he just happens to be the person affected by it. Are the millions of books on history unethical, when they discuss the personal lives and stories, personalities and deeds of persons in the past and publish photos of people also? Or is it no longer a question of ethics, once a person is dead? Or is the thing that makes history books okay, the fact that there is no longer someone to ask permission from?
As an ex-history teacher, such stories about people who can no longer give their consent for what is written about them, are things to be treasured as they teach us. So too what is written here on TP.
As an ex-history teacher I am aware that Queen Elizabeth 1 did not consent to what has been written since about her and I would be an uneducated fool to believe everything that has been written about her. I cannot judge her, I cannot assume to know why she did the things she did, even if someone with great authority has written why she did such things. I don't consider what has been written as unethical, I understand that it is simply opinion. So too what is written here on TP.
Daisy can you tell me what harm I am invoking by posting about my father? What harm would come of your posting about your mother? I am not asking that with a rude angry tone, I am just wondering if you can see a side to this that I can't? Or is it simply the fact that we can't obtain their full consent that is making you balk at the idea? My father can't consent to being dressed, my father can't consent to what he is going to eat today, what tv shows he is going to be subjected to, whether he is going to be seated all day, or whether he is going to be able to walk around. Most of the time now we make his decisions for him, and it would be unethical not to do so. A great number of these decision we make are for his own good, and no doubt that does no cause any ethical questions to arise, but there are also many decisions that we have to make for him that we simply make based on what we think what won't cause him harm, or that will cause him little harm but are for the greater good. Dad may not want to go into respite and it might even cause him harm, but we must make that decision. He may not want to go to the shops, but he can't tell us that, so he goes to the shops with Mum. He may not want to be seen by the people in his town, or he may want to...we have to make a decision based on who we knew him as when he could have told us what he wanted and who we think he might be now. So too what I post on here...
So I don't think one can make a broad assumption that it is unethical to post about our loved ones on here. It is definitely unethical if you believe that would be something that they would have abhored, and it sounds like that is where you daisy2468 are at and that is fair enough. It is also bordering on unethical (or is that just nasty, evil, mischief-making as someone suggested to me?) if you are posting on here simply because you get some personal kick out of it. And by that I mean, if you are posting on here for kicks using a sufferer's plight to get those kicks.
I think that you will find that the majority of posters, post because they are trying to cope and if they do manage to cope better because they have posted the good that does for their capacity to care far outweighs the harm that could be caused, which I cannot see. Many of us also post and tell our stories so that it can help others to cope, thats why this is a support network, again it does the group of sufferers far more good than harm, if others can learn from others' experiences. You might say, but some of these posts, there is nothing to learn from them, they are just exposés for the sake of talk and nothing else...but if it is helping the person cope, and it is not causing harm to the person who is being talked about...I ask again...where is the ethical dilemma?
As for photos...is it unethical to publish photos of newborns in the newspaper? Why not? Is it because no harm comes of it, that makes this ethically acceptable? Is it because their carers gave consent? It is because the photo is a celebration of someone who is loved...so too photos here on TP.
Well thats it for me, I believe I have gotten it out of my system now, back to the study books.
Thanks for your post daisy2468, I think it is important to question such things...goodness knows it got me thinking for the past 3 hours!!!
I believe however my conscience is clear.
And on top of that, methinks my Da would be proud.
(Note: My dad can't communicate in any consistent way so we are unable to know ever for certain what he wants or doesn't want)
I think the key question here is, does the person come to harm as a result of posting material about them? Can I imagine in any way shape or form that my postings about Dad, have brought him into harm's way? Have they caused harm to anyone else?
And I don't just mean physical harm. Could Dad be disrespected by what I have posted about him, could he be mentally anguished by it? I have for example posted that he wear's nappies...is that exposing him to ridicule? If someone were to ridicule him for that, that person should be the one being ridiculed.
Mostly I am not posting about my father I am posting about what this disease does, he just happens to be the person affected by it. Are the millions of books on history unethical, when they discuss the personal lives and stories, personalities and deeds of persons in the past and publish photos of people also? Or is it no longer a question of ethics, once a person is dead? Or is the thing that makes history books okay, the fact that there is no longer someone to ask permission from?
As an ex-history teacher, such stories about people who can no longer give their consent for what is written about them, are things to be treasured as they teach us. So too what is written here on TP.
As an ex-history teacher I am aware that Queen Elizabeth 1 did not consent to what has been written since about her and I would be an uneducated fool to believe everything that has been written about her. I cannot judge her, I cannot assume to know why she did the things she did, even if someone with great authority has written why she did such things. I don't consider what has been written as unethical, I understand that it is simply opinion. So too what is written here on TP.
Daisy can you tell me what harm I am invoking by posting about my father? What harm would come of your posting about your mother? I am not asking that with a rude angry tone, I am just wondering if you can see a side to this that I can't? Or is it simply the fact that we can't obtain their full consent that is making you balk at the idea? My father can't consent to being dressed, my father can't consent to what he is going to eat today, what tv shows he is going to be subjected to, whether he is going to be seated all day, or whether he is going to be able to walk around. Most of the time now we make his decisions for him, and it would be unethical not to do so. A great number of these decision we make are for his own good, and no doubt that does no cause any ethical questions to arise, but there are also many decisions that we have to make for him that we simply make based on what we think what won't cause him harm, or that will cause him little harm but are for the greater good. Dad may not want to go into respite and it might even cause him harm, but we must make that decision. He may not want to go to the shops, but he can't tell us that, so he goes to the shops with Mum. He may not want to be seen by the people in his town, or he may want to...we have to make a decision based on who we knew him as when he could have told us what he wanted and who we think he might be now. So too what I post on here...
So I don't think one can make a broad assumption that it is unethical to post about our loved ones on here. It is definitely unethical if you believe that would be something that they would have abhored, and it sounds like that is where you daisy2468 are at and that is fair enough. It is also bordering on unethical (or is that just nasty, evil, mischief-making as someone suggested to me?) if you are posting on here simply because you get some personal kick out of it. And by that I mean, if you are posting on here for kicks using a sufferer's plight to get those kicks.
I think that you will find that the majority of posters, post because they are trying to cope and if they do manage to cope better because they have posted the good that does for their capacity to care far outweighs the harm that could be caused, which I cannot see. Many of us also post and tell our stories so that it can help others to cope, thats why this is a support network, again it does the group of sufferers far more good than harm, if others can learn from others' experiences. You might say, but some of these posts, there is nothing to learn from them, they are just exposés for the sake of talk and nothing else...but if it is helping the person cope, and it is not causing harm to the person who is being talked about...I ask again...where is the ethical dilemma?
As for photos...is it unethical to publish photos of newborns in the newspaper? Why not? Is it because no harm comes of it, that makes this ethically acceptable? Is it because their carers gave consent? It is because the photo is a celebration of someone who is loved...so too photos here on TP.
Well thats it for me, I believe I have gotten it out of my system now, back to the study books.
Thanks for your post daisy2468, I think it is important to question such things...goodness knows it got me thinking for the past 3 hours!!!
I believe however my conscience is clear.
And on top of that, methinks my Da would be proud.
(Note: My dad can't communicate in any consistent way so we are unable to know ever for certain what he wants or doesn't want)
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