I'm putting this one under the subheading of "Good Without Gods" because ethics and goodness are often conflated. They are in the same family, sure, but being ethical, and choosing to do good things aren't the same thing. Sometimes the right thing is to ignore a law, therefore it's not really "good", but it's the ethical thing. I don't advocate upholding unjust laws. Unjust laws are unethical. Therefore, for me and on my Path, Ethical Living = Doing Good. You need to figure out where your own ethics are, and how to integrate them into doing good. That's why I call it "choosing to be ethical on purpose" as there is an active choice.

Let's talk a little bit about ethics. The OED says ethics are a person's guiding moral principles, which makes sense. We have this frame work of Things That Are Good that we hang our actions on. These are often personal, sometimes social, and some are universal. Here's a couple examples:

Personal Ethics:

Treating children as whole people and not like owned objects

Treating animals with care and protection

Capital Punishment is wrong

Social:

Eating locally or being vegetarian/pescatarian/vegan etc

Help your neighbours when you can

Don't drink and drive

Universal:

Don't enslave anyone

Do not rape

Do not murder

Ok, so maybe I took the easy route with the Universals, but you get the idea. And really, enslaving each other is something humans Still Do in this world! Potentially tens of millions of people are enslave right now, in 2022, whether it's here in the US where we throw people in prison for a little weed and then make almost $400 Million a year* on their labour, to enslaving children and women to make "fast fashion" in Indonesia and India, to enslaving Thai men and women in Saudi Arabia as construction workers and house keepers.

I think that this is one of the things that makes Ethics as an active choice a harder thing: so many things are subjective, and so many of them seem self-evident as Universal Truths! That's why I wanted to write this out. I can't give you your ethics. I couldn't even give my own children their ethics-- all I could do was give them a frame work to build their own on. Because ethics are Universally Personal.

When you have an opinion most people won't ask you "Why do you feel that way?" or "What made you think/decide that?" We save those questions for beliefs. Ethics are both of these things, beliefs and opinions. They're also actions-- making them pretty fucking complicated!

Admittedly, my own ethical framework has changed. I used to be very Centrist. I didn't really care if people spanked their children-- I just chose not to do so; I supported capital punishment for "certain crimes"-- but I wasn't really sure what those crimes should be; I didn't think about where my food and clothing came from-- I avoided fast fashion because I hate the look and feel of "CheapAssClothes"TM

I just kinda did my own thing, and left others to do theirs. Then I started seeing more and more about how spanking harms-- even into adulthood. I wasn't spanked much as a kid-- my mother beat the shit out of us for whatever she got angry about. Spankings? Maybe 2 in my life (and by that I mean a couple swats on the bottom). Beatings? I could easier tell you what she hit me with, but never how many. Give how viscerally I was affected by corporal punishment, I refused to do the same. But I didn't have a reason, other than "I do not spank". Ok, research, here we come! I started reading parenting websites and books, got recommendations from a couple pediatricians and the librarians. I read about child development, how brains actually form, and a lot more.

Now I can say that spanking and all corporal punishment, to me, is cruelty. I wont' hit a kid, and I won't hit an animal. Terrorizing someone into obedience is never ok, and we have studies to back that up. My ethics say "Don't be violent", and I choose not to be.

Same with capital punishment. A friend asked me "Just, as a favour to me, read up on who is sentenced to death, and why." That's all he asked. So I did. It didn't take me long, as I have a very sharp sense of equity and justice; but I changed my mind. The Death Penalty is murder, full stop. It disproportionally is used to punish men of colour and poor men. It isn't a deterrent. It's expensive, barbaric and awful. Murder by the state, in the name Of The People, is still murder. I will always be glad my friend asked me to just look, with fresh eyes.

Everything Ethic I have, from animal protection, to being pro-choice/pro-abortion, is based on a lot of thoughtful and purposeful work. I want to be Better Self, right? To do that I have to dig out the things that don't help me grow. Hanging on to old, outdated ethics and ideas don't help me grow. They make me stagnate, and perpetuate the ills and evils in society that I want to get rid of!

I'm not going to say you have to agree with me on "The Big Questions". Witches often disagree about a lot of things. We are vegan and omnivorous after all, with every value in between.

The thing is, your ethics and morals can't harm people-- you can't be an ethical enslaver, or say you're somehow "ethically anti-choice/pro-life". **

You can't use your ethics to control other people.

Your ethics have to come from a place of wanting to do the right thing, with your life, every single day. They have to come from a deep desire to help others, and to honour them where they are, and for who they are. Your ethics are about you, and who you are as a person, and your own path.

I know that I am not the Arbiter of All Things Moral! I can't give you your ethics. I can say this though:

"Treat others the way they want to be treated."

"Do good on purpose and with aforethought."

"Ethics are actively being good-- because it's good to do."

Choose your ethics on purpose. Take time to really figure out why you feel that way, and when you can, get real scientifically backed reasons! Witcher here in QueerCoven is scientifically based! We want Science and Reasons! So, be brave and find them. Your ethics will be better, your ability to do real good will be Better! You will be your Better Self, and you'll find that your Path is brighter.

It's not always easy to be ethical. But I know you can choose that Purpose, and that Intention.

So, choose your Path: Be Good and be Ethical on purpose!

*I just Googled "How much money does the private prison industry make?" The first answer was $374 million annually. I did not Google how many people are enslaved around the world-- as we don't even have a good idea what, exactly, constitutes enslavement. A child bride in Idaho is as much enslaved as a child bride in Pakistan, but they aren't counted the same. We'll save that for another time.

**I am unapologetically Pro-Abortion. Abortion is healthcare, and people will die without access to it. If you don't agree that the person who is pregnant is the ONLY Person who has a say in continuing the pregnancy and ending it, then QueerCoven is not the place for you. Abortion is not a religious issue, and there are no secular reasons to oppose it. You can't impose your religion on others, it's unethical, ergo your own ethics and ideas about abortion stop where your uterus stops. Also, if you don't have a uterus, then Fuck Your Opinions! and Fuck Right Off! I will not be controlled by old, White, Christian men. I won't be controlled by anyone. My Body, My Voice, My Choice.