joeydb |
02-26-2009 08:44 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by AeWingnut
not sure what you mean
this is what I was referring to
from Wikipedia
Double standards are when certain applications maybe acceptable to one group, but seen as taboo to another. Such double standards are seen as unjust because they violate a basic maxim of modern legal jurisprudence: that all parties should stand equal before the law. Double standards also violate the principle of justice known as impartiality, which is based on the assumption that the same standards should be applied to all people, without regard to subjective bias or favoritism based on social class, rank, ethnicity, gender or other distinction. A double standard violates this principle by holding different people accountable according to different standards. Often the proverb "life is not fair" is often used to justify double standards in life.
There is a distinction to be made between double standards and hypocrisy, which implies the stated or presumed acceptance of a single standard a person claims to hold himself or herself accountable to, but which in practice may be disregarded. For example: a man who believes it is his right to have extramarital affairs, but that his wife does not have such a right holds a double standard. A man who publicly condemns extramarital affairs while maintaining his mistress is a hypocrite.
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I guess I view the semantics as simpler than that. A standard implies universality. This leads to uniform rules also.
The speed limit is 55 mph.
You will register for selective service at the age of 18.
Any president must be at least 35 years old and a natural born citizen.
Double standards lead to rules like:
White candidates for the police force need to score 99 points on the exam.
Black candidates for the police force need to score 65 points on the exam.
(This actually was the case in Philadelphia)
Admittedly, this is viewing standards as technical standards rather than moral codes, but laws themselves are standards of a sort. They ought to be universal, unbiased, and enforced with equal vigor regardless of whom the individual is.
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