Academic Proposes Mushrooms To Avoid Compulsory Moral Bioenhancement

Behold! The impenetrable mind of the academic at his work (with my trembling and humble emphasis and paragraphifications):

Love (Drugs), Happiness, and Morality

Various authors, including myself, have argued that happiness and morality operate in a circularly supportive relationship. In this paper, love will be added to this relationship…

Moral behavior is frequently grounded in love; love encourages prosocial behavior; prosocial behavior increases happiness; happiness, in turn, enhances the inclination of most people to act morally most of the time…love induces us to behave morally toward the people we love.

…[T]his triple circular reinforcement can be significantly deepened and sustained through a careful use of love-enhancing substances, aided by guided meditation—particularly in the case of the psychedelic psilocybin. It will be concluded that humans will be motivated to use love drugs because they tend to increase their happiness. Consequently, a voluntary use of love drugs is a more effective means of moral (bio-)enhancement than is the prevention of “ultimate harm” that is based on compulsory moral enhancement.

This work of prime philosophy can be found in the peer-reviewed journal Bioethics, by Vojin Rakic.

We met compulsory moral bioenhancement before, proposed by enemies of mankind like Julian Savulescu (if there was ever a villain’s name). Recently, two moral lunatics wanted to have ticks bite people to make them allergic to meat, which would somehow “save the planet.” During the covid panic, academics discovered not all citizens were bending over to take their shots, and proposed drugging the reluctant to get them to behave.

An almost midget academic wants to genetically engineer short people to, he claims, “save the planet”. (I think it’s because he needs to find a date.)

There are many more instances of academicians rubbing their grubby grant-stained hands together saying, “Fools! I shall destroy them all!”. Rakic is the first one I have seen who wants to send people on a permanent Happy trip.

As much fun as it would be, we’ll pass by the rediscovery of “different kinds of love” by modern academia, which Rakic ably reviews (e.g., “According to Brogaard, all the mentioned types of love contribute to happiness”). The classics, poets, playwrights, and (old) novelists were loaded with these things, of course, but none of them were published in peer-reviewed journals, so none of that counts.

Which brings us to mushrooms, man. From which we can, like, offer psilocybin to one and all, man. Why ‘srooms? Academics have judged mushrooms “a more effective moral bio-enhancer than non-psychedelic substances, such as oxytocin, SSRIs, and vasopressin.”

What do mushrooms do? They “tends to create sensations of selflessness and oneness with the world.” Oneness with world, man. Dig it.

Incidentally, next time your Uncle Sergeant Briggs makes a prediction, like how we’re returning to 70s, maybe you listen.

Feelings of oneness with the world are “directly linked to altruism and integrated love, which is a cornerstone of morality.” Linked to, man. Look at those wee Ps fly, brother.

Mushrooms “weakens negative, brooding ruminations, and stimulates joy.” Perhaps it was my cynicism that made me first read that as “simulates joy.” Don’t forget the love, man.

When love comes into the equation as a feeling that is in a triple circularly supportive relationship with morality and happiness, the use of love drugs is not only morally right, but also our moral duty—insofar as happiness and morality are our moral duty. 

Though I suppose one could say morality is moral duty, which is like saying swimming is a swim duty, the problem is that happiness is not a moral duty. If it was, we’d be made to reject hate. We’d have to walk around with smiley faces, and when pressed we’d be forced under pain of extreme penalty to express only positive ebullient opinions of matters (and peoples) of importance to our rulers. What kind of tyrannical society would that be? Could it long survive?

The real reason to send people on trips? “The grounding rationale is happiness: happiness makes us more moral, and morality makes us happier.”

Jeffrey “The Milwaukee Monster” Dahmer had a grand old time slicing and dicing his playmates. Nothing would make him happier than pounding some guy on the head, committing various acts on the victim’s corpse that cannot here be described, loping off a choice part or two of the body, and saving one piece for dinner and one for the trophy case.

He was able to achieve this exalted state of happiness without the use of psilocybin, but I don’t think we could say his actions were moral. Medically induced happiness may not be the panacea Rakic is looking for.

Here are the various ways to support this work:

• Subscribe at Substack (paid or free)
• Cash App: $WilliamMBriggs
• Zelle: use email: matt@wmbriggs.com
• Buy me a coffee
• Paypal
• Other credit card subscription or single donations
• Hire me
• Subscribe at YouTube
• PASS POSTS ON TO OTHERS