"Michael Ragland"  wrote
>
> Challenges for Evolutionary Ethics
>
> How can a trait that was developed under the pressure of natural
> selection explain moral actions that go far beyond reciprocal altruism
> or enlightened self-interest? How can, for instance, the action of
> Maximilian Kolbe be explained from a biological point of view? (Kolbe
> was a German priest who starved himself to death in a concentration camp
> to rescue a fellow prisoner.)
>
Firstly you need to concentrate on animals with simpler behavioural
repertoires than humans. Are there any non-human examples of altruism? Bees
and ants are explained by kin selection. Vampire bats feed each other, and I
don't think it has yet been conclusively demonstrated that reciprocal
altruism and kin selection is the whole explanation, though it undoubtedly
plays a part. Dolphins have been known to rescure drowning humans, but the
evidence is very anecdotal. Are you arguing that all organisms seek their
genetic interests, with humans as the solitary exception, or are you arguing
that Darwin's theory is essentially incomplete, and there are many
exceptions to it?

In the case of Maximilian Kolbe, if he had survived then he would have
received massive rewards from the other inmates. (You could point out that
he did receive a massive payoff from the Church, canonisations are rare and
guarantee a place in heaven). Now in fact his action was very nearly
certainly suicidal. All this means is that humans are not perfectly adapted.
If the Nazis had had a slightly different, and more common, set of values
then he would have had a good chance of having his life spared because his
captors were impressed with his courage.

This isn't to denigrate Kolbe's courage in any way. The courage was real,
but it wasn't necessarily as inexplicable as it first appears.
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