I recall reading years ago a book in ethics that built an entire ethical system out of the notion of self-interest. This was not simply ego-centricity, not raw selfishness. It was self-interest properly understood: enlightened self-interest. If I ask not “what do I want here and now,” but “what will I want in a few day’s time” I begin to see what is in my true self-interest. I will denote the difference by putting caps on the notion of Self Interest properly understood.
On a mundane level, Self Interest translates into “I will scratch your back because there may come a time when I need you to scratch my back.” Thus, if your car breaks down and you need a ride to the garage I will take you there in spite of the fact that I was on my way to the Mall to buy the item I really wanted because it is on special this week and the sale ends today. I really want to go to the Mall, but I realize that it is in my Self Interest to help you out, because there may come a time when I need you to help me out. Conscience may enter into it, or it may not. It may simply be a matter of calculation. But the end result is that I do the right thing. Similarly, if you make me really angry and I want to smack you upside the head, I realize that if I walk away you will still be my friend and we can continue to have fun together. It’s in my Self Interest to swallow my anger and simply walk away and cool off.
A good citizen who is calculating his or her Self Interest will realize that they need to vet each candidate carefully, get out and vote, and continue to keep an eye on the voting habits of the candidates of choice in order to determine whether they deserve to be reelected. He or she will pay taxes because they realize that they will benefit the schools (whether they have kids in the schools or not) and help the state pay for road repair, support fire and police salaries, and keep up the public parks — all of which benefit me in the long run. (Even someone else’s kids will vote and act wisely in the future if they are well schooled, presumably.) In a word, Self Interest requires taking the long view, considering the consequences of actions and asking the question: what will benefit me in the long term.
The owner of a factory who knows he can save big bucks by neglecting to put scrubbers on his factory’s chimneys takes the view of Self Interest and spends the money for the scrubbers because he realizes that this will improve air quality that benefits the health of those around him, including his employees, and himself and his family as well. Short-term profits are sacrificed for long-term benefits to a great many more people. And, in the end, these are the people that will continue to work for him and will buy his products. The long term always involves a sense that each of us is in a boat with others. It’s not just about me or you: it’s about all of us. What is good for each is good for all. It’s not rocket science, but it takes a bit of imagination and patience and a willingness to think before acting.
At the highest levels, of course, ethics demands that those who make the major decisions that indirectly affect us all require the perspective of Self Interest. It may be in my self-interest (small case) to cheat on my taxes and save a few bucks, put pressure on my political cronies to get them to vote my way, cut health care because it will benefit those few who support my candidacy, fail to fill vacant federal judgeships that stand in the way of my political objectives, or eliminate regulatory agencies because they interfere with profits. But if I step back and take the perspective of Self Interest I realize that paying my taxes, cooperating with my political cronies (whether I like them or not), promoting universal health care, promoting a strong and healthy judiciary, and funding regulatory agencies that protect us all are in my Self Interest: they are in the best interest of all and therefore of myself as well. When we all benefit each of us as individuals benefits as well.
This system is not the be-all and end-all of ethics, but anyone who seeks to follow the path will find that he or she ends up doing the right thing most of the time. It takes imagination and a willingness to ignore short-term desires for long-term benefits. But if each of us followed that path our democracy would be a stronger and healthier political system that does, in the end, help to promote the Common Good — which was always the goal of a republican system of government.
hughcurtler 
One of the ancients declared , You need to become an egoist, before you can become an altruist…. that said, some of us take longer than others to make the switch.
I think we are all born egoists. Some of us, a very few, become altruists.
Yes sadly,most of us get stuck in our own quagmire of desires, and wants which we confuse with genuine strivings to become a complete human being
Enlightened self interest – Maya Angelou’s words illustrate this point: “Each of us has the right and the responsibility to assess the roads which lie ahead, and those over which we have traveled, and if the future road looms ominous or unpromising, and the roads back uninviting, then we need to gather our resolve and, carrying only the necessary baggage, step off that road into another direction. If the new choice is also unpalatable, without embarrassment, we must be ready to change that as well.”
Great quote! I always did like Maya Angelou.
Once again, you have provided food for thought. I have always viewed the words ‘self interest’ as a human frailty, as greedy and synonymous with selfishness. I always believed, and still do, that the greatest act of kindness or giving was the one performed with no thought of a favour returned, or later reward. But … you make some valid points, and if we see ourselves as a part of the whole, then we can see that Self Interest is to the advantage of that whole. Something to think about. Good post, as always, my friend! 🙂
Many thanks. I must confess this is not my approach to ethics. I lean heavily on Kant and his notion of the respect we owe one another and the duty we have to all persons. Also, it seems to leave out compassion and sympathy for others which seem to me to be essential ingredients. But if people are determined to calculate to determine what is in their best interest, this is a way to do that! (I was thinking especially of the power-brokers).
I just generally let my conscience direct my actions, though admittedly there are times when I do something that my conscience asked me not to do. 🙂 But for the most part, I simply try to treat everyone with kindness, compassion, and respect unless they prove themselves to be un-respectable. Sigh. I’m no goody-two-shoes, but I do try to leave a positive mark on the world. And I think most of us do … at least I like to think so. My friend Laura says I am a ‘blinder-wearing Pollyana’. 😀
I agree with everything you say except “…most of us do…” I am cynical enough to doubt that. The way kids are raised today doesn’t lead to a lively conscience. It leads to self-indulgence and a sense of entitlement.