[NSFW] If slavery was legal and socially acceptable, would you own a slave?
Asked by
HungryGuy (
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)
December 15th, 2010
Would you? Huh? Huh? Would you?
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51 Answers
No. It would not be morally acceptable to me even if it was legal and socially acceptable.
You mean treat a person as if they were an object simply there for my pleasure. No. That way leads corrupton of the soul.
I don’t know. People all over the world owned slaves for thousands of years before the practice was questioned. It took a very long time to stamp it out (and it does still exist in some parts of the world).
I think it’s impossible to honestly answer this question. If any of us had been born during a time when slavery wasn’t questioned, we’d all say “Heck yeah, give me one of those!” Slaves were valuable.
However, if slavery were made legal again I would not even consider owning a slave. I have three kids, what do I need a slave for? ;)
Depending on what they retail at…... could I get one at walmart?
No, I don’t think I could bring myself to be cruel to someone who can’t fight back. Servants, on the other hand – if I were rich enough I’d have a housekeeper.
No. There are a lot of things that are morally acceptable to many people, and legal to boot, but I don’t do them because I don’t find them morally acceptable.
@MissAusten Cause the damn kids grow up and move out, that’s why!
No I wouldn’t. Although by sheer coincidence I’m writing a novel at the moment, based on this exact premise. My main protagonist refuses to own one too.
Well, good for your MP, @downtide! (Will you name the MP ‘Dutchess’ please??)
@Dutchess_III well my MP is a guy and I don’t think the name “Dutchess” would suit him. :-D (However he’s also wealthy enough to own a private yacht so I will name the boat Dutchess for you, if you like.)
This is a hard question because it’s less about what I think is right, knowing what I know today, and more about whether I would fall in line with social norms. If I lived in Roman times, would I think slavery was an abomination? I guess it depends on my socio-economic status. Being wealthy, I’d probably just think it was normal. Being poorer, being exposed to the ugliness of slavery, I’d probably feel completely different.
I’d like to think I’d find it as appalling as I do now, that humans can be treated as animals, as pieces of property, with no care to their feelings, hopes, or dreams. That is, actual, institutionalized slavery.
BDSM slavery is another subject altogether, considering the “slave” is not actually taken by force or against their will. Given some ideal conditions that likely exist only in my head, I could see myself having a “slave” in this context.
@MissAnthrope My my my! The things we learn about each other!! :)
I’m cutting my own throat on fluther by admitting I’d love to have a houseful. But I would want them to LIKE living with me. They would have medical care for their children , nice living conditions in general and I would treat them fairly and with respect. I would not like having employees who were unhappy and feeling persecuted. Why do we always think they were all mistreated? I don’t get it.
Given the NSFW tag and your posts on other threads, I’m guessing you are talking about a sex slave. In which case I don’t think it necessarily implies cruelty but fulfillment of needs on both parts. I have an ongoing fantasy of taking that role with the person I love and trust.
@Aster If they were your employees, they wouldn’t be slaves. If they’re slaves, they still aren’t free no matter how nice to them you are or what benefits you offer their families. I’m sure there were slaves who weren’t mistreated in the sense of being physically abused, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t have been happier to be free.
@MissAnthrope You said exactly what I wanted to say but was too lazy to try to type out coherently! :)
I don’t know if I’d want a sex slave. I’d rather have a housekeeper.
No, I’d never trust someone to be near me and help me with things who wasn’t doing for me willingly. In the case of a sex slave, that has even less appeal because I’m aroused only when I feel genuinely desired.
Well, you know, it’d be on certain agreed-upon terms with me as the dominant, which means I get to tell them to keep the house up, make me dinner, give me a massage.. but it’s my decision whether I’m in the mood to do anything sexual. Some people are into that and would be fine with this type of situation. It’s win-win. ;)
What if I don’t want to own a slave…can I rent one? or a rent to own deal with an option to buy or upgrade at the end of the term?
Pluh-eez. I have two children and a husband, think I need anyone else?
Nope. I couldn’t. There is no way I could force someone to work for me, without pay or freedom. I had a housekeeper when I was really sick and we had someone to help out with our youngest child, too. I struggled with that, and they were paid very well. I’m the person that would clean, before the cleaning lady would come. It just would never work for me. I want people to be equal. I don’t want to be above, or below someone.
Nope.
As a libertarian/classical liberal, I believe that people should be free to do whatever they want as long as they extend the same benefit to others. Slavery is in direct opposition to these values.
@cak That was a really, really cool post: “I don’t want to be above, or below someone.” Not very many people feel that way. So many people are either jealous of those who have more, or distainful of those who have less.
When I was really poor, I dreamed of making enough money to “hire” a house cleaner/kid sitter. In my dream they would become part of the family, my house would be theirs, they’d be paid well for the work, they’d have their own part of the house and together we’d make a difference in each other’s lives over the years. I’d have enough money to send my kids and theirs to college. It wasn’t a dream of being “above” or “below” anyone..it was a dream of helping each other out, of being able to help someone else out who deserved it.
@Dutchess_III – I’ll be honest. I’ve been on all sides of the money fence. A lot, enough, not enough, completely broke, and back again. Won’t say exactly where I landed, but I’m grateful. I’ve seen the highs and to me, there are a lot of drawbacks. I think experiencing a lot, a little and everything in-between, has taught me a good lesson in life. I hope I pass my feelings on to my children.
Probably. I find the idea abhorrent, but if I grew up during a time and place where everyone thought it was ok and thought hadn’t evolved to a point of saying “this is really f*cking bad”, there’s no real reason to believe I’d be the one person on Earth who was against slavery.
@cak (( )) Me too. And I’m grateful. If I hadn’t been on both sides of the fence in my life I’d be a completely different person. You know…I’m on the “good” (or make that “easier”) side of the fence now. I walked past a Salvation Army bell ringer yesterday, clutching my billfold a little harder. Then walked through the store going “WTH!!!! At least when you were poor you’d drop a quarter in! Now you don’t want to let go of a buck??” So I dropped a whole $5.00 on my way back out. But it was hard. It’s hard to “spend” money, to this day!
Only if she volunteered to be a slave, and even then I doubt if she could convince me that’s what she really wanted. So, no.
I totally respect people who want to work as house cleaners or cooks or other home employees. I do not consider their work to be menial work. I am proud to be able to hire them and help them earn a living. Our house cleaner comes from Ethiopia. When she started with us, she had barely 20 words of English. Now she’s got a regular cleaning job during the week (with an agency) and her own private clients on the weekends. If that ain’t someone working the American Dream, I don’t know what is. Like I said, I’m proud to hire someone who is working their ass off to get ahead.
hell no. because of the wussification of America you can’t find good help anymore who would be paid. I shudder to think of the crap I’d have to deal with expecting them to work for free. Forget about it it’s a bad idea.
No. Just because something is socially acceptable doesn’t make it morally right.
This is a bad question. We’ve all grown up in a society which views slavery as immoral, and therefore we have been conditioned to think this way. Of course people like to think that they are above the influence of the rest of society, but you’re not. If slavery was legal and socially acceptable, most of us would probably have been conditioned to feel morally comfortable with slavery as well.
Is the “slave” a human or a robot? a lot of answers would be different if it was a robot
Does my slave come with accessories? Or do I need to buy them separate?....
also what kind of warranty comes with my slave…can I get the extended warranty??
If I were wealthy, yes.
Why?
I would hire investigators to find out about slaves being treated badly by their owners. I would use my money to buy them, then organize travel and ship all of them to countries where slavery is illegal.
I really don’t think I would. I don’t feel the need for a slave regardless of how I feel about it from a moral sense. I completely agree with @chocolatechip though which makes this question difficult to answer.
@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard – If you’re really a Libertarian, then you should believe that everyone owns their own body, and thus has the right to sell it into slavery if they wish.
@HungryGuy, I emphasized consent. If someone really wants to sell themself into slavery, I don’t really care. I was saying that I wouldn’t do it because it goes against my own values.
wtf happened to my avatar?
Hmm… it turned into a yellow jellyfish for a minute, but now it’s normal again. Word.
@chocolatechip Well…I can’t say for sure that “most” of us would view it as acceptable, just because it was “socially” acceptable. For argument’s sake, let’s say that 70% of the “free” population of 19th century America felt that slavery was not ok. But let’s say that that 70% was in the minority as far as their opinions, views, political clout and economic sway was concerned. Let’s say that that 70% was comprised of women and “lesser” men of no-or-very-little political sway. The 20% that ‘dominated’, that pulled the most strings, that beat the most women, that fired the most underlings, that dismissed hired hands from the only job they had…that 20% would control the reins. Pretty much like today. The majority doesn’t rule. The majority with money, power, and mouth and the “apparent” mob rule.
@Dutchess_III Good point. But I say it’s still impossible to objectively answer the question given that we have all grown up in anti-slavery societies. We’re clearly biased. If you were a wealthy Roman Patrician you might have a different point of view.
Thank you @chocolatechip. Yes, the people who were once kept unheard are now “allowed” to speak.
And, um, I’m not Roman, I’m not wealthy, and my name’s not Patricia! I’m just a Kansas Girl!
Yeah, I get off on people dominating me instead. However, I think you and I already covered this topic in a different thread
Impossible to be sure but I believe it would conflict with my individual ethics.
If 70% of the people were dong it and were raised with it, the answers would be far different.
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