Ethics & the Smartass SF Writer  Ethics & the Smartass SF Writer
by Bruce Bethke  I'm not often asked to write about Ethics. Not
because this is alien territory to me, although my ex-wife might
disagree: I'm familiar enough with Aristotle's Nicomachean
Ethics to know it's a tragedy Aristotle never met Strunk &
White; familiar enough with Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil to
know it's a good thing I never caught up with Nietzsche in a
dark alley, preferably while I was carrying a baseball bat. But
the truth is, I'm usually considered a "funny" writer, and
serious think-pieces are not typically part of my oeuvre.
Still, the editors have graciously asked me to contribute my
thoughts on science fiction, the Internet, and future of ethics,
so I will roll up my sleeves, put on my glasses (whenever I want
people to take me seriously, I wear my glasses---it's
astonishing, the difference it makes), and tackle the subject
head-on. Beginning with:  Some Root Concepts  Let's start by
reviewing Aristotle:  Makes it sound