Question:What do People Mean When They Say Something Should be "Taken With a Grain of Salt"?

When people say you SHOULD do something, does that mean it's mand...?

It means that is what they want or expect you to do and if you do it or not is your decision.

What do people mean when they say something's 'unnatural'? And why should it be bad?

Q: Considering that human beings are a part of nature, isn't everything we do natural?Or does it just mean 'man-made'? In which case, isn't everything we do unnatural?Or does it mean 'going against one's instincts and urges'? In which case, what do people mean when they say that homosexuality is unnatural? One of the most unnatural things I can think of, based on all this, would be surgery, or even medicine in general. But they seem, on the whole, to be relatively positive things, at least when done well.So why, when people call something 'unnatural', do they mostly seem to imply 'and therefore bad'?Wow. radio80flyer and Ali really seem to be missing the point. So what makes men having sex with men unnatural and what makes it bad? Just saying it is doesn't make it so.And Ali, on what grounds can that be the case? Is violence unnatural? It seems to be ubiquitous in nature – but it could certainly be described as immoral in many cases. And anyway: how do you define immoral? And is everything that's unnatural also immoral? In which case, how do you define unnatural?

A: You are highlighting the problems with a 'Natural Law' Approach to ethics/moralityFirstly, how do we define what is natural, since we all disagree?Secondly, when do things go from bein organic (and by implication natural) to artificial (and by implication unnatural). In other words, whats the difference between a herbal remedy (using a dock leaf to soothe a stinging nettle) and an artificial pain-killer mass produced with developed chemicals?Thirdly, should we be following nature (which includes killing, murder, cannibalism, survival of the fittest), or going above it (which includes virtue, self-sacrifice, honesty, selflessness).Unfortunately, most people who call something unnatural actually mean 'that goes against my understanding of what is normal or culturally acceptable, and provokes a reaction of disgust which I can not explain, so by that logic must be part of my gut instincts and so it is unnatural'.It is a faulty approach to ethics, and is rarely helpful!