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Well said. Like Parfit literally discusses the repugnant conclusion and the non-identity problems as two sides of the same coin, and it's not as if deontology doesn't run head first into the latter through the usual slave creation problems.
For what it's worth, I don't believe that total utilitarianism commits you to biting the bullet ove…
Well said. Like Parfit literally discusses the repugnant conclusion and the non-identity problems as two sides of the same coin, and it's not as if deontology doesn't run head first into the latter through the usual slave creation problems.
For what it's worth, I don't believe that total utilitarianism commits you to biting the bullet over the repugnant conclusion (as opposed to non-identity problem). You can be a total utilitarian (as I am), but just have a restricted scope on what you thing is valuable/important and hence in need of maximization.
I believe it really does depend on your substantive meta-ethical views. If you are in some sense constructivist about value (i.e. you believe things are good because we value them and not vice versa), then there is no question begging argument to create people (see: people should create people because life is valuable; but their lives are valuable only if these people value their lives; but they would only value their lives if they existed in the first place; and they would only exist if we should create them, and we're back at the beginning).
Depends a lot on the details of the constructivism! E.g. it could be that *our* (or anyone's) valuing sentient lives in general is enough to make such lives valuable. So I don't see that constructivism per se forces you in any particular direction here. I'd think it should more come down to which first-order moral verdicts you find most plausible on their merits.