Moral conviction is something that everyone should have, it is inherent, or at least that is the assumption. In the book, "A Case for Christianity", by C. S. Lewis, Lewis argues that it is part of the "Moral Law". Not the part that will make you forget about yourself and help someone else even though it might put you in danger, but rather the part that makes you feel bad when you have wronged another person or broken your own moral code. That is just it though, you set your own moral code, not anyone else. Sure it can be influenced by teachers, parents, friends, movies, media, and numerous other entities of our society, but the end result is your own choice, your own moral standard that you have set for yourself.I was brought up believing that everyone has some sort of slight moral conviction after every action, this now, I believe, is simply just not true. Speaking from personal experience, if you believe that what you are doing is not wrong, or that it has a legitimate purpose, than you will not feel any moral conviction. This is of course a rationalization; a fake truth that you have convinced yourself is the truth. I once had it explained to me by a career criminal, that what he was doing was keeping society in order. As he explained it, if he and all other crime seized to exist, the economy would be destroyed. Inflation and unemployment would skyrocket, the dollar would be crushed, and nothing could save us except for the rebirth of crime. His explanation stated that once crime seized to exist there would be no need for police, security companies and their employees, judges, prisons, and the need for doctors and lawyers would drop significantly. Millions would be out of work, causing an economic disaster. This rationalization worked for him and kept him from feeling morally convicted about any crime. He seriously felt like he was doing his part and helping in society. Often the assumption about convicted criminals ...
