Does grading based on a curve make cheating unfair?
Would cheating still be considered unfair if we drop the concept of grading according to a curve? (which we should)


Of course!

Let's assume that without cheating 10% of students get As. Therefore, students who earned As are a small group. Having an A might help getting funding, or finding an internship or a job. Now let's say that with cheating, 50% (no normalizing) of students get As, now an A is no longer that valuable because a lot of people have them. Therefore, the value of As that honest students earned has diminished.