The article describes a recent Chicago hot dog restaurant incident that can be considered an ethical issue. The incident involved a man who was asked to wear a mask to use the restaurant’s services (Sutton, 2022). In response, the man offended the restaurant employee by throwing snow in their face several times (Sutton, 2022). Additionally, the offender broke the glass door with an unknown object (Sutton, 2022). This incident can be considered an ethical issue because the offender’s actions were disproportional to the situation, apart from the obvious property damage offense. Furthermore, throwing snow at an employee might not count as illegal; however, it is blatantly disrespectful toward an individual.
A utilitarian point of view would consider this incident wrong by examining the consequences of the offender’s actions. The seeming reason behind the offender’s behavior is the employee’s request to wear a mask, which is the state’s mandate. Utilitarianism would view the restaurant visitor’s decision to commit an offense against the employee and the restaurant’s property, starting with the consequences of these actions. Since the result is a broken glass door and an innocent employee that suffered, the consequences are harmful. As such, from the utilitarian point of view, the actions can be considered wrong. The Kantian moral theory views an issue as irrational since following the moral law and duty is rational behavior. Offering an innocent individual and damaging the restaurant’s property can be immoral. As such, dismissing the moral law renders the offender irrational in the eyes of a follower of a Kantian moral theory.
I believe that utilitarianism is the most logical way to conclude this ethical problem. The reason for that is that negative consequences for anybody can be the best moral compass for almost any decision. The Kantian moral theory is based on moral law, which can be subjective in some people’s minds. As such, according to Kantian theory, some people might disagree that the incident is an ethical issue. In contrast, according to utilitarianism, a negative impact on any individual renders an action wrong.