How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
"Oh, no," agreed Kearns. He crossed the room to stand before the withered, wheezing old man. With great tenderness he said, "To the contrary, you are a humanitarian, Dr. Starr. Let no one tell you otherwise! An anthropological alchemist, turning lead into gold! The chains that bind most men do not bind you, and in this you and I are brothers, dear Jeremiah. We are the new men of a new and glorious age, free of lies and unbound by any ridiculous rectitude." He placed his hands on either side of Starr's weathered pate, cupping his face while he bent low to purr into his oversize ear, "The only truth is the truth of the now. 'There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.' There is no morality, is there, Jeremiah, but the morality of the moment." (13.131)
What, exactly, do you think Dr. Kearns means when he says "the morality of the moment"? We think it is a phrase that allows him infinite flexibility to make judgment calls that lack any sense of ethical or moral compunction.
If you only consider the present moment—and therefore don't have to consider any ramifications of your actions—then sure, whatever you decide will be fine. It is this kind of reasoning that allows Kearns to do the terrible things that he does without any guilt or doubt, and in that sense, he is a lot like Dr. Starr. They both march to the beat of their own sociopathic drummer, that's for sure.