People are sometimes held morally blameworthy as a result of circumstances some of which were outside their intentional control. The intentions of the person performing an action are rarely a decisive factor in making moral judgments about that action. We should judge all negligent people to be equally morally blameworthy, regardless of the outcomes of their actions. We sometimes judge unfairly the morality of other people's actions.
Columnist: It is sometimes claimed that the only factors relevant to determining moral guilt or innocence are the intentions of the person performing an action. However, external circumstances often play a crucial role in our moral judgment of an action. For example, a cook at a restaurant who absentmindedly put an ingredient in the stew that is not usually in the stew would ordinarily be regarded as forgetful, not immoral. If, however, someone eating at the restaurant happens to be severely allergic to that ingredient, eats the stew, and dies, many people would judge the cook to be guilty of serious moral negligence.
Which one of the following propositions is best illustrated by the columnist's statements?