Government takes action. It does not decide truth.
The Zeroth Law of Ethics = there are no right answers in ethics.
Absolutely every conclusion that is reached is a compromise between two evils. In political philosophy, the radical Far Left is just as much on a slippery foundation, as the Far Right (and the alt-Right) is. This is always true even in spite of the (often ferocious) confidence those extremists have in their own views.
Always be vigilant and always be awake towards people in your life who have complete certainty in their ethical principles. In many cases, this person may be a religious fanatic, and they have concluded that all ethical and political puzzles have been "solved by the Bible". It only takes pointing out the 1.3 billion people in Asia who are Hindu, Buddhist, or some combination thereof. (that's a billion , with a 'b'). Thus the conclusion that religion resolves all ethical dilemmas is prima facie false. Religion itself is not a "completed science".
The Great and Wonderful What-About
The study of ethics does not proceed like the study of science, or the study of physics. The literal manner in which the studying and reading is done is very alien to reading mathematics and science. In science, any particular topic always goes in a direction, closer and closer to its essential claims. The more you study about theories of electromagnetism, the closer and closer you draw to Maxwell's Equations. Maxwell's Equations are a summary of the entire phenomenon in 4 little equations. You gain a stronger and stronger sense that these equations are essential, and that all other phenomena normally studied in isolation are all derivatives of the fundamental formulas. The same thing can happen with cosmology, or with mechanical engineering, or ___ {insert random mathematics or science topic here}
In ethics, this does not happen at all. Instead, reading about the main personalities in ethics leads from one marginal sidenote down into another. In trying to flesh out utilitarian philosophers, you will be drawn to cracks and fissures, and investigating the cracks opens up another door of investigation into another rabbit hole. And then that rabbit hole leads into another maze, and soon you are lost in a labyrinth, far away from where you began.
Some ethical theories are so powerful they had a real effect on history, and gave rise to entire "Eras" in history like the Enlightenment and even perhaps key revolutions and even the birth of new nations. Despite this, when you go read about them, your mind will be inexorably drawn to such questions :
- "What about this?"
- "What about that?"
- "How does this ethical theory deal with this? Or with that?"