I can accept that minimizing our own suffering is desirable on purely
practical grounds. We're here because our ancestors minimized their
suffering at the hands of predators, after all. When you discuss
minimizing suffering *in general*, presumably including the suffering of
others, how can you consider that outside the realm of morality?
Here's where I'm at: I feel that an individual should do whatever they
want, as long as it does not hurt others. If someone were to ask me why
they should not hurt others, I wouldn't have a good answer for them. I'm
not content to say "because hurting others is immoral". As you indicated
earlier, that's a shortcut to understanding. But I can't come up with a
better answer. Comments?