Why should I prefer virtues to vices?

You shouldn’t.

Why not?

The four Platonic virtues are; wisdom, courage, temperance and justice. As your question implies there is a moral tenor to each.

Man lives through the vicissitudes of life , gaining wisdom or knowledge not only of external nature but of one's self, self knowledge. In this way a man gains as noble individuality.

In so far as justice , man himself is the created justice, or what he is at a particular point in time. The world or cosmic places in time and space are his individuality. He is the outcome of of cosmic justice, man, through self creatidness.

Wisdom and justice speak to the past( lives), a completion of human value.

To the contrary courage( fortitude) and temperance point to the future life (lives).

Man seeks the good as it not a matter of "choice" when one performs an invidious deed. In performing this particular invidious deed it may be that his judgement has failed due to a temporary diminishment of knowledge of the event. He is not what he could be and in this "judgement" arises as his very being, the being of self.

He is the consequence of his past as he travels buoyed by fortitude and temperance into the future.

One man's virtue is another man's vice.

You live in a society where the benefit of having virtues clearly outweighs the burden of having vices. Not all vices are equal and some of them could come handy if you're a psychopath or just a rogue; but it's quite clear to me that you maximize your chances of good outcomes by having virtues rather than vices. I still think that, the best way to get the best outcomes is a combination of most virtues plus some useful vices.

Because you have been conditioned to do so from birth, going against which will likely make you unhappy. Acquiesce to society's demands and you will be rewarded, or looked after, or at least not punished; that's the deal.

What if the only people alive on the continent you are on was your family, and it was a big family of like 200 decedents total (like 10 kids, each had 10 kids, each had however many is left). (each continent has such a family on it) If you are unfair with your family, they will be unfair going down the generations into the future, no? And if your family becomes the biggest family in the world, it will just push its injustice beliefs that it got from you onto the rest of the world.

So you're the leader of your family, and you being just or unjust, fair or unfair, courageous or cowardly, (etc all the other virtues vs vices) then your decedents will pick up on the same things....
And when everyone is treated unfairly everyone is unhappy, no?

There seems usually to be a few true believers, like in Jonestown or Nazi Germany, but I don't see what that has to do with your OP.

So if you throw a rock into the Atlantic off the shore of Newfoundland they will feel the consequences in Ireland ?

What if there were no labels to things. Just atoms moving around in a big pond. Then yes, throwing a rock would ripple.

I'll counter your "dont see" with one of my own
I dont see a hot naked chick in my room.

edit: also you forgot to mention the quantum mechanic jews
nah i'm just breaken ur balls man

It feels like you have a question you want to ask

Why was Jonestown bad and Woodstock good? That's the question, right?

If I were the leader of the only family on a continent, then I would of course treat everyone fair and just.

Keep in mind however, that being the leader of the only family on a continent would give me the priviledge of setting the rules and customs, deciding what is just or unjust, courageous or cowardly, fair or unfair. The culture of the family/society would follow my beliefs.

If my family were then to interact with other families on other continents, whose culture developed the same way but with different leaders, chances are we'd have some disagreements about what is fair/unfair, just/unjust etc.

The continents dont need to interact yet. Lets assume they cant interact yet.
If what you are saying is true, that no one can tell the difference between just and unjust, fair and unfair, then...

As the leader of your family you would, I'm guessing, propose that everyone put forward their best definition of what is just and unjust, fair and unfair, and why. And then let everyone see what everyone has put forward, and ensure the fair voting on which definition they thought they would want to be governed by the most.

That felt so good that I get the feeling I'm going to die. Maybe its a swing thing. Or maybe I think I'm going to die at a dramatic moment. But then I think about the Sopranos and its like, whatever ; )

What I'm trying to get at is that the morals of a society are generally dictated by the people highest on the social heirarchy. I think history has shown that the people with that power usually tend to impose their own sense of morals onto the rest of the populace, rather than allow people to take a vote and follow the majority opinion.

I can't say for sure how I'd use that power if I were in such a position of social authority.

Even if she (the one who can tell the difference between just and unjust) exists, she don't need to tell you, I just told you how you can find the most optimal solution for yourself.

edit: you're right, this assumes a democracy. In Israel the yahoo guy would have to decide to give up his power and allow his people to vote on the most just system they could think of.

If virtues made you more liked by others and vices landed you in jail, would that be enough reason to prefer and avoid them respectively?

Depends on how much you like other people & jail imo.

Sometimes some people would rather be in jail with a guitar than be around people.
But sometimes a person is all you need.

Virtues are conducive to self-respect, self-esteem, our humanity ... vices tend to produce the opposite in our regard for ourselves and life.

If I was living in a house with 10 people, I would choose them to have virtues.
If I could get away with it, would I choose to have vices?
Thank God's big fat tits that we have a well working legal system here in the USA that stops bad people from doing bad things to other people.
Good thing big business doesn't set laws by giving undisclosed amounts of money to the people writing the laws.
Good thing big business doesn't control the USA with its money, b/c the USA has the most powerful military in the world.
If big business controlled the USA, that would mean big business controls the most powerful military in the world.
That would suck, yo.
It would be hella scary, yo.
Okay, enough of that, Ryan, its time to put our heads back in the sand where it feels safe.
Relief.
Much better.

I mean, evolution is what you’re saying? Evolution depicts well of the scientific theories. I think the atheist odds to civilization are too obscene for me. But evolution is becoming more and more prominent in Evangelicism. It’s a theory you need to consider at every step to atheism. Philosophy to some is The End. Some it’s just the beginning.