Evil

I suppose I'm interested in what made someone like Dr Harold Shipman kill lots of people apparently just for the sake of it.

Would he be less evil if it benefitted him?
Would he be less evil if it benefitted others?

Why do we like what we like or why are we who we are is a question not answered entirely, it's real meaning of life stuff you're getting at in some ways. I think so, anyway.

Likewise, I'm sure there are many people who've had murderous *impulses*, even randomly, while not acting upon them. What distances Shipman or Fred West from the rest of us is that, seemingly, that "I shouldn't be doing this" aspect has gone, or it just doesn't bother them, or whatever.

Maybe what is and isn't foreign to certain culture's isn't a reliable enough barometer? Where do the parameters lie in war zones? What about concepts like 'honour killing'?

Evil to me is shorthand for actions (and to a certain extent, thoughts*) that damage the ability of a society to function at its best. That's a really general description but I don't have the time (this is kind of a lie).

*I think stevem is OTM about the fact that not doing evil is a choice we make. While from an outside perspective there can be no thoughts that are evil, it is true enough that as individuals we can examine our thoughts and find them to be evil, which is the first step in not doing some of the things we probably think about doing.

Would I be evil if I admitted that I find these late night programmes on suburban couples who engage in gang bangs by night weirdly fascinating?

I drink Coca Cola - am I supporting an evil empire?

Seems to me most evil in fact is tied to selfishness of some kind

Not always of course, but it does bring to mind what Robert McNamara said regarding a nighttime firebombing of Japan by the U.S. that killed 100,000 people, admitting that if the U.S. lost he could have been prosecuted for war crimes.

So is most good.

Yes.

What I wonder is whether the pro-"EVIL" people think that if one doesn't have much interest in the word, one must be in denial. I mean I really really don't think this way about people ("Wait till your daughter gets murdered" yadda yadda). I just think the world and people in it get very fucked up at times. Even if it could be shown that Saddam Hussein and Ian Huntley were sitting there thinking 'mwah ha ha I'm so evil and I will take advantage of these woolly liberals', I really think I'd find it hard to see myself in some kind of cosmic battle of light against dark with them.

"Huntley was a pied paper figure, who lured children into his cave".

I don't think it's Huntley's fault he was messed up or insane or something. I was surprised by how much the police condemned him aswell on the documentary, it felt unprofessional to me.

How Evil Are You?

Define it

i mean, this happens everywhere from folks in your town to those in your elected government. Seriously, what do one do about the evil in the world?

hahaha! I love that song.

Seems to me most evil in fact is tied to selfishness of some kind

-- ermes marana (ermin...), December 17th, 2003

Bingo. To me the worst crimes in existence can always be boiled down to thievery of some sort (murder is the ultimate act of thievery).

jfc that is disturbing read
maybe sthing of munchausen-by-proxy to it
but i'm fine with calling it evil

“Not yet LOL,” he replied.

yep, that's definitely evil.

also evil: when people on the internet start calling her family with death threats, which has probably already happened, because lol, the internet.