Good and Evil

Friedrich Nietzsche wrote:  “Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, political parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.”  

Similar can be said about evil. “Evil” can be surmised as morally reprehensible acts of cruelty intended to malign and inflict harm on people or animals. (Some people deny the existence of “evil.”  They would call this “very, very, bad wrong-doing.”)  Such acts are usually calculated, and they are usually premeditated. If not premediated, they most often take into account the consequences of the harm they do. (Excluding the rarer acts of evil done in states of insanity.) There is always personal gain for those who do evil acts. There is always some form of personal enrichment. One’s financial position or social status are often heightened. There are always feelings of empowerment, and they usually inflate the ego-personality. These acts “feel good,” and they “feel right.” Righteousness often abounds. Such acts are usually accompanied by some form of personal aggrandizement. Malice often resonates with deep satisfaction. Such acts are more likely to be seen in psychopathic, sociopathic, and severely narcissistic personalities who regale in sadism and depravity. If we define “evil” as the willful and calculated act of injuring another human being, then evil acts by individuals are uncommon.

Yet, there are millions upon millions of people making a concerted effort every day to promote respect, fairness, kindness, and  tolerance. They care for, educate, support, and empower people in healthy ways. And reach out to the needy and the less advantaged rather than hoard for their own imagined gain. Good deeds often lack the luxury of being seen. Although conflict and intrigue prevail everywhere, it does not lessen the light cast by the “daily good-doings” of millions upon millions of individual people. Yet, good, as such, is seldom directly rewarded. Evil is flashier and attracts fascination and attention. And the “rewards” of evil are often immediate. 

But never let doubt get the better of you here. Human beings need one billion gestures of “good” from one billion individual people every day to keep the human race from going under. Every contribution is needed, no matter how modest and shy. Today more than ever.

That Goodness is at least 51% “of it all” can be surmised by the highly over-simplified observation that homo sapiens have not yet been so possessed and driven by “evil-doings” that they have completely demolished all of their past achievements and extinguished themselves. Albeit, they are coming awfully close to doing so at this time in history.