Evil is Often Born of Good Intentions
Evil is Often Born of Good Intentions
It’s naive to think that someone is inherently evil and knows they're evil. The motive is important and makes all the difference—a short essay on evil.
The whole question of Hitler being a good guy or a bad guy apparently made a comeback and is trending, so I figured it’s a good time to talk about it without silly hyperbole.
For the record - Hitler was definitely a bad guy, but he didn’t see himself as such. He also wasn’t the only one.
I am a firm believer that open discussion of opinions and history is better than one-sided censorship and name-calling. It’s the only way to learn and avoid developing blind spots of our own in the future.
Don’t worry—I won’t be fact-checking alternative historians in this essay. Instead, I’ll focus on problems with labeling things as evil without bothering to understand them.
How do you define evil?
Personally, I don’t like describing things as evil despite enjoying the emotional punch the word “evil” delivers. Why? I see it used mostly as a cop-out. No thinking is necessary if we just label something evil.
While I agree that the things most people label as evil indeed fit the description, I just dislike it for the inherent blindspot it induces.
You don't have to understand anything if you can just label it evil. No empathy is seldom a good thing. You don’t have to agree or support others, but it’s wise to understand them—less you might become them and never know it!
Worse yet, as we'll see in this article, you believe yourself and your “side” to be inherently good, which is a dangerous predisposition to have. I also refuse the biblical association with evil, as again, it’s a cop-out, blaming some invisible evil entity influencing people instead of trying to understand why some people do “evil things.”
My definition of evil is the following
“Evil is something that is from my perspective (important) so despicable, terrible, vile, immoral, unforgivable, and tragic that it should be extinguished from the face of this Earth with extreme prejudices.”
What is your (personal) definition? Let me know in the comments.
Three types (examples) of evil deeds
Political evil deeds.
Religious evil deeds.
Personal evil deeds.
Political evil
What or who is the first thing you think of when I mention evil politicians?
Hitler and Nacism.
Stalin and communism.
Mao and, well, communism (no surprise there).
Genghis Khan and his Mongol horde.
Dictators, autocrats, ruling elite, slavery, …
Trump, as he’s apparently the next Hitler, though he’s just 12 million victims short of the man and against socialism, but okay.
I’ve written a post on fictional genocidal Olympics where such men and ideologies compete to see who is the “evilest” of them all. It’s fun if a little dark.
There is no denying that the people mentioned above committed great deeds of evil, murdering millions of innocent people during their reign of power. Except Trump, that’s a delusional projection, but we’ll get to that.
I think we can all agree that if one leader is responsible for killing thousands or millions of innocent people, they are evil, right?
Are we in agreement? Are you sure? That’s the bar we’re setting?
Would you describe the following men as evil, then?
Was Winston Churchill an evil man?
He ordered the strategic bombing of German cities, resulting in approximately 500,000 civilian deaths, and his wartime policies are believed to have been responsible for an additional 2-3 million deaths due to famine, known as the Bengal famine of 1943.Was Harry S. Truman an evil man?
Truman made the decision to throw devastating atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to expedite the end of WWII, leading to the deaths of over 200,000 civilians.Was Napoleon Bonaparte an evil man?
His military campaigns across Europe, including the Peninsular War in Spain, resulted in significant civilian suffering and casualties, estimated at approximately 200,000 to 300,000.
For most of us in the West, that’s a bit tricky, isn’t it? There’s no denying that those deaths are on their conscience, but we believe it was for a justifiable cause.
In short - they were on our side, while Hitler and the Axis of Evil were “the other guys - the enemy.”
Deeds themselves, however, were no different. Murder is murder. Killing civilians is killing civilians. Thousands upon thousands of men, women, and children were killed. Intentionally, on purpose, with everyone fully aware of what they are doing!
That’s the problem with politics
Everything will always depend on your political beliefs and ideology and on which side of the border (or issue) you happen to live on.
Do you really believe Hitler just woke up one day, stricken by some evil thought, Satan whispering in his ears, and went on a killing spree? Don’t be so naive, darlings.
The fact of the matter is, whether you like it or not, that even Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and all the rest of the universally convicted evil politicians believed they were doing the right thing. They thought themselves the good guys.
At least initially. Things tend to take on a mind of their own as they progress, and more often than not, it becomes about holding on to power for dear life, as the price for failure is certain death.
They thought they were working in the best interest of their people. Had they won the war, we would be the bad guys who murdered so many of them, and they would be the good guys.
Wanna guess who writes the history books? The victors. Everything you think you know from history could be a lie.
Hitler wanted what he believed was the best thing for his country, Germany, which was in utter despair at the time. Who was to blame for the hunger and suffering of his people? We were—the winners of World War I. When times are tought, politicians find enemies for people to hate.
We also played our part in this “local” conflict becoming a worldwide tragedy. That seems to be something we’re fond of doing, as the latest open arenas would suggest. Blame can be thrown in every direction. We can also find justification on each side if we bother to look.
The motive
It’s important to understand that the motives of all these evil men responsible for killing millions of people were indeed good. They believed they were doing good for their people and countries. However misguided, insane, or objectively “evil” their actions.
Had they prevailed, their people would indeed probably be better off. We just happened to disagree and have won, so they’re now the bad guys and have suffered the consequences.
Men knowingly murdering two hundred thousand innocent civilians in Japan with a nuclear bomb didn’t do it out of malice. Satan didn’t whisper in their ear, “Burn the civilian alive and mutilate future generations,” nor did they “get off” on extinguishing so many souls. Their reasoning was that this was a “heavy price” to pay for saving lives by ending the war. Should the war continue, many more were estimated to perish, especially on their side. Evil deed? No doubt. Good intention? Absolutely? Justifiable? We’ll never know.
Who’s side are you on, anyway?
Why is it so damn important to understand this point about perspectives and beliefs?
Just look at the current political sphere. The USA is utterly divided, almost equally in proportion between the left and the right.
The left has been brainwashed to believe that Donald Trump is a monster comparable to Adolf Hitler himself. They believe that with all their hearts and are now shaking in their boots at the thought of him taking over the office again, even though they survived four previous years unscathed, and it was a time of peace, not war, unlike under the rule of their heroes, where the world is on the brink of a fiery collapse.
The thing is, they can’t see that. They can’t be objective. The same can be said of the other side. They perceive the left, justifiably or not, as evil, morally corrupt, religion-destroying, border-annihilating, mentally insane NPCs who endanger the very foundation of their society.
This sort of division and labeling is problematic and, if allowed to continue, can lead to a very dark future.
We’re effectively blind, and all we see in the world confirms our beliefs
We were always at the mercy of our mental filters, distorting our perception of everything, but now social media's attention algorithms thrive on giving us more of what we engage with, further fuelling the delusional conviction of our version of the truth.
While political disagreement is normal and to be expected, even good to an extent, as I explain in this article on the illusionary power of voting, there is a real danger lurking beneath when these beliefs, ideologies, and emotions reach extremes.
Communists and socialists wanted equality for all. Those ideas were usually born amid extreme division between the ruling class and the average, poor citizen.
They were right in wanting a better life and somewhat correct in identifying the culprits. They believed they were creating a sort of utopia. Yet, those ideologies led to more deaths than most wars—among regular people, nonetheless.
Communists and socialists are like cancer; they eat themselves from the inside out. But they still believe they’re doing what is right and good for the people. Their intentions are “pure.”
From their point of view, they’re light burning away the darkness. It just so happens that they always end up getting burned themselves.
The unfortunate fact of life
It’s crucial to understand and always keep at the forefront of your mind that what is good for your group, side, or country is often bad for the other. If you’re the good guy from your side, you’re the bad guy from their side.
We are always competing for resources, power, and control. We can’t all be the good guys objectively, but we all feel like the good guys from our point of view.
Here are a few recent examples:
If China prevails as a world superpower, that will be good for the Chinese people—all 1.7 billion of them—and their allies, so probably about 3 billion people.
If the USA wins this competition, it will be good for the USA and its allies, which will probably be less than those 3 billion. A lot less.
If Russia wins the Ukraine war, as many fear, it will benefit Russians on both sides of the border.
If Ukraine wins, it will benefit European-leaning Ukrainians but at the expense of Russians and Russian-leaning Ukrainians.
The possible exception
Unfortunately, there are very few exceptions to this rule. Globalism was one such exception. It brought us decades of peace and prosperity, but there were also losers in this game. Some even paid a hefty price.
The interconnectedness weakened the self-dependence of countries, especially with technology and energy. Many jobs were lost, and people had to adapt. What it did achieve, though, is far more important - it made us all partners and allies in an economic sense, and that prevented global wars and enabled us all to prosper beyond anything seen before.
This isolationism we’re playing tends to make enemies everywhere, and that is never a good thing for lasting peace.
Religious evil
If you believe in some God of your choosing, he can do no wrong from your point of view. Am I right? He, the almighty, is always right. Christians, for example, love their God of love despite infinite examples of his cruelty, mass murder, genocide, and deeds, if done by any man, would be labeled absolute, despicable, unimaginable evil.
Like drowning the whole planet, men, women, children, and animals, because he found them wicked, burning entire cities alive, seeking bears on naughty children, and the list goes on and on. Not to mention creating an eternity of unimaginable torment for all those who disobey him. That’s dictatorial beyond the grave, my friends. Not a lot of love was detected, only demands for absolute obedience, like a true dictator. If evil had a name…
Yet, for Christians, their God is always just and right. This leads to another problem. Whatever they believe they are doing in his name is also just and right, regardless of the deeds. Even when it’s burning women alive at the stake, abusing millions of children, waging wars, and branding tanks with his blessings.
And who’s labeled as evil in the “good book?” Satan or Lucifer, right? What’s he ever done to humanity that would even remotely compare to all the evils God has done to his supposed children?
This condemnation reminds me of political opposition being labeled as evil and persecuted for opposing the power of the dominant ruler. Annoying, sure. But evil? We used to value it in democracies, but then again, God is not elected, nor does he accept compromises or tolerate competition. It’s obey or burn in hell for all of eternity. Ah, so much love!
The biggest issue I find with blaming some invisible devil for all the “evil” in the world is a lack of self-awareness and understanding.
It’s just looking for a scapegoat, someone to blame for all the evil in this world, but that’s nonsense. We need to look ourselves in the eyes and see that we, too, are capable of horrible evils when we find them justified (more on that in a bit).
Millions of people perished in religious wars of all kinds
Followers of different religions have been slaughtering each other since the dawn of time, even from within, through different factions. All committed heinous acts of evil, but since it was done in the name of their God or Gods, they felt justified in doing so. They were the light expelling darkness from their land, one dead body at a time.
Murdered a village of witches or pagans? We’re going to heaven, baby!
All brainless ideologies are problematic
Emotions run high, and no thinking is present in decision-making. It’s blind faith, however misguided it may be, and you can do no wrong when your God is standing by your side, guiding your hand as you slaughter the innocent, who must be evil, or he would not command you to kill them in his name.
Genghis Khan is known to have said to his enemies, as he entered their kingdom and was about to murder them indiscriminately: “I wonder what evil you must have done for God to have put you in my path?” Something to think about.
Personal evil
Who are we thinking of when talking about people doing evil deeds on a personal, individual level?
Murderers and killers.
Torturers.
Pedophiles.
Rapists.
Terrorists.
Kidnappers and people involved in human trafficking.
Perhaps even people who steal from helpless victims either with deceit or violence.
I bet you think you’re incapable of similar evil deeds yourself, aren’t you? Are you sure?
The why is important
To determine whether some act is evil, we should look toward motive. Right? If we don’t look at motives and the “why” of situations, we won’t understand them, and we’re going to find ourselves in a predicament when it comes to the same acts, but done for good.
If killing is inherently evil, is killing someone in self-defense or to protect your family also evil?
How about cops stopping a criminal, a terrorist who will hurt more people unless he’s stopped?
What about protecting your country during war? Is that killing evil and murder, or is it justified? How about bombing another and invading it, for the sake of forcing the capitulation of your enemy?
How about revenge killing? Murdering someone who has raped, tortured, or murdered your kids, for example? Is that evil, justice, or what?
People who commit acts of great evil, those we condemn, rarely see themselves as evil
Why do rapists rape? Because they are weak men who seek to take power from the even weaker. Rape is not about sex. It’s about control and power.
Murderers probably justified murdering their victims to themselves in some way. Soldiers are killing for their country. Police officers for their citizens or in self-defense. Religious murders are done in the name of their God. Gang members kill for business or in turf wars with rival gangs. Robbers kill because someone got in their way. Psychopaths get off on killing and have zero empathy with their victims. They just don’t see it as wrong. It may just be a simple game of predator and prey to them, like a domesticated cat torturing and killing a mouse it found running around the house.
Even pedophiles justify their actions despite being fully aware of how society feels about them in some twisted way or another. From their point of view, they’re not doing anything wrong - they don’t see children as precious living beings worth protecting and saving. This is the main reason I don’t believe in rehabilitating pedophiles, rapists, and psychopaths. It just doesn’t work, and you end up releasing these monsters back into the population because of naive notions and compassion. And other innocent victims suffers as a result.
How about terrorists? The simple fact is that (almost) no one just wakes up and decides to kill innocent people or is born a terrorist. Most terrorists have suffered unimaginable pain and sorrow. Their families and friends have been killed. They’ve felt oppressed all their lives or have been brainwashed by their leaders to believe that killing, even the most innocent from the enemy lines, is justifiable in their fight. Whatever that fight might be.
Speaking of terrorism, just look at the October 7th attacks on Israel
Isn’t it interesting how divided people have become on this issue? It should have been simple and black and white, right?
Terrorists are evil, and victims and those fighting terrorism are good. But then we have a whole soup of conflicting ideas: the oppressor is evil, the oppressed are good. Muslims are good, and Jews are bad, and vice versa. One side’s claim to the land versus the other side's claim. One reasoning versus another. One side’s survival versus the other side’s existence. This side did that in the year xy. Yes, but that side did that in the year xy. But one was a response. But the attack was the original response and on and on.
Then there’s collateral damage
Horrible damage. The innocent always die, and it’s a tragedy. How much is acceptable? How does one even determine that?
How about collective guilt?
Was Hitler the only German evil in that period? Only the Nazi party leaders? Only the signatories in the party? Were all Germans equally guilty for supporting and electing them? Kids too? On the other hand, were the allies who brought upon the German population such suffering the evil ones? How about the Soviets? Let’s not forget about them. Translate this to Hamas now or just about any war from our history. It’s a mess.
It’s no wonder people are so confused
Today, we get information from various sources, so we’re more divided while not necessarily being more informed.
Who we support will depend solely on our understanding of the situation, history, people, issues, religion, political views, sources of information, and stance on how to deal with the problem.
We are all capable of evil deeds when we find a powerful enough cause
I know who I am and, to some extent, that I am capable of great violence myself. I know my dark side, and my killer instinct makes itself known whenever I feel my family is threatened. There is nothing I would not do to protect my girls. Nothing!
I do not like the monster that awakes within me when I think of facing someone who would hurt my darlings. If I acted on this instinct, killing the person who either raped or murdered my girls, would that make me evil?
In a civil society, I would then become the bigger evil for punishing evil, wouldn’t I? If I were convicted, I would most likely do a longer stint in jail than the perpetrator of the original crime.
Here’s my point - I would feel perfectly justified in my rage and exacting either revenge or protective measures. From my perspective, this is not an evil deed, despite it being murder or at least self-defense killing.
I would not value the lives of anyone who wants to hurt my girls even in the slightest. Nor would I care about some man-made laws. The moment they made their intent known, they forfeited their right to live, in my eyes. My family is my priority. All else comes second.
From my perspective, I am divine fucking justice, not an evil murderer. Right or wrong.
Once you know this about yourself, it’s easier to understand why others do what they do, no matter how “evil.” This awareness helps you make better decisions in conflicting situations, as you are able to understand multiple perspectives at once.
By striving to understand, we are not supporting anything
The two are not the same. I can understand that some twisted pedophile can’t control his impulses, but I’ll still gladly put him down myself with a clear conscience. I can understand why Putin attacked Ukraine, why Palestinians turned to terrorism, and why Israel is so ruthless in hunting down Hamas without agreeing with anything that is happening. So can you!
As you can see, evil is indeed often born of good intentions
Whether that’s being a faithful follower of your God or political leader, protecting the innocent, fighting what you perceive as evil, or simply doing what you believe is right. There is often someone on the other side who disagrees with your assessment of the situation, especially if they find you evil, criminal, terrorist, or the enemy.
Evil will always be trapped in the eye of the beholder
If you kill your country’s enemies, you are the hero from the point of view of your countrymen and leaders, but you are an evil murderer on the side of your enemies. If you switch perspectives, your roles are reversed, and there is nothing you can do about it.
If you believe your God speaks in your ears to purge evil from this world and you go on a killing spree, you believe you are God’s instrument and are the force of good in this world. Most other people will see you as the devil incarnate, walking around killing innocent people because you’ve lost your mind.
If your country is struggling, people are starving and dying of disease, you will want to save them. Perhaps you’ll invade another country or murder millions of people you believe are the cause of this great harm, but it remains true - you think and feel that you are the good guy. And, if you win, you will be the good guy for your side.
The danger is in us not recognizing that we may be the bad guys because we only know one perspective - ours.
It’s us against them. My view against theirs. My rights against their rights. We often believe wholeheartedly that we’re the good guys doing good in this world. There is another side to this story, where we are the evil monsters.
Inaction and refusal to act also have consequences
If you refuse to put down the monster and it kills or rapes again, their victim's blood and suffering are now on your hands as well!
If you refuse to engage and defeat your enemy, you are a traitor to your people, and all subsequent blood committed by the enemy you could and should have vanquished is on your hands.
If a wolf is at your door and you didn’t shoot it but instead led him into your house, where he devours your family, you might as well have done the devouring yourself.
Life is simple and black and white only in cartoons and fairytales
In reality, it’s anything but. It’s cute to be against all violence and war, all about love and sunshine (and I wholeheartedly agree with you emotionally), but pacifism and restraint have their consequences as well.
Strong men understand this and can see the path forward, willing to do what is necessary for the greater good. Sometimes, you must become a monster to defeat a monster. Weak men can’t, and they pave the way for further suffering.
We now live in weak men's times, which is evident everywhere. They became weak because strong men gave them a safe and prosperous future by becoming evil monsters themselves. We’ve forgotten their sacrifices and what this world can turn into in the blink of an eye.
Evil is always lurking just beneath the surface. It’s not some devil’s doing, but more often than not, mere good intentions and interests of one group or individual against another.
There is a popular meme in which two German officers from World War II look at each other and ask, “Are we the bad guys (baddies)?”
We should often ask ourselves that question, as there is a good chance that we are someone’s arch enemy, evil incarnate, oppressor, or, at the very least, a competitor who will take what they want. Such is the nature of life, which is why it’s so important to tie our fates with one another. So that when we prosper, others also prosper. Ironically, and I know you won’t like this, it’s infinitely more important to align your interests and fate with your enemies than your allies.
Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.
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