Posted by Graatch(VIP) on September 30, 1999 at 12:20:49:
In Reply to: As a matter of fact... posted by Rome on September 30, 1999 at 05:08:45:
> > If you've ever thought about what being "good" really is, you'll find out that avengers and children don't really make sense.
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Wrong. There are certain things which are simply good or bad, no matter the intention or no matter the actor. Obviously we dont have time or space to go into depth on ethics and morality, but an easy and obvious example is the inner circle of the Nazis. By your definition they were "good" because they intended good. They believed Germans, or more specifically Aryans, were in fact better than everyone else and so should rule. And that Gypsies, Jews, Homosexuals, etc, were in fact "evil" and "tainted" and so killing them would "protect" the "good" people of the world.
Obviously, though, the Nazis were not good, even though their self proclaimed intentions were good, and even though some of the may in fact have actually believed the rhetoric. You can really honestly and truly believe something and intend only the best, and still be doing, and in fact be, evil.
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This sounds like Ghandi-esque non-violence, except without the courage and determination to go where the fight is and simply stand and take it in order to effect change. You outline the hermit philosophy that is not bothered by the occasional visitor.
Have you ever heard the old saying that evil only exists because good people stand idly and do nothing? The people you describe here sound like just that, isolationsists with their heads in the sand who sit around and say how awful the rest of the world is, and how they are perfectly happy to help anyone who happens to come by, but they aren't going to do a damn thing themselves, or take any risks at all. That's not good, that's cowardice and lack of conviction.
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See above.
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Again, I don't think so. It is NOT about how you justify your action since ANY action can be justified. The slippery slope is named that because it is, in fact, slippery. The road to hell and all that. Look at the Crusaders, or the Inquisition. Their intentions were "good", unless you happened to be Muslim or Sufi or Jewish or even Asian.
Graatch
Actually, they do. 'Good' in my opinion is a combination of things. Protecting those that are weaker than yourself, helping those in need, or simply just being caring and empathetic towards others are all good actions.
The avengers would focus on protecting the weak. In their mind the best way to do this would be to slay the evil that preys upon them. Rather than helping the old lady cross the street, the avengers would rather shoot out the tires on the incoming traffic. It may seem extreme, but the intention is still noble, which makes them good.
In the same way, the children (which I didn't go into much detail about at all) would rather avoid the street completely, and lure the old lady back inside. They don't want to blow up the semi rolling down the road, and they don't want to put themselves in danger by standing in the street with her, so they choose to just avoid the problem completely. That's how they are 'good', they are pure of heart, mild and timid yes, but hve no malace, no desire for revent, and don't seek danger. They would gladly give food to the hungry, but not if it meant putting themselves in danger. They lean a bit towards neutral, but are in essense good. (actually, I considered allowing neutrals into the children)
> >Well, you could, but they're called lazy people, and they don't usually go out organizing groups of more lazy people to sit there and be lazy. And you can't just have bloodthirsty evil-slayers who don't care what happens to other people (that's what being good is)
Lazy isn't the word I would use to describe the children, it's more like reclusive. They just don't want to get involved with the wars if they can help it, because they don't like killing. They would love to help if they could, but would rather be safe at home. It's an odd concept for a cabal in CF, but it's definately new.
As for the avengers not being good because they want to kill evil and not give hand outs to newbies. As I said above, it's all in how you justify your actions which makes you good or not. They are warriors, and there are more ways to be good than simply doing the servants job.
Just because you can come up with a reason for doing something doesn't make it right or good.
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...Rome...