More to the point: Why do good things happen to bad people?

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ChronoSword
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Post by ChronoSword » Thu Apr 29, 2004 6:26 pm

Good things happen to bad people and good people as well. Bad people have a potential to become good people which is why they are all not just wiped out from the face of the Earth.

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Post by Lord Terrible » Thu Apr 29, 2004 6:49 pm

If someone decided to wipe all the bad people from the earth, wouldn't that make them bad persons themselves?
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Post by Aether » Thu Apr 29, 2004 8:17 pm

[quote="ChronoSword";p="328916"]Good things happen to bad people and good people as well. Bad people have a potential to become good people which is why they are all not just wiped out from the face of the Earth.[/quote]
Except all morality is relative, so it is impossible to objectively define a person as 'bad.' There are many different philosophies of morality and ethics out there, and no one is necessarily more valid than the other. There are sweeping, generalized morals that permeate most of society, of course, but you can always find exceptions, and even if everyone did subscribe to some moral belief that wouldn't necessarily make it right. By 'exceptions,' I mean both exceptions among people (you can find people who don't follow the generally accepted moral view) and among actions (most people would say that killing another human is wrong, but you could probably get those same people to admit there are situations where it is not).

This does not mean that there can be no objective definition of what constitutes a 'good thing.' If something happens that makes me happy, it's good, and since we're only talking about 'good' in relation to a specific person, it doesn't matter what the consequences are for others.

Oh, and saying that someone can't be happy with something they didn't deserve is bullshit. If I won $10 million right now, for no reason, I would definitely be happy. It is true that I would probably be happiER if I had rightfully earned that $10 million, but I would still be happy.

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Post by ChronoSword » Thu Apr 29, 2004 8:43 pm

[quote="Aether";p="328970"][quote="ChronoSword";p="328916"]Good things happen to bad people and good people as well. Bad people have a potential to become good people which is why they are all not just wiped out from the face of the Earth.[/quote]
Except all morality is relative, so it is impossible to objectively define a person as 'bad.' There are many different philosophies of morality and ethics out there, and no one is necessarily more valid than the other. There are sweeping, generalized morals that permeate most of society, of course, but you can always find exceptions, and even if everyone did subscribe to some moral belief that wouldn't necessarily make it right. By 'exceptions,' I mean both exceptions among people (you can find people who don't follow the generally accepted moral view) and among actions (most people would say that killing another human is wrong, but you could probably get those same people to admit there are situations where it is not).

This does not mean that there can be no objective definition of what constitutes a 'good thing.' If something happens that makes me happy, it's good, and since we're only talking about 'good' in relation to a specific person, it doesn't matter what the consequences are for others.

Oh, and saying that someone can't be happy with something they didn't deserve is bullshit. If I won $10 million right now, for no reason, I would definitely be happy. It is true that I would probably be happiER if I had rightfully earned that $10 million, but I would still be happy.

Wallace[/quote]

I happen to disagree with you on the fact that morality is relative. There have been differences between different people's moralities, but these never amounted to anything like a total difference. When you find a man who says he does not believe in a "real" right and Wrong, you will find the same man ging back on this a moment later. If morality were relative, then anything would be justified. Laws can not exist since they create absoluteness in a relative world which can not happen.

As for your example of killing. They are not justifying killing in certain situations. They are simply choosing between the lesser of two evils.

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Post by Lord Terrible » Thu Apr 29, 2004 9:47 pm

IHMO: Good and bad is one of the most complex things around, and one cannot judge correctly without true insight in all involved parties.
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Post by The Wanderer » Fri Apr 30, 2004 3:31 am

I believe part of being good (but not over zealoulsly) is putting up with bad people, and the good things that happened to them.

By "putting up with", I mean don't kill/maim them until they give you a good reason. Because pacifists are evil.

(this post has nothing against pacifists. But it's not like you would hurt me, anyways :P )
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Post by Imperator Severn » Fri Apr 30, 2004 2:29 pm

My point was that they're bad people because good things happen to them. They must all be exterminated. Or made to serve as "crossfire" guests on CNN. I haven't made up my mind yet.

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Post by mrchapel » Mon May 03, 2004 2:42 am

[quote="Lord Terrible";p="328922"]If someone decided to wipe all the bad people from the earth, wouldn't that make them bad persons themselves?[/quote]

One problem with that is it has no limit.

Lets say the most evil person in the world dies (through power of God or what have you) every minute... eventually the Pope is the most evil person in the world.

And that's assuming evil can be quantified.
I'll put something here eventually...

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