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Are we inherently evil? | Slavoj Žižek and Rowan Williams battle over human nature

onesteptwostep

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Cognisant

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Define good or evil, and not just semantically define it, I mean an objective empirical definition, if I were to be as evil as Hitler how many babies would I need to steal candy from? What is the smallest measurable amount of evil? What is the smallest measurable amount of good? Because they're inherently the opposite of on another you only need to solve one side of the equation (so to speak) and you get both answers.

It cannot be done, be cause good & evil are not inherent, they cannot be inherent because they are not universal, our concepts of good/evil are inherently predicated upon a human bias.
 

Black Rose

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Animal + Rationality = human

Animal + Rationality + Hate = evil
 

Cognisant

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So if I gleefully murder you, that's not only ok, it's good?
 

ZenRaiden

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I love Zizek, but when he says I totally agree and so on and so on- I am dead. They guy talks like rabid Duffy Duck.
 

onesteptwostep

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I haven't finished watching the video and I'm pretty sure none of you guys have either. #thisisinternet2023
 

Cognisant

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The video kept skipping parts of the conversation and I struggled to follow what the point of any of it was.

If you cannot define evil then any discussion of evil is pointless.

It's like discussing goobersnatchers, what's a goobersnatcher? Well I'm not going to define it for you but I'm going to tell you all about my opinions on goobersnatchers and goobersnatching and wrap with an essay on Goobersnatchism.
 

Cognisant

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Clearly good and evil are not things.

If they are not things then they must be phenomena.

Can good or evil phenomena occur in the absence of people?

Obviously not, indeed I would even say they cannot occur in the presence of a single person, rather good and evil necessarily involve at least one person affecting another in some way.

But what is it that makes such an action good or evil?
How can any action be diametrically opposed to another?

I posit good and evil are actions whose effects are diametrically opposed in that they affect either a positive or negative change in the state of being of the person who is acted upon.

Now we can have a meaningful discussion about whether people are inherently good or evil, at least by this definition.
 

ZenRaiden

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Generally if I view a human as a programmable robot with some kernel and baseline preprogrammed shit, then no humans just are. They are feed information in various not so ideal circumstances.
For instance at 15 most kids were considered adults ready to make a life for themselves and have a family. Today kids at 15 if they have kids of their own they are fucked by societal standards.

We have completely unnatural society that defies our natural made biology in so many basic fundamental ways that being normal today is like fitting a fist into an asshole. It just does not feel right.
 

Black Rose

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I haven't finished watching the video and I'm pretty sure none of you guys have either. #thisisinternet2023

It was only 5 minutes long. yes, I watched the whole thing.

what was I supposed to get from it?
 

onesteptwostep

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I haven't finished watching the video and I'm pretty sure none of you guys have either. #thisisinternet2023

It was only 5 minutes long. yes, I watched the whole thing.

what was I supposed to get from it?

It's an hour long. The debate is on another platform that's linked in the bio of the video.
 

Old Things

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Any time you don't love another person in the correct way that is evil. Simple.
 

Old Things

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What person is behind evil? Satan.
 

Black Rose

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By rejecting one's self one will always reject others.

We cannot face ourselves so healthy relationships become impossible.

Towards the end we need to look at what it is we have against others as what we have within us. A deep pain and misunderstanding in need of healing.
 

ZenRaiden

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I recommend this, he packs so much shit there though, its hard to follow everything.
 
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