Who benefits?

This is a followup to Aaron Swart’s weblog entry The Intentionality of Evil where he start about heros and vilains in comic books and end saying we are all good from our own point of view. I have to say I agree with him.

And people really grow up thinking things work this way: evil people intentionally do evil things. But this just doesn’t happen. Nobody thinks they’re doing evil — maybe because it’s just impossible to be intentionally evil, maybe because it’s easier and more effective to convince yourself you’re good — but every major villain had some justification to explain why what they were doing was good. Everybody thinks they’re good.

Very true. Each person has its own set of values for what is good and bad.

So the next time you mention one to someone and they reply “yes, but we did with a good intent” explain to them that’s no defense; the only people who don’t are characters in comic books.

Again, the “good” intent is good according to a certain set of values. Everybody may not see your intent as good.

For some people, personal gain is a highly praised value that can be more important than social and humanitarian ones (equity, loyalty, justice, etc.). If some people suffer from their action, they see it as a necessary evil since they value personal gains first.

But to be accepted in public, the personal gain — when it conflicts with other values — must hide behind a more “noble” intent. When something bad happens, ask you this: “Did everyone did it with a good intent? Who did it with personal interests as their priority?” Looking at the result (which means who benefits) usually gives a pretty good answer to that question. According to myself, people with real “noble” intents would refuse any gain coming from other’s misery.

So when something goes wrong somewhere, ask yourself: “Who benefits?”