Inherent Goodness
There appear to be two distinct schools of thought on the matter. One which holds that people are inherently good. The other that we are imbued with nasty emotional attributes, over-running our aptitude for good. Most of us are aware, almost instinctively, of the differences between good and bad. Most of us, through additional familial and societal indoctrination - aided and encouraged by laws enacted to ensure we know and abide by them - practise good citizenship and like to think of ourselves as decent human beings.Most of like would like to like what we are, to approve of ourselves, to have pride in our character and personality. Much of that owes to the fact that people are gregarious creatures by nature, and we like to be liked, we like to be around other people, we like to be surrounded by people like us. On the other end of the scale, most unfortunately, are others who like to be liked, like to be around other people, enjoy being together with people so very like they are. Alas, the second scoop on the scale represents sociopaths, society's self-propelled outcasts.
Those who disdain societal norms and the social contract, and who have few qualms about committing crimes of every conceivable description. Crimes in the sense that they commit acts of violence against others, and think little of it, being imbued with no sense of connection toward others, no social conscience, unable to feel compassion for others. What they do feel is pride in themselves for what they are, and pride in their lack of conscience, along with pride for belonging to groups just like themselves.
Those 'groups' can be comprised of extended family for whom the very concept of human obligation to others is absent, or like-minded groups of shunners of normalcy in human society. We're not here discussing people for whom excuses can be given, that they are themselves victims of racism lashing out, or the indigent poor, the uneducated and the ignorant, the underprivileged in every conceivable way. For among those groups the majority do not lack in the understanding of fundamental human decency.
We're talking utter lack of conscience, of personal responsibility for self, and by extension toward society. Those for whom lack of imagination to consider anything other than destructiveness is their common cause. Those for whom harms of any kind visited upon others elicits no concern from them, whether or not they've been the cause of it. Those who seek to stifle boredom by casting about for exciting possibilities to ease ennui.
Those for whom society's punitive measures will make no difference whatever to the basic personality and its tendency to wreak havoc - whether it be through the manipulation and theft of other peoples' property, or the hideously more affective physical attacks, including murder inflicted on others - are immune to behaviour reversal, and incarceration is merely a temporary social-protection device. These groups run the gamut from individuals gathering in a common purpose of societal upheaval, or simply individuals acting out the aggressive tendencies.
And they can also be represented by a relatively minuscule, but extremely effective group of violently disaffected, aggrieved religious fanatics. Who join together in a communion from hell in a determined drive to bring society to its knees. A particular type of society, one that is antithetical to their delusional ideas of totalitarianism-through-religious adherence. With the goal of foisting on society their ideology, a fusion of religious fundamentalism and political fascism.
Heaven save us from ourselves.
Labels: Social-Cultural Deviations, Societal Failures
posted by Pieface @ Sunday, September 13, 2009
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