Poll: Are People Inherently Good?

[McMo0^]

I'm not really sure if all people are inherently the same. I think the vast majority are born with basic instincts, and as a species we've learened over time that the best way to be is civil, to tend to the needs of others as well as ourselves. But of course you then have to define good and bad. Theres the blatent extremes. Some would believe the religious to be the very peak of good, some believe it to be not so good. Some would view a rapist the peak of evil, but at best it would be considered up there in the top 10 of evil.

The problem man faces is that there are very few things in the world that can be defined as good, or at least wholey good. But ask someone to tell you what evil is, and they'll pull out the list.

But to get back to the question. I believe most are born of a neutral fashion, and the way they are raised and the morals they are taught influence the choices they make. Some however choose to ignore such teachings, and so you can't say they were born on the fence. Their decision was pre-destined. Some people come out of a healthy family wanting to create as much havoc and chaos as is humanly possible. Some people leave an uncaring, bitter family wanting nothing more than to help others, live selflessly. So en masse, i believe people are undecided, but there are those who are inherently one or the other.

 

[Caliostro]

I personally follow a hybrid Hobbesian-Lockian philosophy about man and the "state of nature". If you place man on a basic level with no laws or moral teachings whatsoever, he will be self-serving only. That is why we have laws: so that the innate self-centeredness of man can be held in check.

Call me a nihilist, that's just my opinion.

We are all self-serving. Nobody will ever do anything in their lives that ultimately does not benefit them in one way or another.

Is mankind inherently good. Well, I suppose that depends entirely on your perspective of good and evil... Personally I compare mankind to parasites or viruses. After millions of years, we've learned so little...

 

[DarkLordofDevon]

Of course not. Humans are animals, and that is all. We fight over possessions and trivial things. We commit acts of genocide and murder. We're the only species with the fire power to destroy the surface of earth several times over.

All humans are inherently evil. Most just won't admit it. How many people would exchange their lives for their mortal enemy? Compare the number of 'heroic rescue or self sacrifice' stories in the news against the number of murders, rapes, thefts etc, and you will see for yourself that humans as a society are greedy and self centered.

 

[aussiesniper]

No,people are inherently stupid. Just look at a few youtube comments and you will agree.

I'm of the opinion that humans tend to be neutral, but we perform "Good" or "Evil" acts because of our surroundings.

Just...Like...Fable?

In fable, people did good or evil things because of you, not because of their surroundings. There were NPCs living in swamps who acted the same as NPCs in the rich sections of bowerstone.

 

[Kevvers]

People are basically intelligent animals. Without rules or society, they will either simply follow what ever action is in their best interests while following their instincts, and they will strive to create rules governing group behaviour. There are many places in the third world where the law is simply not enforced and there isn't really any society, people tend to group into gangs or tribes. The main driver in heart of humanity is to survive long enough to reproduce and to make sure that your genes survive, this can mean doing good things or bad things.

 

[Kevvers]

Here's what I think:

People are animals and like any other animal they have instincts. The survival instinct its the most ruthless of them all and make people act in a way that could be considered "evil". But now here's the tricky part. As other animals have, teeth, claws, speed, brute strength, fur, size, etc. We humans have our brain, something that turned out to be the best tool available for any creature. As such we learned to control our survival instinct (since we are irrefutably on the top of the foodchain and because our greatest foe is our own kind) to act in a different manner, something more "civilized". "But with great power, comes great responsibility". And with those concepts of civilization comes the Good and Evil, one of them its in following those standards of the civilized world, the other is going against them.

So, being good or evil are just concepts created because of our intelligence and society, when we were beating animals with rocks and sticks there was no such thing. There was only "kill or be killed". My point is: in our current state of evolution, anyone who was left with only is instinct to survive would be labelled evil, anyone follows the standards of humanity is considered good, and again those who refuse them and live for their own pleasure are also marked as evil

Evil wins Good two to one. But its my believe that no child is born evil, because its not something that's born with us, its something that our race created.

I agree with some of what you said, except I think that once you reproduce there is a necessary diminishing in your own will to survive, as opposed to ensuring the survival of your offspring. This is another necessary part of the fitness of the species, because we can only reproduce once every 9 months, a high infant mortality is pretty dangerous for the species. It is evident in the maternal instinct, and empathy -- people born without these instincts (and there are some) are at a disadvantage in evolutionary terms. I think much of what we call 'good' stems from these instincts. That is, our animal instincts inform both good and evil sides of human character.

 

[Easykill]

I don't believe in such things, but I believe that people for the most part can be trusted to to wipe their own ass and make their own decisions, which seems to mean I have an above average faith in humanity in this place.

 

[Cahlee]

I'm hopelessly optimistic. I believe people or mostly good. Not because it's true, but because I have to.

 

[Scarecrow38]

I'd say people are inherently good. The issue arises when there are opposing parties who both think the other is evil.

As for people saying that we would be messed up if all of society didn't exist, I disagree. All those centuries ago, look what happened when there was no society in existence.. we made one. Even if we do at the core supposedly care only about ourselves, at least we do help others. I think the fact that most people do emphathise and sympathise with others shows that we are good deep down. Some people just suppress those feelings in favour of more selfish influences.

 

[Rolling Thunder]

Look, simply assuming that people are inherently bad is a logical fail. If we are all bad, then where does good come from? God? Space? Thetans? Pah, such a concept is a cop-out in terms of logic. People are both good and evil, with equal capacity for unashamed malevolence as they have for kindness. How that capacity is utilised is the defining part of Good, or Evil.

 

[Darkwolf9]

People are inherently neutral. The only thing that is inherent is the need to survive, which includes eating, sleeping, and mating. We are taught what is good and bad. Most of which stems from rules that help govern group survival.

 

[Yuriatayde]

While I voted No in the pole, my real answer suggests otherwise.

Babies are born a blank slate, their mothers (usually) train them to be good. Therefor, for the sake of argument, everyone is taught to be good. However where the bad comes in, is in impatience, repitition, and the desire to get ahead.

Bad people may simply have walked over you while doing nothing worse then tending to their own problems. They're bad, because they place their needs over yours... which doesn't sound bad, but that's where most of it comes from.

 

[Darkwolf9]

I personally follow a hybrid Hobbesian-Lockian philosophy about man and the "state of nature". If you place man on a basic level with no laws or moral teachings whatsoever, he will be self-serving only. That is why we have laws: so that the innate self-centeredness of man can be held in check.

Call me a nihilist, that's just my opinion.

Self-serving isn't necessarily bad. It's what drives capitalism and commerce.

As for the OP's question I agree that no one is *born* evil, and I think that that isn't the larger issue. The big question related to this I think is the concept of free will. I'll start off with a small story for background. When I was a small child I believed in 100% free will. So then I received more and more education throughout the years, and found that we don't have as much control over ourselves as we'd like to think. In summation, I don't believe we have as much free will as we'd like to imagination sometimes, and more than we do at other times. Thoughts, anyone?

That is kinda what I'm writing my thesis on. My idea is that life is like a choose your own adventure book. Your life plays in segments based on choices you make. Your choices are influenced by experience, society, and biological chemistry. Ultimately you make those decisions, which then lead you down a path to your next "real" decision.

 

[sms_117b]

Good and evil are subjective, they vary for different people.

the biggest deciders are how your raised, the values your parents install in you are long lasting, and how good you are at venting frustration, building it up over time results in something bad (an explosion of anger), whereas going after the source of annoyance sooner won't end so badly

 

[DannyBoy451]

Neither.
Good and evil are abstract concepts, without objective meaning.

 

[siggi11]

People are not inherently good or bad as there is no definition of either. Morals go in perspective and can not be generalized as everyone have an opinion of good and evil.

FACTS:

What makes a person evil is contradicting that which they believe is good.
What makes a person good is doing what they believe is good, though indeed, there is no such thing as a selfless good deed.

Time to offend:

Hitler BELIEVED the jews were greedy and evil. He did what he believed was best for the world, thus a fantastic person. Note: I do not believe he was right, please criticize objectively if at all.

Whatever moral code that grants one the right to "lose faith in humanity" is illogical and self-righteous as one such code would point out that "Everyone is wrong but me, and my morals are superior to yours.". One such moral code integrated into politricks would act as a heavy weight for the general population.

Just ask if you really want to hear more...

 

[Sombra Negra]

It depends on how you define good. If you call selfishness bad, humans are born evil. People try and serve themselves if they've got no motivation for anything else, but, like I said, it's all subjective.

 

[Baby Tea]

No. People are inherently selfish and greedy.