Debate: Is man relatively Good or Evil?

[Rodri]

Without getting religious in any way, if you read Genesis, the original sin was to eat from the tree of awareness of good and evil. To me this is a metaphor for the state of mankind. We seem to be the only creatures on this planet that judge others and their actions as good or evil and because we do, we must also be judged on our actions and thoughts as good or evil. This was the original sin and was the sin that caused us to be cast out of the garden and away from the presence of God (according to the Bible, not necessarily my views).

None of that was meant to be preaching, it is just a recounting of an ancient story that deals with the nature of mankind and this thing we do when we try to decide if something is good or evil. Personally I am not a dualist (good/evil) as I think there are many grey areas that cannot be defined so easily. People can be good and still do bad things, sometimes even with good intentions. Sometimes it is only much later that we look back and think that what was done was bad, or evil, but if we had been around at the time that it happened we probably would have thought it was good. In the end the truth is probably somewhere in between and what was done had elements of both good and evil and in the end we are only passing judgement from our perspective.

Sometimes I think we need to spend less time judging the actions of others and more time examining our own motivations and actions because in the end, we are only responsible for those things that we have done. or through our lack of action, allowed to happen.

[Revoltion]

god made us all equal but because in our intell we are corrupted by wat we see and wat we want

Does this comment mean that we're gonna be getting into the discussion of whether there is god? We don't need that here.

Anyways, I've always believed in good will. However, that good will is often overrun with things like greed, lust, violence, etc. However, some people are able to show that good will, but most aren't. Most of us succumb to our urges, whether they benefit the people around us, or not.

[alkhest]

hey rodri that was pretty good :P .and joemanf can u put a poll on this ??? to see what the whole evony forums think

[joemanf]

hey rodri that was pretty good :P .and joemanf can u put a poll on this ??? to see what the whole evony forums think

Alright, I'll do that. Lol. Gimme a second.

Edit: Damn, I forgot, you can't edit in poles!

[Rota]

Mankind is inherently good.

However, mankind is inherently kinder to himself than to his neighbor. Greed and selfishness is just a part of human nature. It's simply a part of nature, period. Everyone wants to have enough food/shelter/entertainment to stay happy. We are willing to sacrifice a potential kindness to a neighbor in order to better our own lifestyle. EVERY one of us could live off Ramen and Hot Pockets, but we don't. There's real starvation in the world and we have the occasional mega-burger or steak. We are all playing Evony on home computers we could live without. I have DVD's and video games and last night I went out to dinner and ate a full rack of ribs. We ALL have a lifestyle above the "bare minimum" for survival because it's nice to live this way. Despite the fact that children in other continents are being forced into fighting wars as soldiers. The very warlords of those armies are living a life of relative luxury by using/oppressing those very children.

The point is that Mankind is inherently more kind to itself than it is to others. This greed leads to the justification of many "not kind" acts. It's very easy for these "not kind" acts to snowball into real evil. It all stems from the inherent kindness to oneself.

So...
Mankind is also inherently evil(as a side effect to being kind to himself).

[Pieman]

.... Alright, let's just say I leave at the end of the day.

Man set its own standards. We invented good and evil, so how can we just be one? I do not think elaboration is necessary. We set the standards for good, we set the standards for bad. You cannot look down at your own race, assuming you are the good one. That's an "Avatar" standpoint.

How can "Man" be evil when "Man" is all there is? They can be evil/bad to another person, or good to another person... but by saying man is "evil" or "good," you imply that we are either inferior or greater than another race. But what is there besides the human race? No, our race is not to be judged as a group. We are to be judged individually. Saying man is evil/good is the biggest stereotype there is.

We invented littering, we invented drug abuse, we invented greed. We may have invented all the "Bad" things, but we invented the "Good" too. Think about it... without the human race, there is nothing. So HOW can we be bad?? That's like saying "Earth is bad!" Earth is all we know, and all we can live on. (For the time being)

Man has faults, yes... but that does not make us evil! By saying man is evil, you look down upon the human race. Do you believe you are above the human race, that you are something special? We decide our own fates, and are not to be put in the category of good/evil. The things you call "evil" is just human nature, we cannot go against that!

[pialpha]

Alright, I'll do that. Lol. Gimme a second.

Edit: Damn, I forgot, you can't edit in poles!

Yes you can, Thread Tools --> [something about polls]

[Skirata]

I'll give you two reasons why man is evil.

1. Humanity can only stay together through common values that limit our actions. Laws, religion, etc. Morals are taught to us early so we may later know the difference between good and bad or right and wrong. We don't know these things at birth.

2. Humanity continues to commit atrocities. The Holocaust, genocide, homocide, and bullying are only some examples.

[wpack10]

On topic but offtopic:

GIRLS ARE EVIL:

Girls= Money x Time

Time=Money

Girls=Money2
Money=√evil
Girls=√evil2
Girls=evil

[alkhest]

eating is a bad thing too ( eating too much) its called gluttony