MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > Do we all or most of us agree that in re...

Do we all or most of us agree that in real life, in our humanity, there is...


... a THIN LINE between good and evil, right and wrong, happiness and sadness, harm and no harm etc, that also proves that ANY ONE OF US, by LAW and MORALITY, could be guilty of something terrible, just by choosing the wrong option and stepping into the wrong line?

And while in some cases the line maybe not so thin, in other cases it could be, right?

This may also refer to criminal offenses in areas we all know well about. But yet, even if we COULD argue that not ALL perpetrators have the same type of evil intent at least mentally, and some may choose the wrong option by mistake rather than desire to cause someone harm officially, some people are still BETTER at following the set of rules than OTHERS, but then some may either not care or again have intent.

And do you think there is a THIN line there that is rather easy to cross and can turn a normal person into a downright BAD one or at least a GUILTY one, whether by law, morals and/or rights?

Anyways, what do we think, is the line between right and wrong etc in humanity really and generally that or otherwise THIN? And how do people measure it on a daily or otherwise basis if they don't become psychos or sociopaths like that or turn to dark sides when opportunities arrive, male or female perpetrators (again, no offense, popularity and sensitivity of issues notwithstanding, and neither is existence of focus groups, feminists et al, internet, morality, preaching, social restrictions, social justice warriors, knee-jerk reactions, however justified, etc) and regardless of gender of victims too, thanks.

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Well, I certainly don't have a Manichaean view of 'good' versus 'evil'. Such atavistic thinking does seem to be on the rise though - all these weird, simplistic binaries people get themselves wrapped up in.

And I'm never quite sure what people mean by 'evil' anyway. For some, it's just a superlative form of 'bad', while for others it is in and of itself a philosophical explanation for behaviour, as if it were some force - external or internal - driving human beings to do wrong.

'How do you explain what this person did?'
'They're just evil.'

The latter seems to me to be obvious nonsense. I prefer naturalistic explanations from psychology and neuroscience, because - y'know - I don't live in the dark ages.

So, if by 'a thin line', you mean 'it's more complicated than a good versus evil, binary narrative' then, yeah, I agree. Of course it is. People make good and bad choices based on a range of factors from environment to brain chemistry; they don't have an angel over one shoulder and a devil over the other.

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The Thin Red Line and Thin Blue Line, sort of like blue or red pill, yes?

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