Are individuals naturally good or evil?

[Francois Tremblay]

I would like to get input from you guys on a hypothesis that I have.

My hypothesis is that most Anarchists, due both to the populism of Anarchism and its fundamental principle of self-organization, will not answer that on the whole individuals are naturally evil/corrupt.

I would like any Anarchist who answers that on the whole individuals are naturally evil/corrupt to answer this further question:

How do you reconcile your view about individuals with the principle that social institutions should be organized in accordance with individual values, which you believe are evil or corrupt?

(if you do not like the words good and evil, replace them with any positive/negative moral connotations you wish)

[Yarrow]

i would say humans are naturally greedy, when brought up in a capitalist context. outside of that i cannot speak with certainty.

[|Y|]

Tit for tat is the most evolutionary behavior, thus all life is inherently good. See Mutual Aid.

I disagree that people within capitalism are naturally greedy, because if they were they wouldn't be capitalists! Capitalism is against ones self-interest, which is why there are always mechanisms in place and pressures to maintain regulatory capitalism.

[Yarrow]

just as an illusory condition of scarcity is against one's self interest... we are tricked into it. but i believe capitalism forces us to think greedy, and act otherwise. it's the old 'original sin' shtick.

[Francois Tremblay]

Of course, my question is whether individuals are *naturally* good or evil, not because of capitalist indoctrination.

[Yarrow]

naturally i think we are indebted to members of our tribe, and hostile to threats. anything else is up for experimentation. i don't believe in morality, or good and evil.

[Marja]

I think we are naturally both and the same instincts which may be good in one setting can be evil in another. In most senses, we are naturally more good than evil.

But I agree with Alice Miller that "poisonous pedagogy" makes it harder for people to empathize with their own pasts, let alone other people, and feeds into evil. I see it as one of the roots of social dominance orientation and right-wing authoritarianism.

[Francois Tremblay]

That is why my choices start with "on the whole." Necessarily there is always some good or some evil. But if you believe that on the whole there is more good, then answer the first option.

[karma]

People are simply a product of their environment. Morality and principles will often hold second place to circumstances.

[Maggot]

I would like any Anarchist who answers that on the whole individuals are naturally evil/corrupt to answer this further question:

How do you reconcile your view about individuals with the principle that social institutions should be organized in accordance with individual values, which you believe are evil or corrupt?

Could you rephrase that so I can answer this question a little bit better?

[Francois Tremblay]

Wow, I got my first number two answer!

Rephrase my question? I'm not sure what exactly needs to be rephrased. Tell me what part is the problem and I'll try.

Basically, my point is that Anarchy is based (for most people) on the position that people will do the right thing if they are free, and that centers of power distort incentives for their own benefit. The belief that individuals are inherently evil would tend to go against that position.

(and yes, I do understand the argument that if individuals are evil then it's even more evil to give some of them all the power over others: my interest here is more basic)

[Maggot]

How do you reconcile your view about individuals with the principle that social institutions should be organized in accordance with individual values, which you believe are evil or corrupt?

What I'm having trouble with is answering the question in the above quote. I guess I can answer it the best I can: Because we have a sin nature (and this is after the whole temptation of Adam and Eve), we are all naturally evil. (At least that's how I understand it. I might be taking my Bible completely out of context. If I am, I'm sorry.) And there's a lot of evil people who come into power for their own benefit. They get what they want while the citizens get the shaft.

[Yarrow]

i don't believe in original sin, i think original virtue is a more likely concept. seeing cats playing with butterflies (then eating them) makes me think if something is not a threat, or food, we will invite it into our tribe. it is only when we are taught by our elders we learn not to do this.

[ebola]

I think that individuals are not, naturally. No slate is blank, but we're thrust into some sort of conversation with culture, as we build ourselves over the course of our development as persons.

Bringing "human nature" into the picture usually present a "trump card" axiom, that precludes nuanced discussion of human action as it plays out concretely.

[Francois Tremblay]

Oh, you're a Christian. Yea, I should have remembered Anarchists have religious whackjobs too. I should have been a little more specific. "My hypothesis is that most Anarchists (except for Christians)..."