Close Topic Options

Defend Ourselves By Doing Evil

Defend ourselves by doing evil

What are your thoughts about the following quote:

"It is never right to do wrong or to requite wrong with wrong, or when we suffer evil to defend ourselves by doing evil in return."
-- Socrates 469 - 399 BC

Evil Doing Ourselves Defend

Someone who believes in peace may follow something like this but not I.

I am one that if I am to defend myself or my loved ones I may have to commit a act that is going to harm or kill another. If that occurs I will do my best to protect what is mine or what belongs to a loved one. I will not go to the extreme to get back some object by killing a person but I may hurt him by tackling them and cuffing them.

Defend Ourselves By Doing Evil Health & Special Psychology

I certainly do not believe that you solve anything with violence but I can understand situations where it might be necessary in order to defend yourself.

I certainly would do anything I could to protect my loved ones but I wont be teaching my son that violence solves anything because it doesn't. I will also never be violent towards him in order to teach him that you can solve problems through peaceful means.

Evil Doing Ourselves Defend

I think KNtoran and I agree that to defend oneself and Family is actually quite moral and justified and violence, if used to stop evil, is ultimately more good, then watching the innocent be harmed or killed.

Quoting Archiv

I do not understand this sentiment.
Non-violence is a high ideal, but it does not always work. If my son saw a woman being raped on the Street (assuming he is an adult), violence may be the only way to stop the perpetrator from continuing the assault. If my son happened to believe that violence never solved anything, and let the assault continue I would be ashamed to call him my son.

Now if my son went up to the Perpetrator and first tried to get him off the woman and then shot him in the head only after if he continued, I would be infinitely more proud of him then if he just left the man to continue.

Suppose a man has 30 innocent victims lined up and he begins shooting them in the head, one by one, every ten seconds. If my son yelled at him and said stop but did not try to stop the situation, I would consider my son complicit (if he had the means and power to stop the situation). But if he had a gun and shot the man before he could continue, then he has done the moral thing.

I just do not understand how some cannot see the morality in using violence to stop evil. Violence in certain circumstances is the most righteous act a person can do and should be considered, in some circumstances, justified in civil societies.

In most cases you are right, Violence is not the best way to solve conflicts. But I cannot believe the statement that "violence never solves anything", because in that statement there is no room for legitimate use of violence to stop innocents from being killed or harmed.

Evil Doing Ourselves Defend

I agree Dbackers. Violence when used to stop evil is a good thing. But using violence to achieve a goal is not correct. While violence has its place in preventing evil from occurring. Peaceful means of getting things done is the safer path. Besides it hurts less that way. I would want someone to try the peaceful method to solve a problem before resorting to violence.

Take the example of the guy raping the woman. If you went up to the guy and told him to get off your trying to solve this non violently. IF he refuses then you need to use force to make him comply. This is where violence is in the right place.

If a peaceful way is not possible or has been tried then yes use violence and use it well.

Defend Ourselves By Doing Evil

The difficult thing about this question is that it is subject to the definition of evil.

I do not believe it wrong or evil to execute a man who is found guilty of a heinous crime. Regardless of the views around me, and the cries of martyrs in my ears, this is what I believe.
Thus were I placed in a situation that forced me exact judgment upon a criminal my actions would be viewed as evil by our society.

Were we a peaceful and moralistic people Socrates' quote would be valid, but we are not.