On the Existence of Good and Evil

Is Man basically “Good” or basically “Evil”?

Once we become aware of Man’s tribal nature, this classical question can be answered easily: “We are both. … We are by nature good to those within our tribe, and evil to those without.”

Historically we have viewed only members of our own tribe as “human” and have viewed all others as something less: early tribes usually identified themselves as “the People,” and other tribes as “non-People.” As non-People, outsiders could be treated cruelly without qualm, conscience, or even awareness. As William Blake wrote in “A Poison Tree”:

I was angry with my friend: I told my wrath, my wrath did end. I was angry with my foe: I told it not, my wrath did grow

This dichotomy in the way we treat tribe members (friends) and outsiders (foes) led to the heretofore endless debate over our nature: those observing the love and sacrifice for one another within a tribe concluded we were by nature good and that evil is an aberration, while those observing our historical compulsion to war with one another concluded we were by nature evil and that good is achievable only through effort.

Once we accept the reality of our tribal nature, however, it becomes obvious that we are both good and evil – good to those who are like us, and evil to those who aren’t: our instinct is to love our friends and to harm our foes. Throughout our history we have seen repeatedly – sickeningly – that whenever we cease to view others as fellow humans, as belonging to any of our tribes, we can kill them as unconcernedly as we clear land of trees and boulders. Hitler’s henchmen, Jim Crow lynchers, and Al Qaida terrorists have felt not the slightest qualm about their murders, nor might we, once we relegated our victims to “non-People” status.

Does this mean that all tribes, all nations, all religions then are equally “valid,” and that none are “better” than others? … Hardly. Tribes are based upon sets of tribal tenets, tribal beliefs that govern their behavior, and not only can “Good” and “Evil” be discerned in human affairs, it can be measured. Good arises from our instinct to support and care for tribemates, and Evil arises from our instinct to dominate and destroy others. Whether tribes are “Good” or “Evil” is measurable by how they treat minorities within, and to what degree they tolerate and cooperate with rivals without. Tribes and nations that repress and brutalize their minorities and aggressively seek world domination are simply … Evil. The only sense in which national, ethnic, and religious tribes are “equal” is that they all have the same potential for both Good and Evil; what they actually are is determined by their operative beliefs, and is measured by their actions.