Evil Exists Because Good People Do Nothing

"The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of bad people, but because of people who do nothing about it," said Albert Einstein.

Some people proudly carry the flag of their goodness, enjoying their altruism. However, their words lose their full meaning when they act as silent witnesses to the "daily" evil. Their inaction becomes apparent when they simply turn away, shut up, and ignore the injustices and humiliations of others.

The word "evil," makes us think of those who take the lives of others. We imagine torturers and terrorists. However, we need to make it clear to ourselves that evil deeds are done every minute of every day. This is happening in our families and with people close to us.

We are often silent witnesses to evil. Our inaction, the desire to move away, to endure the discomfort, and to focus on something else is nothing but complicity.

We are now talking about situations such as intimidation or aggression from the cries of neighbors coming from behind a wall. But there the children cry, and the wife silently suffers the cruel treatment of her husband. We talk about situations in which the neighbor mocks a pet, about a mother who abuses her child, when she takes him away from school, and about a boss who exploits and humiliates a subordinate.

Evil can have many faces, shapes, and ways to spread its power. However, the reason for its survival is quite obvious: when the so-called "good people" are inactive.

The origin and tolerance of evil

In most cases, the basis for terrible and destructive behavior is not at all an antisocial personality disorder or a mental illness. Sometimes even a perfectly normal person does bad things.

This habit probably returned to him in his abusive childhood. Such individuals do not know how to control their emotions and therefore differ in impulsivity and sensitivity to external influence.

And finally, there are common cases when the environment or circumstances push us to do bad things.

Psychologist Albert Ellis once said that the essence or gene of evil does not exist, or at least this is a very rare occurrence. The truth is that at some point and under certain conditions, we are all capable of complicity in evil deeds.

Why aren't we loud in the face of injustice?

One reason for the triumph of evil is the inaction of good people. But why? Why don't we do anything? How can we explain the silence and our eyes that do not want to see the truth and the evil in front of them?

Let's look at some examples:

• The first reason is quite simple. We tell ourselves that what is happening is by no means up to us. We are not responsible for this, and the sufferer is not part of our circle of acquaintances. Emotional detachment is certainly one of the main reasons for our inaction.

•  The second reason has to do with our need to remain calm. For example, a teenager who is being bullied by his classmate may decide to stay away. His passivity could be caused by the fear of upsetting his balance or endangering his social position. Protecting the victim would endanger him. Thus, in the end, he could be a victim.

We know this is not easy, especially when we have something to lose. However, you need to be as involved as possible and look for ways to protect the person who needs help. As the philosopher, Edmund Burke put it, "Justice exists only because people try to resist injustice."

Why it is important to observe evil daily

I said this earlier, that evil comes to us in a variety of shapes and sizes. May be invisible and speak different languages: verbal aggression, discrimination, injustice…

The idea is not to look for evil and suffering. Everything is much simpler, more fundamental, and more useful. All we are asked to do is open our eyes and begin to be receptive to what is happening right in front of us every day. We are all responsible for eradicating injustice, and there is no better place to start fighting it than at home.

Moral integrity is our daily responsibility. This is when we decide to do something. We condemn humiliation, abuse, aggression, and injustice. We give goodness its true meaning and allow it to triumph.