Is the concept of good and evil still a legitimate concept in today's society?

Answer 1

Individuals should always make their decisions based on their concepts of good and evil, i.e. let your conscience be your guide.

Governments rarely, if ever, are guided by conscience. Governmental decisions are made in committee, where the decision making process becomes convoluted by parliamentary procedure, etc.

So, yes, good and evil are still a legitimate concept, but this only applies at the individual level. Societies, governments, nations, etc. have never employed the concept and never will.

Answer 2

The concept of Good & Evil or Right & Wrong are subjective concepts because what is "Good" for me is not necessarily "Good" for you....same thing with right and wrong.
They have never been legitimate concepts throughout history.
Good and Evil have been used more as legitimate tools for creating illusions.

Answer 3

I think more than ever. The potential for power and greed to harm people and the environment is greater than ever before. The most extreme example is, if an insane, evil person gets a nuclear weapon. If you mean seeing things as black and white however, I don't thing that is usually a correct way to look at things. Usually there are many shades in between. Very few, if anything, are absolutely good or evil.

Answer 4

I don't think so because at this point in time, the only country I can think of that have not committed some grand evil would maybe be Sweden or Holland..

I'd say Hitler's mass killings were an 'evil' act. I'd say our mass killing from Hiroshima and Na. were 'evil' acts. I'd say Saddam's mass killings of the Kurds were .... List goes on and on to include all the atrocities in Africa.

My point is that the word 'evil' sort of loses it's validity when everybody pointing and yelling 'that's evil' has a history of evil acts themself.

Answer 5

No, it is not useful, good and evil are relative to point of view and comparison to weaker groups of humans. The fact of human existence is that all humans have been the master and the slave at different times in our peoples ethnic, religious, creed or country history.
The problem is our short memories because we are proud of a history when we dominate others, but we are grief stricken in our history when we our the slaves. This struggle to dominate seems to be the driving force of the history of war and conflict among humans.
Underneath the various reasons we invent to go to war, we humans have repeatedly tried to trample those we think are below us or in a weak position.
Despite our glowing devotion to our religion and universal values, we are driven by our base craving for dominance which we value as a buffer that may save us from our next cycle of mutual destruction.

Answer 6

Yes

One must experience each side if one is to exist in harmony within all social levels at any point since the beginning of time.

Answer 7

Yes

Answer 8

apparently not. Too many people see the israelis as "terroist". That is pretty frightening.

Answer 9

I think it's become less legitimate.

Answer 10

it should be, but it isnt. Everyone is good, just misunderstood. Yeah sure they are.