personally, i think its good.
but, i was wondering what other people think,
2007-02-04 13:45:52 · 31 answers · asked by Veritesirum 3 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
"men's evil manners live in brass; their virtues we write in water."
-William Shakespeare
2007-02-04 14:33:28 · update #1
Goodness is not an absolute; it's "in the eye of the beholder." So there is no factual answer possible. Therefore, people will answer your question by projecting; that is, they will answer according to their self-image. You think people are basically good, because you see yourself as basically good. I'm with you.
2007-02-04 13:50:31 · answer #1 · answered by zilmag 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well, you look at the statistics.
Just a minority is jailed and another minority is still arround and now I mean the mean people. This is to say that the majority is good. So, the conclusion is: Man is basically good.
Look at babies and kids. They are innocent. They learn fast that's true and they use what they learn and observe for their own benefit. The manipulate parents when parents are not aware of what they do or say themselves, but this doesn't mean they are bad.
Some become bad by their friends influences and I would say that they have a huge misunderstood word that blasts everything at schooling time: What is School, why learning, why studying. And then, because they do not know these fundamentals, their parents oblige them to go to school. A rebelion is begining in their minds... they refuse to learn, get along with alike ones and 'organise' indiscipline, jokes on other pupils, teatchers, cause distractions in the classroom... And then they are punnished and this makes the revolt to grow... and they are expeled from the school and they did not learn anything to do in life.
Then you have the media, manipulating their minds telling us all that we have to have this and that on advertisements and they want those things, but they cannot get a good well paid job, so they start being out-laws...
In the USA the majority, around 90%, of the inmates are iliterate.
Thank God they are a minority. But something should be done about it.
May be you can help by becoming an active member of the appliedscholastics.org
2007-02-12 20:37:15 · answer #2 · answered by Carlos C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends on how they are brought up. Babies are innocent, but as toddlers they try both bad and good things and have to be taught the difference. We have to have balance in the world of both, but I am a very big people person and have noted that in everyone I have ever spoke to, even the most evil, there is something deep down that is very good. It's just so sad that bad things happen to people so young.
2007-02-04 22:30:14 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
People are naturally both. Almost everyone is born with a conscience that tells them the difference between good and bad (which is shockingly consistent across cultures and times in history). But people are also selfish and self-serving which leads each and every one of us to do bad things to others.
I don't think it's one or the other - it's both.
2007-02-04 22:01:43 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
For the most part people are good but the situations around them can create a bad choice? Once you can not or feel you can never recover from the bad choices you have made a person will continue to make Bad or poor Choices.
2007-02-04 21:57:47 · answer #5 · answered by Terri L 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ying Yang Good Bad, Day Night. Light Dark. Happy Sad. Life Death.
2007-02-04 22:05:16 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
When a baby is born it is ignorant, usually called innocent. This baby would, theoreticaly, remain this way if there would be no influence on it. But, as we all know, this baby is exposed to it's family, thereby taking on the characteristics of it's parents. If the parents are "basically" good then so, in theory, would the baby and the same with bad. So, to answer your question, humans would be niether good or bad, just ignorant.
2007-02-04 22:06:56 · answer #7 · answered by Dead 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Humans are born with potential. They can turn out to be good or bad or a bit of both. I used to think we are basically good but nowadays I don't believe in that too much. Basically we only have potential to be good or bad. Basically we are neither good nor bad. It's our society, family and environment that shape us up.
2007-02-04 22:14:41 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't believe in plain 'good' and 'bad'. Bad people are only bad, because they are compared to 'good' people. Truth is, no one's perfect. There's some good and bad in all of us. Also, good and bad are defined by society. If society changed in the future, would good people be seen as idiotic nothings, and the criminals who fight to survive be seen as the trailblazers of their day? *Ahem* sorry about the rambling, anyways, I believe in terms of today's views, people are mostly bad. The world we live in is going to ****. War everywhere, hatred, killing just for the sake of killing, and it's not getting better; only worse.
2007-02-12 20:43:28 · answer #9 · answered by Radgar E 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
WE (mankind) have both... even the very good people have a lil something "bad"
it could be selfishness on a low level...or any thing.. we are humans... we have a little bit of cain and a lil bit of able
2007-02-12 18:34:18 · answer #10 · answered by Lost Boy 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋