Can something be both wrong and right?

Question

Ill give an example:

americans fighting for their land, for the safety of their own country in other lands.

but they went there uninvited by the people of the country so theyre intruding.

The human mind tries to make a distinction between right and wrong. Can we make such a distinction anymore? What do you do to counteract such a paradox?

Answer 1

i think our personal actions and thoughts can be both right and wrong,, and sometimes we just have to weigh the odds and choose the one that seems "more right" ,, and in the long run,,, we may change our view/views on our original thoughts,,,,, its all very subjective,,,,,, and of course, besides often not even knowing if something is right or wrong for us,,,,, it can be opposite for others involved, its confusing !
for example, i just left my old job,,,, for a new one,,,,,,,,,while problems had been building up for a long time,,,, i had a incident of where i was overworked, and management was very rude, unprofessional, expected me to accomplish more, faster,,,,,,,,, the right thing seemed to be, for me to turn in my notice, and leave in a professional manner,,,,, yet the right thing for my spirit seemed to be stand up and defend myself,,,,,,,,,,, make a big scene,,,,,, that might of been the right thing,, as it might of shook them awake and prevented them from treating others that way,,,,, and whether i gave notice or not wasnt going to affect my new job,, i have had this job offer for over a year,,,,,,,, so did i do the right thing?

Answer 2

The line between wrong and right can be blurry sometimes, but the same action is never both wrong and right at the same time. The closest this ever comes to happening is when you have two alternatives that are either equally wrong or equally right, and you have to choose one.

In a situation like the example you mentioned, there are reasons why the action seems right and reasons why it seems wrong. What you have to do is determine which is greater. Generally, if there is any sense in which an action is wrong, you shouldn't do it, but sometimes both (or all) of your options are wrong. In that case you have to assess the situation to see if there is any option that is so unequivocally wrong that you cannot morally do it, no matter what the benefit would be. This applies to your example. To intrude upon a place that does not belong to us and take lives, both military and civilian, is wrong, even if we think it may protect us in some way down the line. We are claiming to try to prevent a loss of life, but we are accomplishing this by killing- an obvious contradiction, and highly immoral. (If you doubt this, simply imagine how we would react if the roles had been reversed- can you imagine the uproar?)

Answer 3

In the cosmic system of things... there they can only be one truth... either we are right or wrong, nothing in between! In attacking Iraq unilaterally USA is hundred percent wrong. But if the foe is present within the country... then USA has every right to take whatever action it deems fit. To touch the sovereignty of the other country is not only illegal but in the house of God... such events do not go unpunished.

In coming times the world would witness a shocking scenario. As predicted by Nostradamus the third world war would be fought between Christianity and Islam Dharma. Both religions are fanatic in nature. Both preach religion that was neither practiced nor preached by either Jesus Christ or Prophet Mohammed. Nowhere in Bible or the Quran is it mentioned that our religion is the best. Our God is the supreme... yet both religions in practice do so.

Everything in the cosmic system has two or many facets of life. Unity in diversity is the buzzword. Ultimately everything is governed by the doctrine of Syadavada (also pronounced Syadvada)... which simply means the doctrine of may be. Once five blind people were asked to assess an elephant! One got hold of the tail... his assumption was elephant was like a tail! The other who got hold of the leg presumed that elephant was like a pillar. The essence of the story lies in the fact that for the same situation... the assessments can be many.

In the unilateral attacking of Iraq by USA... some countries may favor the action of USA, others may simply reject it on the grounds of attacking the sovereignty of another country. In international law such an attack is an absolute crime. USA is not expected to police all the countries of the world... who gave it that right. Under the garb of our own protection... we cannot enter the house of another. Yes, if the intruder enters my house by force... I have every right to defend myself and take countermeasures.

Things are apparently clear... to differentiate right from wrong we just need to hear the sweet small inner voice coming from within our soul atman residing within our heart. This voice of our soul always prompts us on the right path. We need not go elsewhere... God Almighty is present within us in minuscule form. More on unity in diversity - http://www.vijaykumar.org/unity_in_diversity.html

Answer 4

basically, we just need to do what WE think is right. b/c no matter what we do anymore, some other person will take it in the wrong way. Like some people from africa and asia and such: they think america is horrible b/c of our freedom and our beliefs, but we think that these characteristics of America are the best characteristics we have. So no matter what we do, some other ppl will have been raised to consider this action offenseful.
We just need to learn to accept other ppls distinctions between right and wrong, but act on our own beliefs of which is which.
The only way everyone will consider one specific thing "right" or "wrong" would be if we all were under a dictator from birth and trained to all think in a specific way, but thankfully we're not, so we have the freedom to forge our own rights and wrongs and act on them.

Answer 5

I think in situations like that one has to weigh the rights and wrongs and looks what is best for everyone but of cause that is easier said then done because we as people have too much pride.
I mean look at the situation in the middle east(Israel and Palestine) no one is completely wrong and completely right they are both doing wrong and right.
Too much pride stops them from communicating with each other which does not help any of them.
So I think just get someone independent to weigh the rights and wrongs.

Answer 6

The overall picture that serves a purpose is enough. Why bother in the right or wrong issue, more often than not, will distract us in getting to the important aspect. We only have to account the pros and cons, and evaluate on the eventuality. The one having the least contradictions will be a choice.

Answer 7

Ofcourse yes.
Depending the perception the wrong or right varies.

Can be wrong to someone which is very right to the other.

This is not a paradox, it cant be. It is very clearly seen to the third party what is right and what is wrong. But those involved will still continue to be under that illusion that they are right and the other is wrong.

Answer 8

If we use mathematics we can show it simply....

Let the right be a.
Let the wrong be -a.

Then a + (-a) = 0 by the additive inverse property.

If we wish to show something be both wrong and right then
a must be equal to -a.

Hence a = 0. So 0 can be right and wrong.

If into words you can say "nothing" as something can be both right and wrong.

Doing nothing in comparison to your example might be beneficial to the views of many and letting other countries defend themselves, but then doing nothing gives an opportunity to those who tread dangerously on our lands.

Answer 9

It can yes - because what is right for one could be wrong for another. It depends on which side of the fence you are standing on. My own opinion is this anything that you do that affects another should be weighed equally from each perspective. This would change the norm to make it that which is right is right and that which is wrong is wrong.

Answer 10

yes, I followed you over... What americans are fighting for over yonder is not for freedom from 'terror' or any of that... that is the excuse they use to get support for their plans. Their plans are mysterious, which makes it scary... They certainly are intruding over there. They have induced a war on the land, they will be punished in due process.