I am primarily a rationalist in the sense that I tend to defer to a logical, reasonable analysis before considering anything more esoteric. When it comes to concepts of "good" and "evil", I've tended to consider them relative rather than absolute. Unlike religious believers, who anthropomorphize these concepts into concrete personifications of "God" and "Satan", I see them as an outcome of actions and events where living entities are either positively or negatively impacted by them. The measure of this is whether or not the result promotes life and well-being or compromises it. That which helps me live comfortably and securely is "good". That which interferes with or threatens to terminate my continued existence is "evil". Also, I've considered them to exist along a continuum where there is some shading of gray rather than purely black or white dichotomies. This is the core of my ethical foundation in terms of assessing and evaluating behavior and events occurring in the world around me.
In recent years, however, what I've been witnessing in the world of human endeavors, particularly in the realm of politics, is something which seems to contradict this "relativistic" view. I say this because what I'm seeing is so completely horrific and dispiriting that I cannot assign it any kind of "gradation" or relativism. A "generous" interpretation of human motivations often asserts that people doing "bad" things usually don't think of themselves as "evil" and that, in their minds, they are engaged in perfectly justified and ethical behavior. Nobody really sees themselves as the "villain". We are all the "hero" in our own story. But I can't look at some people and see someone behaving according to any kind of social value system, no matter how warped it may appear.
I can't look at someone like Donald Trump and see anything but a parasite motivated by nothing more than a desire to serve himself in a way which disregards the welfare of everyone else, even close allies and family members. There is no sense of idealism in him beyond satisfying his immediate whim. I don't believe he cares for or values anyone beyond what he perceives they can do to benefit him at any given moment and I don't believe that it bothers him to put anyone in jeopardy in the process. I can't conceive of any redeeming quality within him. He is absolute. He is evil. He is not misguided or ignorant of moral principals. He knows what he's doing within the bounds that he sees his objective, seeks to satisfy it and then moves on to the next. But there are no larger values involved in this process. It is no more than self aggrandizement for its own sake within any given moment. It is self contained and pure, like a shark prowling the ocean waters.
This is a true embodiment of malignancy. He's like some villain from the old Batman TV show; crudely rendered, consistently contemptible and self actualized in his awareness that he is a criminal and a conman and his objectives are purely self-serving. And these traits are blatantly obvious, even to the casual observer. They couldn't be more apparent if he paraded around in a purple suite and pancake makeup. Yet somehow, there is a significant segment of the population who support him and I cant' figure out what it is that sustains this loyalty. There is not one trait about him which speaks to honesty, integrity, reliability, intelligence or any other characteristic normally sought in a leader.
The cronies and henchmen he surrounds himself with are also no more than a motley crew of fellow hustlers, thieves and deceivers. Every one of them has the stink of criminality about them and I've no doubt that, if their closets were ever emptied, the corpses of their corruption would come tipping out in a cascade. And there is no self-deception going on there either. They are all completely aware of their nature, their goals and their methods and the impact they have on others.
All of this brings me to the inescapable conclusion that there is some form of maliciousness inherent in these people which is more than the product of a misguided or distorted value system. This is a malevolence which lands squarely and unambiguously in the darkest pit of human psychology and it is not a trait which succumbs to any form of "redemption". People who manifest within this state of being aren't going to turn around and respond to education or "enlightenment". They are what they are and they are going to remain that way until the day they die. The most appropriate psychological term which could be applied to these people is psychopathy.
When it comes to differences of opinion, I'm a "live and let live" kinda guy. I'm happy to let others live their lives as long as they're happy to do the same with me. But these people, those marked by this "darkness", aren't looking for that. They are actively engaged in an program of direct interference in the lives and livelihoods of others. They wish to restrict women through regressive legislation, they wish to inhibit select races, creeds and religions and would no doubt resort to genocide were they given the opportunity. They aren't looking to "get along". They only seek to "get one over" and to take control.
This all means that we can't simply treat this as an ideological disagreement. We aren't debating economic systems or customs of behavior. We're in a pitched battle for our very lives and it's about time we recognize this and stop playing like we're dealing with an adversary who respects boundaries and responds to reason and rationality. They don't. They never will and they'll never give up the power they've stolen without a fight and we have to be prepared to wage war with them. Otherwise, we're all doomed as they destroy what's left of this planet to satisfy their own short sighted ends. No election is going to fix this either. They've corrupted and co-opted all the processes which were supposed to protect us from this kind of criminal. All those systems are broken.
In the end, short of waging bloody battles in the streets, what can reasonable people do about this? Well, the first step is to stop pretending this is "normal" and to acknowledge the evil in our midst. We have to call it out, name it and stop trying to be "polite" and "respectful", as if this is just a little tiff and a difference of "opinion". This is a difference of fundamental metaphysical incompatibility. As much as we don't want to take away someone else's freedom, we have to recognize that it's OUR freedom at stake here and compromise with this enemy isn't possible. We have to make it clear that we see who they are and what they're doing. And we have to stop cooperating with them. We have to stop playing their game. We have to refuse to let them pretend that what they're doing is "fair play" or moral or justified. It isn't and it never will be.
This is real evil and it knows what it is. It's palpable and defined and sitting right there in the seats of power all over this planet. It must be stopped before it's too late.
