[Serious] Good vs Evil

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

I'm somewhat of a utilitarian as regards good and evil.  'Good' is that which increases or protects happiness, 'evil' is that which decreases or destroys it. 

 So, no - nothing is, in and of itself, good or evil.  These terms only exist (and can only exist) in their relation to human beings.  By example, say a village is devastated by a mudslide, and one hundred people are killed.  A normal impulse is to call this an incidence of 'natural evil' (an act in which humans have no part).  But suppose the mudslide also doubled the amount of arable land in the area, able to support far more people than before - more people are able to eat, raise families, and so on.  For the people under the mudslide, it was evil. For the new people moving into the area, it was good.

Since good and evil are so tied to happiness, it makes sense that we would aim for the good and shun the evil - everyone wants to be happy. 

Boru