What is Evil?

My church yahoo group discussion board is having a spirited discussion on evil based on this excerpt from the NY Times.
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Evil is a dangerous word, if you fling it about irresponsibly. But it is an important word to keep in our moral vocabulary, because it sharpens our moral reactions and stiffens our moral resolve. The idea of ruthless malice, the love of death and destruction for its sake, constitutes a real category of human agency, and this is what the word evil is designed to connote.

It is a strong word for an extreme phenomenon. The English language can sometimes seem weak in its resources for the description of extreme wrongdoing, so we find ourselves reaching for alien words: pogrom, holocaust, ethnic cleansing, fascist, sadist, gulag, intifada. The word tragedy is often made to perform duties beyond its scope, with its suggestion of inevitability. (Atrocity is better, implying that someone committed an evil act.) The word terrorism is actually far too weak for what it denotes: not merely creating terror, but doing so by the calculated murder and maiming of innocents because they are innocents. So let's keep the old-fashioned word evil, and let's use it with all the seriousness and caution it requires.

Colin McGinn, professor of philosophy, Rutgers University
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I am guilty. I use the word evil quite a bit, and probably sometimes not for very "evil" things. The upcoming war with Iraq is fueling this discussion, and we are now all pondering "the just war" theory. "Are acts, themselves, good or evil, or do the consequences matter?", asks a member of my church. I think heinous acts have sometimes been committed in the name of good, and I'm sure the "good" people had the best of intentions at the time.

I went to Sears tonight and bought a pair of size 10 Lands' End black corduroy pants. The waist wasn't snug at all tonight, so I think that' s a good sign. I'm sick of my pants with their baggy butts. I tried on a pair of size 10 jeans as well that fit, but decided to wait on buying those.

Then I tried on some Lands' End knit pants in a medium petite, and they were so loose on me. It was shocking to think I coud actually wear a small, but Lands' End clothes must run very large. I want to buy more pants, but I'm afraid in a couple of months I'll have baggy bum syndrome again.

I may buy one more pair of khakis for work. I'm also thinking I should go and try on some Ralph Lauren jeans, since I may find a pair that actually fits now. I just bought a couple of pairs of jeans in the spring, so I'm bummed that they're now too big, even though I'm excited to be buying smaller clothes.

I also tried on some sweaters at Target, but I still need to lose more weight for my tops to look okay. Extra large is too big, but large is still snug. The best thing about being thinner is I can buy cheaper clothes, which still fit. The cheaper stuff isn't generously cut so you really have to be size it says. Actually, it's better if you're even smaller than the size since those cheaper clothes are cut so tiny. My own personal test for weight loss is when I'll be able to wear a medium Target sweater, and it will look great on me.

On a Monday Night football game that ultimately doesn't mean anything, it's still painful to watch the 49ers fall apart in the fourth quarter and to see St. Louis stage one of their usual comebacks.

This is not a good sign for the upcoming Giants game. You want to go into the playoffs with a win, and not a loss, don't you?

Ronn Owens is talking about that new Fox reality show "Joe Millionaire". I'm bad, but I am so looking forward to watching this show. The critics are already going wild. I loved Temptation Island, so I know I would love this show.