# Are there evil people? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 27, 2011, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563 "2011-12-27T21:00:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563/81 "2011-12-31T06:14:02Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Many people also call it empathy and use it as a tool for understanding behaviors that strike them as odd. So we don’t “have the right” to say that rape is wrong? That murder is wrong? Genocide? Child molestation? Help me out there, because I think those behaviors are a more than just “odd”. It doesn’t matter what their “cultures” dictate, they’re still wrong. Some cultures practice female genital mutilation. That’s barbaric. Some stone women “accused” of adultery. Or punish them when THEY’RE the victim of rape. Some allow child prostitution. I don’t care what “culture” you come from – it’s all evil. Sorry if I refuse to have empathy for people who commit such acts. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563/82 "2011-12-31T16:57:40Z")
Yes there are but evil men with evil schemes cannot destroy all our dreams. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563/83 "2011-12-31T20:53:47Z")
> [@Surreal](#): > > I voted “No” because it’s an anachronistic and unscientific terminology that offers nothing in terms of understanding why someone behaves that way or what could have been done to prevent it. > > Are there evil animals? Evil hurricanes? Evil boulders? > > Of course not. Humans are no different. Humans are (unless they’re insane) have conscious control of themselves. This is one of the most obvious questions ever asked. One might as well ask “Are there stars?” or “Are there rocks?” ---
**Author:** ![SDMBKL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sdmbkl/32/7297_2.png) [@SDMBKL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SDMBKL)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563/84 "2011-12-31T21:14:59Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Humans are (unless they’re insane) have conscious control of themselves. > > This is one of the most obvious questions ever asked. One might as well ask “Are there stars?” or “Are there rocks?” Indeed. It is an obvious question. The reason why I asked it in the first place was not that I wanted an answer. I wanted to see how people interpreted this question and interpreted the meaning of “evil people”. It’s kind of amusing. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563/85 "2011-12-31T22:11:34Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > This is one of the most obvious questions ever asked. One might as well ask “Are there stars?” or “Are there rocks?” When you put it like that, you make it sound like a bad or silly question. It’s not. It’s an awesome question. Ask any number of philosophers, sociologists or theologians. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-evil-people/607563.md?page=4)