THE END JUSTIFIES THE MEANS

[Godson]

When in dilemma focus more on making your decisions right and not on making the right decision. Actually you can't tell what decision is right until you try them out, so basically no decision is right unless proven right by the end result.

So therefore, the end justifies the means.

[saygorem]

I agree in your post that the end justifies the means, because you have the validation of your intention or a plan of something through the results you get. It is only hard to choose on how to do it, because others might think you are doing the wrong thing at first but eventually they will see that the end result will be good.

[Limario23]

I'd like to believe that means of a specific nature lead to ends of a similar nature, but in observing things that just doesn't seem to be the case. In a lot of situations the means are contradictory, for example both violence and non-violence were used in South Africa, in India, and in the US Civil Rights Movement. But as far as "do the ends justify the means," I don't think anyone needs to commit themselves to this as a concrete principle. It's situational. What means are we speaking of and what ends. How much do we as individuals value the ends and thus what lengths are we willing to go to achieve them.

[Lots2Say]

The end justifies the means? To what end and just what are you willing to justify to yourself? We humans are good at convincing ourselves that if "it" is important enough or we are "right" enough that is ok to do and it will all work out in the end. It is a fine line between truly right and justified. We can reason with ourselves long enough to make anything make sense to us and we can then persuade ourselves to do most anything. Holding onto one's morals and ethics is a hard thing to do when we think that the end justifies anything outside of our morals and ethics and isn't that what we mean when we say that phrase? THE END JUSTIFIES THE MEANS! I learned this lesson the hard way while in a custody fight with my ex-husband who was a police officer. I was right. The law was on my side. I did everything the judge asked of me. I just knew the nightmare would be over quickly, but it wasn't. It went on for YEARS to my surprise and the surprise of many, but he lived by that phrase, wore a badge on his chest and had judges, lawyers, social workers, and teachers in his back pocket and the more I did right the more I seemed to get punished and the more he walked away the winner. I held fast to my morals and ethics for the express reason to be a good example for my children. He lost them both in the end because I eventually got them back and he had destroyed his relationship with them by continually trying to destroy their mother and hurting them in the process. So who won? Me, for holding faithfully to my morals and ethics? Him, for winning at any cost? My kids lost out on a good mother who truly loved them and had a father who had no idea how to truly love them. Should we have both bent a little? Maybe if I had been willing to play a little dirty and he had been willing to have a little decency it would have leveled the playing field or at least maybe it would have afforded our kids a little more of each of us? We will never know and he died of a tragic accident while on the job without resolving any conflicts he had with his kids or apologizing for what he did to me or the abuse they suffered at his home and by his hand. They are left with guilt, anger, and sadness and I'm the only one here to try and explain the accusations made against me. I never got an "I'm sorry" so I have hate and resentment toward him, but the funny thing is we all still love him madly. That's messed up. Do you think the end justifies the means?

[Larryjh76]

The problem with the concept of "The End Justifies the Means" is that it opens the door for a person to commit unspeakably evil acts against others, all in the name of the greater good.  Throughout history, most of the wars that we now look upon as being horrific and senseless, were justified in the minds of the people who waged those wars.  The deaths of millions were a small price to pay for the "good" end that was beneficial to the war wagers.  By following the concept of "The End Justifies the Means", we are basically saying, "I am willing to do anything or harm anyone because my goal is the most important thing to me and to those who will also benefit."  That sort of thinking can lay the foundation for the development of sociopathic tendencies (using and/or harming others and not feeling any emotion about their pain whatsoever).