Is it easy to be good?

[Mutuso]

I had this debate a while back with my cousin and thought to myself, 'do find it easy to do good things or bad things?'

All my life I have just always done what's right without asking why. I never got into drugs, or sex, or violence. Why? I'm certain the opportunity showed up, I just never took it.

Does anyone else think about these things? Have they ever wondered why or how we do the things we do?  

[The Stupidest Angel]

That's a good question. I'm the same way you are, I've never really done anything serious (i.e. sex, drugs etc) and yet I know people who are just crazy for the stuff. I think, in the core, people are inclined to do good. But they're tainted by experiances which makes a habit out of it.  

[Cornelius loh Quatious]

It depends on your view of what's right and wrong, and why.

Most schools advocate a policy of total abstinance from sex and drugs, with no room for moderated use whatsoever. They don't even consider the possibility that one can still lead a healthy, non-druggie lifestyle while partaking in mind-altering substances.

Personally, I believe that we all already know the choices we're going to make, and 9 times out of 10 we're going to do them. This may not necessarily be the best thing, but it may be true. However, I'm sure we can all be much happier and healthier people if we were to pause and really think about some of the decisions we make. From little things like, "Do my homework now? Or have fun for the next hour or so?" to bigger things like, "I really like this person, and we're in a situation that could potentially lead to sex. Do I go for it?"

The morals and values set down by our parents are what most of us base these decisions off of, but that doesn't necessarily make them right. The entire American nation, for instance, is still operating on the basic system of Puritanical virtues from over 200 years ago. People need to stop doing things blindly and question just what it is that they are doing. Only by questioning even the fundamental aspects of our culture can we progress into a better world.  

[Mutuso]

dboyzero

It depends on your view of what's right and wrong, and why.

The entire American nation, for instance, is still operating on the basic system of Puritanical virtues from over 200 years ago. People need to stop doing things blindly and question just what it is that they are doing. Only by questioning even the fundamental aspects of our culture can we progress into a better world.

All your points were really good, but I happen to agree to this point the most. After all, a leader that is never question can to easily become a tyrant (sorry if my point is kinda random but to me it makes sense lol )  

[Altae]

It depends. For some people it's easier, for some, it's challenging, and a lot of factors affect that including religion, upbringing, nature, and just random circumstances. Also, like someone said above, it also depends on what your definition of "good" is.

Nobody's perfect though, so really someone just can't can't say "I'm going to be good for the rest of my life!" and do just that. They can try, but we'll all be tempted and probably fail at some point. It may sound cheesy, but then the people that truly want to be good are the ones that will pick themselves back up and keep trying after that.  

[Mutuso]

Altae

It may sound cheesy, but then the people that truly want to be good are the ones that will pick themselves back up and keep trying after that.

That is an awesome way of thinking heart  

[Jhesy]

Sometimes I can't figure out if I'm a good girl or my mind just works on a more naive level than others. I'm put in situations where I'm offered drugs or sex, but I usually don't even notice until somebody points it out later. Double entendres totally elude me. The idea of drugs, drinking, and sex just doesn't flash on my radar, just like the concept of injustice and things not being fair.  

[Deciare]

I think it's equally easy to do things that are good or bad. It just happens to be easier for most people to point out things that are bad than to point out things that are good.

It's very easy to qualify something as bad, after all: my religion's against it, I've had negative experiences involving it, there's a legal precedent against it, other people say it's bad, etc.

But it's harder to qualify that something is good. Let's say, for example, that developing the individual talents and learning styles of each student is good (as opposed to standardised education and testing). So what? Why change a system that already seems to be doing a fine job of producing a capable workforce? Do you have any idea how much it's going to cost to retrain the teaching and administrative staff? Society cannot function if nobody wants to cooperate because everyone's off pursuing their own ideals. And so on.

Whereas it takes almost no effort to declare that something is bad, it takes lots of effort to prove that something is good enough for people to do something about.

Drugs? Addictive, expensive, kills people. Bad. What about medical uses or recreational uses in moderation? Well, it's no coincidence that it will be a long time before currently experimental drugs like several proposed cures and vaccines for AIDS will reach the mass market.

Death? Unknown, scary, makes loved ones sad. Bad. But what about the sprawling human population that is outstripping natural resources? What about a quick death to preclude many years of incurable suffering? What about the release of the soul onto a greater plane?

Because it's so much easier to qualify things as bad, it logically follows that being bad would appear to be a path of lesser resistance than being good.  

[White Mage Dahlia]

I think about my choices all the time. I always find myself weighing the pros and cons and what the overall outcome will be. Some things are just ingrained in me from my grandma who has been a DARE officer since I was little. But even without her teachings, drugs and alcohol don't appeal to me. I base my choices on how they'll affect me and the people around me. So if the outcome is good with few or no negative consequences then it was a good choice. Is it hard to be good? For me, no. I can't imagine myself being a bad girl. As Altae said, a lot of it is morals, upbringing and the like.  

[Ichijou]

I've never got into drugs, violence etc. too .. but sometimes i thing it's so boring .. I wan't to do anything bad, but i'm not able to do it eek i was educated to be a good girl xp  

[Angel80272]

I was fortunate to grow up in an environment where I didn't have to deal with people offering drugs and the like, and even now at 21 I have never had anyone offer me a cigarette, drugs, beer, or anything. I find it very easy to do some things that people consider right, but at other times, I find it rather difficult to do what I know I should.

Yes, this point has already been said, but it's completely true: the way you are raised is the way you will behave when you're on your own. I was raised to do what is right according to my religion, to avoid certain things, and that certain things are wrong no matter what the situation is. To this day, I still follow how I was brought up even if it makes me less popular than I would have been by going along with what they wanted.  

[Hiitachin Kaoru]

Jhesy

Sometimes I can't figure out if I'm a good girl or my mind just works on a more naive level than others. I'm put in situations where I'm offered drugs or sex, but I usually don't even notice until somebody points it out later. Double entendres totally elude me. The idea of drugs, drinking, and sex just doesn't flash on my radar, just like the concept of injustice and things not being fair.

I am very similar. Things like that tend to go right over my head.
Although occasionally they don't, and I have no problem saying no. Somone offered me a cigarette, I told them they smelled funny and were probably going to die early. (I then proceeded to sneeze violently on them, which was the end of that.)