Within the wide arena of everyday life we see evil in all of its ugly dimensions. We see it expressed in tragic lust and inordinate selfishness. We see it in high places where men are willing to sacrifice truth on the altars of their self-interest. We see it in imperialistic nations crushing other people with the batter rams of social injustice. We see it clothed in the garments of calamitous wars which leave men and nations morally and physically bankrupt

…evil is recalcitrant and determined, and never voluntarily relinquishes its hold short of a persistent, almost fanatical resistance. But there is a checkpoint in the universe: evil cannot permanently organize itself.

– Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love (Fortress Press, 1981) 78-79

I can appreciate King’s point regarding the checkpoint in the universe against evil. Because evil’s manifestation is most accurately characterized by self-interest, it is not hard to imagine why it is difficult for evil to organize and persist in the same unique way in which it originated. This self-interest is a force that constantly pulls at the fabric of evil itself. It attempts, inadvertently of course, to undo any sort of organization and cooperation that would give it the longevity that it really desires. Add to this internal conflict the external pressure of resistance and it does seem that evil is checked by both itself and external forces. Of course there are many cases where evil’s “brief” stay is anything but and for me to presume that even a short-term visitation of evil is enjoyable borders on the insane.

Sadly, this universal checkpoint only seems to prevent the spiral down to “all against all” and little else. Humanity’s unfortunate documented legacy is the way in which evil is stopped. It is not typically because we stops it, but because evil unwinds itself as it ventures closer to this universal barrier. It is nice that we have this emergency shut-off valve, but you would think that after the first few dozen activations we would figure out a way to prevent such runaway evil in the future. Regrettably, because humanity is capable of great good and great evil, because we individually swing back and forth between altruism and self-interest, it seems quite a feat to be able to eliminate evil altogether. Yet, many groups dream of and pursue such an ideal. How can we possibly eliminate evil without some sort of world-wide psychological surgery? What hope do we really have without such surgery? Does it mean our existence is merely an act of resigned survival or survival of the fittest?