Taking a quick glance through history, we can observe that every radical social/political/religious movement ever born had a motto that called out for justice in one way or another. It propagated words of great moral value to any human being and manipulated those values to dress up their crimes. Beneath their most prestigious mottos lay justified every outrageous and extreme act of cruelty committed by its leaders.
For instance, the Nazi slogan “Heil Sieg” (The call to victory) Nothing is wrong with “victory” right? Meanwhile it is responsible for the systematic killing of over 9 million people by the German army and Waffen-SS. The Fascist Slogan “Credere, Obbedire, Combattere” (Believe, Obey, Fight) Very heroic, huh! Is the proud owner of several war crimes such as the invasion of Ethiopia and Albania for territorial aggrandizement and use of poisonous gas against resistance. That along with the invasion of Yugoslavia, the mass murder of civilians and concentration camps. But seriously look at those slogans, they sound like something Mel Gibson could have said in Braveheart before yelling FREEDOM!
You can probably find a million other slogan for a dozen other organization or movement that committed the most horrifying crimes in history under the most honorable slogans. Like the KKK in America with a slogan “Keep America American” justifying the mass murderer of jews and African Americans and maybe if you look closer to home you can find similar ones…but let me not get into that.
It even goes further than a mere justification of the crime to crowning it as a most courageous act of heroism. The leaders and followers of the most radical of those movements believed full heartedly in the validity of their ultimate purpose that, unlike all others, was the one only true purpose. For that they saw those crimes not just as acceptable but necessary and even more a duty they had towards humanity.
In a closer look at Nazisim and Facisim, which are much too similar to a local example, they believed in Blavatsky’s theory of human root races. If you are unfamiliar with the theory, it basically highlights seven root races of humans along the evolution of Earth marking down the physical characteristics of each. The 5th race which was mentioned by Blavatsky as the race of the current era of universal evolution was the Aryan race, one Blavatsky contrasted to surviving residue of the other races and labeling it as superior. So they basically were doing the world a favour by allowing the Germans/Italians, who fitted the physical description of the Aryan race, to rule. They were merely working to restore the natural order of things. Trimming off the unfit who should not survive the natural evolution of humans regarding them as less human or as barbar.
Not to mention that it was also believed by Balavtsky and her followers that the race to follow, the sixth race, was to be bred out of the elite and most evolved of the fifth race taking racism to whole new territories. Those theories were based on Balavtsky’s study of other works by historical theosophists along with her claim of inspiration by “hidden esoteric masters” and adopted by both the nazi and fascist movements justifying their quest for power.
In their book of “justice” the murder of millions was only natural, it was a mean to bring about the ultimate just end which was the ruling of the Aryan race, the seed of the sixth race to come. Seeing this high held objective of bringing about order to humanity, the leaders and followers of the movements simply “did what they had to do” to give life to that dream. This example may seem radical but it is one that had many followers and believers. It is also one that might be on the uprising as we speak. In many ways every current political/religious/social movement looks at its leaders as if they have been personally handed the Ultimate book of justice. They think of themselves as the one who can see “beyond” the Now and hold the secret “keys” to the bright and just future ahead. A future that can only be manifested when them and them only lead all others and when their ideology reigns above all. Being such avatars, they were bestowed with the ultimate knowledge of…well…Everything! And hence they had the right to say that dying for the this ideal will be your first class ticket to heaven, or that killing this person is just and so on.
In my humble opinion “The end justifies the means” is a vicious weapon more powerful than atomic bombs or alien invasions. I think everyone just needs to understand that no leader can ever be absolutely right or be able to see the full truth. No one can ever predict the full impact of certain actions and their repercussions through history. That is simply because prophets and avatars only exist in religious text and Tolkien’s books and no leader no matter how “insightful” can ever be Al Kheidr nor Gandalf the white. An immoral action is immoral regardless of its purpose or what end it aims at. And please regardless of how much you believe in that “Ultimate purpose” don’t shove it down everyone else’s throat, or even try to slip it along with some honey talk on my patriotic duty or religious obligations.
“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” Voltaire
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