The Ring of Gyges, from Plato, the Republic, Book II:
"They say that to do injustice is, by nature, good; to suffer injustice, evil; but that the evil is greater than the good. And so when men have both done and suffered injustice and have had experience of both, not being able to avoid the one and obtain the other, they think that they had better agree among themselves to have neither; hence there arise laws and mutual covenants; and that which is ordained by law is termed by them lawful and just. This they affirm to be the origin and nature of justice; --it is a mean or compromise, between the best of all, which is to do injustice and not be punished, and the worst of all, which is to suffer injustice without the power of retaliation; and justice, being at a middle point between the two, is tolerated not as a good, but as the lesser evil, and honoured by reason of the inability of men to do injustice. For no man who is worthy to be called a man would ever submit to such an agreement if he were able to resist; he would be mad if he did. Such is the received account, Socrates, of the nature and origin of justice.
Now that those who practice justice do so involuntarily and because they have not the power to be unjust will best appear if we imagine something of this kind: having given both to the just and the unjust power to do what they will, let us watch and see whither desire will lead them; then we shall discover in the very act the just and unjust man to be proceeding along the same road, following their interest, which all natures deem to be their good, and are only diverted into the path of justice by the force of law. The liberty which we are supposing may be most completely given to them in the form of such a power as is said to have been possessed by Gyges the ancestor of Croesus the Lydian. According to the tradition, Gyges was a shepherd in the service of the king of Lydia; there was a great storm, and an earthquake made an opening in the earth at the place where he was feeding his flock. Amazed at the sight, he descended into the opening, where, among other marvels, he beheld a hollow brazen horse, having doors, at which he stooping and looking in saw a dead body of stature, as appeared to him, more than human, and having nothing on but a gold ring; this he took from the finger of the dead and re ascended. Now the shepherds met together, according to custom, that they might send their monthly report about the flocks to the king; into their assembly he came having the ring on his finger, and as he was sitting among them he chanced to turn the collet of the ring inside his hand, when instantly he became invisible to the rest of the company and they began to speak of him as if he were no longer present. He was astonished at this, and again touching the ring he turned the collet outwards and reappeared; he made several trials of the ring, and always with the same result-when he turned the collet inwards he became invisible, when outwards he reappeared. Whereupon he contrived to be chosen one of the messengers who were sent to the court; where as soon as he arrived he seduced the queen, and with her help conspired against the king and slew him, and took the kingdom. Suppose now that there were two such magic rings, and the just put on one of them and the unjust the other; no man can be imagined to be of such an iron nature that he would stand fast in justice. No man would keep his hands off what was not his own when he could safely take what he liked out of the market, or go into houses and lie with any one at his pleasure, or kill or release from prison whom he would, and in all respects be like a God among men. Then the actions of the just would be as the actions of the unjust; they would both come at last to the same point. And this we may truly affirm to be a great proof that a man is just, not willingly or because he thinks that justice is any good to him individually, but of necessity, for wherever any one thinks that he can safely be unjust, there he is unjust. For all men believe in their hearts that injustice is far more profitable to the individual than justice, and he who argues as I have been supposing, will say that they are right. If you could imagine any one obtaining this power of becoming invisible, and never doing any wrong or touching what was another's, he would be thought by the lookers-on to be a most wretched idiot, although they would praise him to one another's faces, and keep up appearances with one another from a fear that they too might suffer injustice."
I would like to argue that "justice" is not a compromise; that it is not simply a lesser evil; and that "injustice" is not more profitable. I look around though and every day, I see examples. I see him hiding behind some rules; and her crouching beneath her Title; and they are camouflaging their true nature with hundred dollar bills; and we are cowering in fear, cautiously peeking through our narrow eye slits, inside our masks pf pretentiousness. I cannot argue that "justice" is not a compromise; or that it is not a lesser evil; or that "injustice" is not more profitable. When I am able to be invisible, I am able to practice injustice; guiltlessly.
Or am I?
I could argue faith; and/or belief. But I won't. Even in this regard, justice is exclusionary; and injustice is profitable. And most certainly, from rationality, it appears that justice is a compromise; and a lesser evil. At first glance.
I want to look deeper.
I'll start with future generations. I believe it rational to argue that while injustice may be more profitable for me, its impact will be detrimental to my granddaughter. ...But in a sense, this is the same cautionary tale; encouraging me to use my power to further advance the causes and/or well-being of my direct descendants. In order to account for the well-being of all members of all future generations, I must begin in this moment. I look around though and every day I see examples...
So I am where I began...
At this point, I could argue that I see/feel the wisdom of justice and its critical significance to the survival of future generations, and that I must start with me, and I must lead by example, and I must have faith that increasing numbers will ultimately further this progress as well; and, (if I must), I must remember that my granddaughter's survival is also dependent upon this all-encompassing justice. And I do argue this. And I do have faith. But I also have a sense of urgency.
I feel it is necessary that justice become more than the lesser evil, sooner rather than later. I feel we must move past a pretentious political correctness more quickly than our current pace. Again, I believe that upcoming generations are advancing in this direction, but (also) again, I have a strong sense of urgency...
I could argue for truthfulness...
But when I am truthful, I am shunned.
And when I am nice, progress is slow.
I have struggled with this before...
The immediate lack of productivity that follows truthfulness, caused in part by the ego-inflated sense of outrage and/or hurt feelings, discourages truthfulness. But I might argue that the more frequent the truthfulness, the less the hurt and outrage, and the more possible the progress and productivity; and the more likely one may feel compelled to remove their mask of pretentiousness.
I encourage widespread truthfulness; and I realize that those least likely to practice this are those most likely to exhibit outrage, defensiveness, and hurt; and most likely to believe their mask does represent truthfulness. And I also realize that to be effective, any effort toward widespread truthfulness, must be accompanied by a mutual ability to argue openly, rationally, and reflectively.
This seems a tall order.
In this moment, I am discouraged.
Looking to future generations, I am encouraged.
I am in this moment.
My sense of urgency is not satisfied.
I can see that political correctness is a step. I can see that we are closer to justice today, than we were yesterday. I believe the next step to be widespread truthfulness. I am lamenting the pace. And I am repeating myself.
I believe that widespread truthfulness, accompanied by a mutual ability to argue openly, rationally, and reflectively, will lead to a recognition that I am no more and no less necessary than any other individual from the past, present, or future. I believe that this recognition will lead us to a much larger, (ultimately a universal), common ground. I believe that this common ground is essential for our survival.
I believe I have said these things before. But perhaps not in this order or context.
I am impatient.
I am frustrated.
I even feel a bit desperate.
I will continue to be truthful.
Except when I am not.
I am now asking myself if widespread truthfulness is the next step? Or have I simply filled in a blank?
What about skepticism?
Or hard work?
Or compassion?
Or education?
Or spirituality?
... ... ... ... ...
In this moment, these alternatives feel like strong, necessary supporting characters.
... ... ... ... ...
I still believe truthfulness to be the next step.
... ... ... ... ...
I have found that when truthfulness is effectively coupled with mutually open, rational, reflective argument, time seems to move in slow motion allowing for more rapid understanding and progress. It is as if our focus narrows and widens, just enough to lovingly embrace the ebb and flow of information and consideration, while excluding unnecessary distraction.
There is a neurological phenomenon called tachypsychia that works on one's perception of time. For example, during extreme stress, (such as an accident), one may perceive time to lengthen, seemingly allowing for more rapid and more efficient decision-making.
Truthfulness, (as tachypsychia), is a next step.
Though my sense of urgency is not satisfied, it is good to see that we are capable.
I will continue to be truthful.
Except when I am not.
For me, in this moment, justice is a lesser evil.
For all of humanity, in all of existence, justice is the greatest good.
