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<blockquote data-quote="Thia Halmades" data-source="post: 2663225" data-attributes="member: 35863">Hey y'all.Aus_Snow: My defense is merely the nature of evil.&nbsp; We aren't talking about people who give things up for the mere purpose of an ideal; by being evil, they're into it for themselves.&nbsp; I'm arguing, philosophically, that an evil person cannot selflessly and altruistically pursue a higher agenda; that's why thugs get paid, and High Priests are building power bases.&nbsp; Being evil means, in part, getting a return on your investment, preferably at the cost of others - Quick &amp; Easy.So when we discuss a Vow of Poverty, by the nature of Evil, I don't buy it, because Poverty means more than &quot;not having money&quot; it means &quot;not having things.&quot;&nbsp; Evil isn't a big &quot;not having things&quot; sort of philosophy.&nbsp; However.I will yield and accept that it would be very easy to write up a draft of a CE bestial God that forces its followers to take a VoP in order to reflect its nature and further its objectives, but the return for that must be extremely high.&nbsp; What exactly counts as a possession?&nbsp; Are these a slave keeping people?&nbsp; Are those slaves possessions?&nbsp; The nature of the problem is simply this:- Good is defined.&nbsp; We know what constitutes Good; we have a clear idea of it what it takes to qualify Good, and the morals and standards we hold Good to.&nbsp; Therefore, enforcing a series of rules becomes a simple matter, because there are set barriers.- Evil is far less defined; they can get away with more, and do more.&nbsp; They can do something which appears good but is, in point, evil.&nbsp; They spin, twist, manipulate and modify the situation based on need.&nbsp; That's my major problem here.A Vow of Poverty keeps you poor to keep you focused, and aim towards your ultimate objective.&nbsp; It's a sacrifice you're making to make yourself stronger.&nbsp; Can evil do that?&nbsp; Sure.&nbsp; An evil monk, absolutely.&nbsp; No problem.&nbsp; But it's far less likely, and much harder to grasp against the backdrop of what we call &quot;evil.&quot;</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Thia Halmades, post: 2663225, member: 35863"] Hey y'all. Aus_Snow: My defense is merely the nature of evil. We aren't talking about people who give things up for the mere purpose of an ideal; by being evil, they're into it for themselves. I'm arguing, philosophically, that an evil person cannot selflessly and altruistically pursue a higher agenda; that's why thugs get paid, and High Priests are building power bases. Being evil means, in part, getting a return on your investment, preferably at the cost of others - Quick & Easy. So when we discuss a Vow of Poverty, by the nature of Evil, I don't buy it, because Poverty means more than "not having money" it means "not having things." Evil isn't a big "not having things" sort of philosophy. However. I will yield and accept that it would be very easy to write up a draft of a CE bestial God that forces its followers to take a VoP in order to reflect its nature and further its objectives, but the return for that must be extremely high. What exactly counts as a possession? Are these a slave keeping people? Are those slaves possessions? The nature of the problem is simply this: - Good is defined. We know what constitutes Good; we have a clear idea of it what it takes to qualify Good, and the morals and standards we hold Good to. Therefore, enforcing a series of rules becomes a simple matter, because there are set barriers. - Evil is far less defined; they can get away with more, and do more. They can do something which appears good but is, in point, evil. They spin, twist, manipulate and modify the situation based on need. That's my major problem here. A Vow of Poverty keeps you poor to keep you focused, and aim towards your ultimate objective. It's a sacrifice you're making to make yourself stronger. Can evil do that? Sure. An evil monk, absolutely. No problem. But it's far less likely, and much harder to grasp against the backdrop of what we call "evil." [/QUOTE]

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