Evil in the World?

A good friend and I had a discussion a while ago about bad people.  She believed that bad people didn't exist, but I believe that they do.

What defines a bad person?

I guess that depends, but, to me, I believe a person is bad if they don't care about doing really bad things.  I mean, yes, some people do bad things and they aren't bad people.  For example, I do steal hot sauce from Taco Bell.  That I don't feel bad about.  I have taken things that aren't mine from the lost and found, after they have been there for months... I do feel a little bit bad about that, but those things have been sitting there for months!  I break the speed limit consistently, I'm lazy about certain things, sometimes I take personal days off of work, etc.  I am not an angel, but just because I do these bad things occasionally, does that mean I am a bad person?

I don't think so.  I don't think I am a bad person for doing those things.  I might be slightly naughty, but I'm not bad.  I do volunteer, I love my family and I love my boyfriend, I help people and animals, etc.  But what if someone murders one person, or steals a thousand dollars, or deals drugs, or something like that?  Does that make them a bad person?

I think someone who consciously commits a serious crime, like a murder, IS a bad person.  I think that there is a difference between people who do bad things and bad people who do bad things.  I think it depends on the degree of how bad these things are, but I do believe that some people are inherently bad and are simply ... so bad that they are far from redemption.  There are some people who can't be forgiven, or who can't give second chances.  My friend and I argued about this for a while, because she believes that all people have some goodness inside them.  I don't think so.  I think it's sad that there are some people in this world who are just bad and don't care about others, or whatever.

I don't think that everyone deserves a second chance.  Strangely enough, I don't believe in the death sentence either.  I think that the death sentence is a waste of money.  I also think that punishing someone (for potentially killing someone) by killing them is just no good.  It just makes people believe that death can be used appropriately as a punishment.  I'm sure that several murderers have killed with this mindset.

Maybe some of us are good, and some of us are bad ... maybe it's our own environment that makes us more inclined to do bad things?  I don't know.  All I think I know is that there are some people who are actually bad cookies.  While we're talking about this, I also believe in Karma.  It's a shame that Karma's revenge doesn't come fast enough to those who deserve it...