The Better Demons of Our Nature

[DISCLAIMER]

As Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) is informed by Stoic philosophy, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding a book entitled The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman.

Marcus Aurelius stated, “The unjust person acts against the gods. For insofar as the nature of the universe made rational creatures for the sake of each other, with an eye toward mutual benefit based on true value and never for harm, anyone breaking nature’s will obviously acts against the oldest of gods” (page 223).

I was raised under Christian doctrine, though I now align with agnosticism. For context, atheism is a lack of belief in a god or gods, while agnosticism is the view that the existence of a god or gods is unknown or unknowable. Given this background, I don’t appeal to unfalsifiable “gods.”

The same is the case regarding angels (spiritual beings serving as a divine messengers and intermediaries, and often as special protectors of an individual or nation) or demons (malevolent supernatural beings whose nature is intermediate between that of a god and a human being).

Therefore, when considering how an “unjust person acts,” I don’t appeal to imaginary beings. Rationally, I consider what I value as moral and ethical—which is inextricably linked to my former Christian principles—and I react accordingly with an “eye toward mutual benefit.”

For instance, generally speaking, I prefer to be left alone by members of society. It is therefore mutually beneficial to me and individuals in the public that I not place myself within social settings for any longer than necessary (e.g., the in-person purchasing of groceries at a store).

I make reasonable attempts not to bother others. With hope, others will mutually take efforts not to trouble me. All the same, I conduct myself according to the moral (of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior) of understanding that not everyone behaves as I do.

Ergo, it’s subjectively good for me to respect that, per Aurelius, “the nature of the universe [is] made [of] rational creatures for the sake of each other;” yet, not everyone shares my worldview. Thus, I’m mindful of ethics (principles of conduct governing an individual or a group).

As not everyone shares the same moral perspective, the ethical principle (a comprehensive and fundamental law, doctrine, or assumption) to which I abide when in public relates to the REBT technique of unconditional acceptance (UA; e.g., some people don’t value mutual benefit).

This humanistic approach to Stoic living is rational (in accordance with both logic and reason) without necessitating divine intervention from gods, angels, demons, and so on. Still, people such as authors of The Daily Stoic maintain a different view, as the authors state (page 223):

We say of the most heinous acts that they are crimes against nature. We consider certain things to be an affront against humanity, saying, “This violates everything we hold dear.” However much we differ in religion, upbringing, politics, class, or gender, we can come together in agreement there.

One wonders to whom such rhetoric applies. For instance, have we all “come together in agreement” about how Israel facilitated genocide, ethnic cleansing, and war crimes over the past couple years—actions which continue to impact the Palestinian (Gazan) people? No.

According to one source, reporting Gazan deaths, “The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,032 killed, with 171,661 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 581 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 1,553, while 717 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble.”

If, per authors of The Daily Stoic, “the most heinous acts [are] crimes against nature” and this “violates everything we hold dear,” then why do Israelis continue their crimes against humanity? Could it be that morals and ethics aren’t actually universal standards? Per the authors (page 223):

Why? Because our sense of justice goes marrow deep. We don’t like it when people cut in line; we don’t like freeloaders; we pass laws that protect the defenseless; and we pay our taxes, agreeing, in part, to redistribute our wealth to those in need. At the same time, if we think we can get away with it, we might try to cheat or bend the rules. To paraphrase Bill Walsh, when left to our own devices, many of us individuals seek lower ground like water.

I pay my taxes. While I’m comfortable with some portion of my involuntary donation to the United States (U.S.) government going to help people within my own nation, I don’t believe it’s a matter of “justice” for the U.S. to financially and militarily support Israel’s criminal actions.

Apparently, “many of us individuals seek lower ground like water” regarding positions of power within government, opting to agitate global relations rather than adopting my rational standard “not to bother others.” Using their typical Pollyannaish view, the authors thus state (page 223):

The key, then, is to support our natural inclination to justice with strong boundaries and strong commitments—to embrace, as Lincoln urged a divided, angry nation to do, “the better angels of our nature.”

Not fully through The Daily Stoic, former U.S. President Lincoln has been evoked a handful of times. “Better angels of our nature,” my ass! If an individual simply must appeal to imaginary entities, then why not appeal to the better demons of our nature, in the case of Lincoln’s actions?

Notice that I’m intentionally separating the former president from his behavior. People are not their actions. Still, could it be that the authors are ignorant about atrocities committed by the Union army, and how Lincoln praised their wartime efforts? For instance, one source reports:

The American Civil War drew thousands of white and black women into paid and unpaid work for the Union and Confederate armies.  While the armies provided some women with a reliable income, their very proximity also represented a dangerous liaison that drew them into closer contact with Union troops that rendered them vulnerable to sexual assault.  By 1865, more than four hundred Union soldiers had been court-martialed for sexual crimes against white and black women and girls.

At the war’s onset, the Union’s judge advocate corps, which tried soldiers for violations of the articles of war, was ill-prepared to adjudicate sexual crimes. By the war’s end, however, an ethic of sexual justice emerged from Union military courts to provide women with a means of redressing their wartime sexual violation.

Per another source, “Women who worked in the camps or who worked close to them were extremely vulnerable. Women were the collateral damage of war. Women, especially Southern women, were subjected to horrific sexual assaults by Union soldiers.”

This is readily accessible information available at the stoking of buttons on one’s preferred internet-accessing device. Why glaze Lincoln, as though he’s some moral and ethical paragon? Was he merely a fallible human being? Yes. Did he oversee mass sexual assault and rape? Yes.

Is that the sort of historical figure I value? No! Likewise, I’m on the record for chastising actions of the U.S. government that ostensibly supports similar atrocities against the Palestinian people through proxy of Israel. As an example, one source reports:

Israel has increasingly employed sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence against Palestinians as part of a broader effort to undermine their right to self-determination and carried out genocidal acts through the systematic destruction of sexual and reproductive healthcare facilities.

Per another source, “During the ongoing Gaza war, Israeli male and female soldiers, guards and medical staff have reportedly committed wartime sexual violence against Palestinian women, children and men including rape, gang-rape and sexualized torture and genital mutilation.”

That sounds a lot like the better demons of our nature, in true Lincoln fashion. If one simply must appeal to imaginary entities as a means of obscuring the fact that fallible humans commit atrocious acts of sexual and other forms of violence, then so be it. Rapey demons it is, then.

Of course, I suspect that authors of The Daily Stoic and other Stoics can navigate the complexity of the human experience without irrationally appealing to nonsensical claims of the supernatural. We can cast aside notions of gods, angels, and demons when considering morals and ethics.

Furthermore, it isn’t as though we simply must glaze current or historical figures who are and were fundamentally flawed—and who oversee and oversaw heinous acts of violence. This approach to rational living is what UA is all about—separating the individual from the behavior.

Personally, I’d rather leave others to themselves and be left alone within a society. This form of “mutual benefit based on true value and never for harm,” per Aurelius, is a rational choice. Nonetheless, I’m aware that some fallible human beings deliberately seek to harm others.

They bomb other populations, sexually assault and rape people, and kill members within civilizations without any apparent reprimand for their actions. Subjectively speaking, such actions from fallible human beings are immoral and unethical. The preferably shouldn’t be.

Nevertheless, in contemplation of UA, such is the way of the world. Thus, I’ll personally control my own reactions to what some may consider the better demons of our nature (i.e., the supposed moral and ethical targeting of civilians), as not to mimic or support that which I abhor (actions).

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW

Photo credit, fair use

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