26 aug. 2011

the authority of being human versus a human's authority

”Ordinary people, simply doing their jobs,
and without any particular hostility on their part,
can become agents in a terrible destructive process.

Moreover, even when the destructive effects of their work
become patently clear,
and they are asked to carry out actions
incompatible with fundamental standards of morality,
relatively few people have the resources needed
to resist authority.
(...)
none of the participants*
who refused to administer the final shocks
insisted that the experiment itself be terminated,
nor left the room to check the health of the victim
without requesting permission to leave.”




"The Perils of Obedience" by Stanley Milgram
wow.
Is it humanity a question of
being permitted to be human?!

*The Milgram experiment