"Do not assume malice when an explanation of stupidity is sufficient." principle of Ockham's Razor

"We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are." J.K. Rowling, author (b. 1965)

"If the gods listened to the prayers of men, all humankind would quickly perish since they constantly pray for many evils to befall one another." Epicurus, philosopher (c. 341-270 BCE)

"The evil of the world is made possible by nothing but the sanction you give it." Ayn Rand

"He who does not punish evil commands it to be done." Leonardo da Vinci

"Moral indignation is jealousy with a halo." H. G. Wells

"Monsters are very real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King

"It is better to prevent crimes than to punish them." Cesare Beccaria, philosopher and politician (1738-1794)

"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it." Albert Einstein

"If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed." Albert Einstein, physicist, Nobel laureate (1879-1955)

"Whenever morality is based on theology, whenever right is made dependent on divine authority, the most immoral, unjust, infamous things can be justified and established." Ludwig Feuerbach, philosopher (1804-1872)

"No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of others." Charles Dickens

"Hell is not wanting to be where you are." Stephen Levine

"One cannot do right in one department of life whilst he is occupied in doing wrong in any other department. Life is one indivisible whole." Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

"Once we assuage our conscience by calling something a 'necessary evil', it begins to look more and more necessary and less and less evil." Sydney J. Harris, journalist (1917-1986)

"Every man is guilty of all the good he didn't do." Voltaire

"No drug, not even alcohol, causes the fundamental ills of society. If we're looking for the source of our troubles, we shouldn't test people for drugs, we should test them for stupidity, ignorance, greed and love of power." P.J. O'Rourke, writer (1947- )

"Evil is like a shadow - it has no real substance of its own, it is simply a lack of light. You cannot cause a shadow to disappear by trying to fight it, stamp on it, by railing against it, or any other form of emotional or physical resistance. In order to cause a shadow to disappear, you must shine light on it." Shakti Gawain

"The struggle with evil by means of violence is the same as an attempt to stop a cloud, in order that there may be no rain." Leo Tolstoy, novelist and philosopher (1828-1910

“At times it may be necessary to temporarily accept a lesser evil, but one must never label a necessary evil as good.” Margaret Mead, anthropologist (1901-1978)

"Evil is like a shadow - it has no real substance of its own, it is simply a lack of light. You cannot cause a shadow to disappear by trying to fight it, stamp on it, by railing against it, or any other form of emotional or physical resistance. In order to cause a shadow to disappear, you must shine light on it." Shakti Gawain, teacher and author (1948- )

“For every ten people who are clipping at the branches of evil, you're lucky to find one who's hacking at the roots.” Henry David Thoreau, naturalist and author (1817-1862)

"All sins are attempts to fill voids." Simone Weil

“What mean and cruel things men do for the love of God.” William Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) English novelist and playwright, A Writer's Notebook

“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” Voltaire, philosopher (1694-1778)

“Violence in any form is a tragic expression of our unmet needs.” Marshall B. Rosenberg

“Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.” Blaise Pascal, philosopher and mathematician (1623-1662)

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Edmund Burke