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Jan 30, 2017
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Book Review: Eichmann In Jerusalem

63 min • 8,694 words • 855 comments
Scott Alexander reviews Hannah Arendt's 'Eichmann in Jerusalem', exploring key aspects of the Eichmann trial and the Holocaust, and reflecting on their implications. Longer summary
This post reviews Hannah Arendt's book 'Eichmann in Jerusalem', which covers the trial of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann. Scott Alexander discusses five key aspects from the book: Eichmann's psychological profile, Nazi pre-war plans for Jews, varying responses of occupied nations to Nazi demands, the role of Jewish councils, and why more Germans didn't resist. The review explores the complexities of evil, the importance of resistance, and draws parallels to modern political situations, while being careful not to spoil Arendt's conclusions. Shorter summary
Jan 13, 2015
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The Influenza Of Evil

12 min • 1,610 words • 624 comments • podcast (11 min)
Scott Alexander explores how evil evolves to evade societal recognition, drawing parallels with flu viruses and analyzing modern bullying tactics. Longer summary
Scott Alexander discusses the anti-inductive nature of evil, comparing it to the evolution of flu viruses. He argues that as society develops antibodies against recognized forms of evil (like Nazism and Communism), new forms of evil will emerge that don't match these patterns. The post then analyzes a Cracked article about groups society considers acceptable to mock, suggesting that bullies adapt their tactics to appear as if they're 'punching up' when they're actually 'punching down'. Scott concludes by noting that calling out these new forms of bullying is important work, as it helps society recognize and prevent them. Shorter summary
May 31, 2013
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Hansonian Optimism

9 min • 1,220 words • 50 comments
Scott Alexander uses a king-and-viziers analogy to argue that people can be inherently good even when their actions seem selfish, and explores the nature of evil and human goodness. Longer summary
Scott Alexander explores the concept of human goodness using an analogy of a wise king misled by evil viziers. He argues that people can be inherently good even when their actions seem selfish, much like the king who makes bad decisions based on biased information. Scott suggests that we should identify people with the 'king' of their minds rather than the 'viziers', seeing them as fundamentally good despite their actions. He discusses the nature of evil, defining it as certain habits of mind that make it easy for one's 'viziers' to mislead them. The post ends by relating this concept to Trivers' theory of consciousness. Shorter summary