“Bad things happen when good people do nothing.”
Well, bad things happen all the time, and the “good people” who have done nothing should not be held responsible for them. However, the popular belief in today’s society is that people in general are expected to do good deeds, to lend a hand, to help others in need, when they can. This belief leads to the condemnation of the “bystanders” who do nothing —nothing good, and nothing bad.
This belief is wrong.
People should not be forced to do good things. Kindness should obviously be encouraged, but should never be mandatory.
If doing good is to become mandatory, it will no longer come from the goodness of hearts, but the pressure and fear of punishments. Do you remember that time when you helped the old lady on the plane with her carry-ons? or the time when you gave your seat on the bus to the pregnant woman who just boarded? You must remember the genuine feeling of happiness during such times when you were on the giving end of a good deed. You only felt these feelings because you knew that these good deeds were completely voluntary, and therefore completely out of the kindness of your heart. These feelings would be gone, if such good deeds were to become requirements. People hate to do what they are required to do, because the word “required” implies rules —rules of which upholding would not result in any rewards, but breaking, only punishments. If “doing nothing” is only subpar, and doing good is the standard, helping elderlies across the road and helping a single-mother family to shovel snow will be as tedious and unfulfilling as paying taxes or sitting on jury duty. You can still argue that doing good would still bring people happiness even if they were mandatory, just like I’m sure a lot of people feel honored to be a legitimate citizen every time they see the FICA tax deduction on their paycheck. However, such happiness and kindness would have to at least coexist with, not to mention be overcome by the pressure and fear of punishment under the list of reasons to “do good”.
Forcing people to do good makes them worse.
Now think of the times when you were on the receiving end of a good deed — an elevator door held open as you rushed across the lobby, or a napkin passed along when you spilled your coffee. You must remember the genuine feeling of gratitude during these times. These feelings would be gone as well, if such good deeds were to become requirements. You only feel thankful for someone’s help when you know that they choose to help you, and they were not forced to do so. You only feel thankful when you know that they really mean to help you. If “doing nothing” is no longer an option, and “doing good” is forced, you will never know the authenticity of a Samaritan. What’s worse? If doing good is mandatory, people would soon expect good deeds to happen to them. They would expect people to hold the elevator when they are running late, or to help them clean up when they make a mess. When such absurd expectations weren’t met, they would pass the responsibilities for the misfortunes in their lives to others, when in fact they have no one but themselves to blame.
“Doing good” is only “good” when “doing nothing” is acceptable.