MEANS OR ENDS

MEANS OR ENDS/BAD OR GOOD "The ends justify the means" is a familiar rule of thumb from ages past. It focuses on the "ends" to justify, rationalize, legitimate what went on before to obtain the ends. The opposite approach is to focus not upon on the ends, but upon the "means;" focusing upon a process, not a product. Stringent adherence to process, is sufficiently rewarding to justify, rationalize, legitimate any end that is obtained by its "means." Perhaps ends and means are one; perhaps neither is severable from the other. Devoid of ethics, value judgments, morality, philosophy or religious belief, either one, ends or means, may be bad or good, when applied in a factual human context.