The Banality of Evil and Those Who Said No

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In the Realm of the Banality of Evil, saying yes is always easy. The hard part is saying no, for reasons that have nothing to do with getting ahead.

The Epstein files have unleashed a flood tide of bleatings of innocence and accusations of guilt by association. This is just what we’d expect in the Realm of the Banality of Evil, a phrase made famous by Hannah Arendt, who described the “terrifyingly normal” participants in systems that normalize evil of the sort that “could not be traced to any particularity of wickedness, pathology or ideological conviction in the doer, whose only personal distinction was a perhaps extraordinary shallowness.”

Amidst this flood tide of proclaimed innocence, consider the forgotten few who declined invitations to enter Epstein’s circle of influence. While the files record those who accepted an invitation, those who said no appear to be less well documented.

Was it really that difficult to make a few inquiries about the host before saying yes? Or was the attraction of obtaining favors, funding and flattery just too powerful to resist? Or was it the promise of rubbing shoulders with the rich and powerful that was impossible to resist? Or was it the discreet promise of self-indulgence without limit?

Yet some did make inquiries and declined. Some said no. These few are forgotten, for their refusal is an indictment of the entire status quo. In the rush to declare everyone’s innocence, perhaps we should first consider those who refused the invitations for self-evidently sound reasons.

In the context of the Banality of Evil, those few who said no are the only real innocents. Everyone who said yes was manifesting ordinary obedience to the perverse rulebook of America’s elite class and aspirants seeking to join this elite: when it comes to self-enrichment and ambition, the only question is: can you get away with it.

In other words, there isn’t a low standard of morality and ethics: there is no standard at all, a complete absence of anything but by any means available. America’s elites in all the fields Epstein harvested were part of a system that made their unquestioning, automatic acceptance of the invitation inevitable.

The ideal medium for the expansion of evil is the shallow passivity of taking every opportunity to climb the ladder of power and increase one’s private wealth without hesitation. Rising into the ranks of the elites in America boils down to doing everything you can get away with to get ahead without any thought for the consequences borne by others or for the sacrifice of your integrity, because integrity has no value in today’s America. Even saying the word integrity makes you a chump.

In the Realm of the Banality of Evil, saying yes is always easy. The hard part is saying no, for reasons that have nothing to do with getting ahead. As Hannah Arendt wrote: “The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.”

Self-absorbed ambition and self-gratification have no use for pondering good and evil, and that’s the banality of evil that’s consumed America’s culture, society and economy.

Can you see those dark clouds gathering up ahead?
They’re gonna wash this planet clean like the Bible said.
Now you can hold on steady, try to be ready
But everybody’s gonna get wet.
Don’t think it won’t happen just because it hasn’t happened yet.

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Source: http://charleshughsmith.blogspot.com/2026/02/the-banality-of-evil-and-those-who-said.html