The first thing they teach in law school is “actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea,” i.e., “the act does not make a person guilty unless the mind is also guilty.”
But, in the same breath, some exceptions are led down too.
The point is, how far do intentions hold importance in deciding guilt on the part of a person? Or do they not matter in front of the severe consequences they inflict?
I’ve had times in life where I questioned myself, questioned my conscience, because my unintentional actions caused severe pain to some people. And vice versa, many unintentional actions of others have hurt me in ways beyond comprehension.
So, how do you decide the proportion of blame? How much do you blame it on ‘individual choice’ and leave the rest on ‘fate’? Because once the source of pain is gone, you’re left thinking why? Why me? Why did it all happen? Were there questionable intentions since the beginning, or did life happen?
You see, there are choices we all need to make, not once but multiple times and at different timeframes in our one mortal life. Those choices may seem insignificant in the moment, but when we look back after a decade or two, their meaning shifts; they become the molders of who we have become in the present.
So, that means intentions do matter? Right?
But, wait, what if you hold good intentions and you did something without having different perspectives and knowledge of consequences beforehand? Does it make you less blameworthy, do you think? It’s good to think that way and bandage your guilt, but the facts remain that your actions had consequences.
And if actions had consequences, that means somebody should take responsibility for those consequences.
That means taking responsibility is equal to reparations? Just accepting something you did, with or without ill intentions, constitutes justice?
One who faced the consequences should decide that. Or not?
But the one who suffers has little to do with your intentions; you cannot justify your unintentional acts before their suffering. Because it’s their reality and there is no denying it.
So, that means only actions have value? Intentions don’t?
Doing something with good intentions can be discarded in a second, just because it resulted in unwanted consequences.
In law, intentions matter all the time, and sometimes they don’t. Can the same be applied in everyday life? But law evolves with society, so that reflects some reality of the world too.
Therefore, intentions matter, and at the same time, they don’t.
Who gets to decide it objectively?
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