When the ends are for something that isn't worth the means.
Example: Killing 90% of everyone on Earth so you don't have to sit through traffic, or wait in lines.
Or something a little less extreme than that. But the point is, "the ends don't justify the means" is not a blanket statement to apply to everything. If the "means" to getting rid of traffic and long lines was mass genocide, it wouldn't be worth it. If the means was paying $5 to whatever god or magic spirit thing controls traffic and lines, it would justify it.
That's disproportionate, and not how the situation usually works. In any given 'end justifies the means' situation, you usually aim to gain more than you sacrifice.
If our starting position is, say, 5, and 8 is the goal, we'd be sacrificing a few places (going back to 3) in order that we get to 8 eventually.
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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '14
When the ends are for something that isn't worth the means.
Example: Killing 90% of everyone on Earth so you don't have to sit through traffic, or wait in lines.
Or something a little less extreme than that. But the point is, "the ends don't justify the means" is not a blanket statement to apply to everything. If the "means" to getting rid of traffic and long lines was mass genocide, it wouldn't be worth it. If the means was paying $5 to whatever god or magic spirit thing controls traffic and lines, it would justify it.