> Ah, but the set of unintended consequences (UC) is only a subset of the
set
> of evil outcomes (EO) - leaving room in EO for the set intended
> consequences (many Nazis believed the extermination of the Jews was a Good
> Thing on behalf of the rest of us, whether we knew it or not - same with
> lotsa neoliberal-globaloney-privateering economists with respect to their
> cleansed nirvana - mebbe Beria, too, dunno - but you know what I mean)
>
> Cheers,
> Rob.
>
Hmm, well, if the actual objective is to promote the "greater good," and one mistakenly believes that exterminating Jews or promoting an unfettered free market are either a means to achieving or an actual component of the "good," the actions that follow are in some sense unintended. I think it's likely that any appeal to the "greater good" in such circumstances is generally not an exposition of the true aim but rather a rationale convincing only to the deluded.
-- Luke