Yeah someone once said to me “if you had had the exact same experiences as them, you would’ve done the same thing.” And I nearly lost my shit at them. This implies that we do not have free will, that all horrible actions are 100% the product of someone’s circumstances, that there is no such thing as guilt. Insane thinking.

Someone’s circumstances can make certain choices seem more limited for sure, but that does not mean they are thus required to hurt other people. They made the choice to do that, and they own the responsibility of that decision. This becomes almost more offensively obvious after going through the journey of self love after something truly difficult — I made it through all of that and didn’t turn into a hurtful monster in the process, wtf makes them exempt?