| abstract | - There is so much suffering in the world, so much hate, inequality, and ignorance. So much chaos! But what if there were a way to solve these problems? Wouldn't doing so by any means be justified? Well it just so happens there is a bright side to these problems -- though daunting, they all have one common cause and it can be "fixed." The cause? Free will. The solution? Reeducation camps, a police state, censorship, concentration camps for those who resist the previous. The usual. If there's a Mad Scientist or mutant around, Mass Hypnosis and Mind Control are also handy options to turn everyone (that's left) into obedient Gullible Lemmings for the Big Bad to rule. In extreme cases it will include the destruction of individuality and the creation of a Hive Mind. A subtrope of Utopia Justifies the Means and a quintessential Evil Plan to Take Over the World. Frequently justified by the Well-Intentioned Extremist Visionary Villain (or even Knight Templar) in a Just Between You and Me with the hero as being a small sacrifice. If it means no conflict, a quadruplication of the standard of living, the eradication of inequality, poverty, discrimination, and hate... isn't it worth it? The typical heroic rejoinder is: "What would be the point? We might enjoy it, but we wouldn't be people anymore." Of course, the villain will rarely mention why he deserves to be at the top of this new society as the lone person remaining with free will. If he does, expect him to justify it by saying he's the best qualified to decide what's best for everyone else. Regardless, if he succeeds he will create an authoritarian Dystopia or become the Hive Queen (well, King) of this new society. The fact that there are significant philosphical arguments suggesting that too much free will may not be a good thing, and there are societies that value the group over the individual, are of no consequence to this trope. Post-industrial Western society absolutely values the rights of the individual above all else, thus media will always reflect this as a virtue, and anything different as evil, assuming any advocate must have a villainous motive and lust for power. If this process merges everyone into one being, see Assimilation Plot. If the villain actually succeeds in creating this world, it becomes a Villain World. See also Thoughtcrime, Dystopian Edict and Nietzsche Wannabe. Examples of The Evils of Free Will include:
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