I believe that free will exists, however one's life experiences influence the decisions one makes. In a society that was working perfectly, everyone would be raised in a safe, secure, firm and loving environment, and everyone would be well educated, academically and socially/morally/ethically. They would not be in fear for their lives, for their next meal, for their human rights.

It sometimes seems to be an article of faith for a liberal that nothing is ever one's own damn fault.

If this kind of thinking was true, everyone raised in a ghetto, beaten by their father, would grow up to be a criminal. Nobody raised in a normal family, free of tragedy and serious pain, would end up a criminal. In real life, this is obviously false. There are thousands of examples, and I have seen some where brothers from the same family have taken drastically different paths. Sure Zarqawi came from a poor background. But how many tyrants through history had a background of wealth and education?

Sure, "shit happens." This short phrase means that no matter who you are, or how careful you have been, sometimes something hits you that ISN'T your own damn fault. This was one point of Robert Burns' "To a Mouse" (the other point is that only humans fear for their future.)

Shit happens all over the place, and there will never be a "perfect society." Most attempts to create one through history have ended up as abominations, because as with any "perfect society," the concept of choice eventually ends up being left out of the equation. It's what you do after the shit happens that counts, and that's pretty much up to you.

I agree with you that evil is not a "force in itself." This approach, sometimes boiled down to "The devil made me do it," is just another attempt to avoid personal responsibility.

Evil is the result of choices, just like good is. But it is a real concept.