On Empathy and Compassion
29/01/25 11:24
January 29, 2025 (Vol. 19 No. 7) - Individuals — and even nations — act in their own self-interests. It is basic human nature. However, think of how life would be dramatically different if people - and nations - didn't occasionally work against their self-interests to serve the greater good. Think how different the world would have been if there hadn't been a Marshall Plan. And where would your parents, grandparents or possibility yourself be without Social Security and Medicare? The impulses to do something for the greater good comes out of the human impulses of empathy and compassion. Empathy is the ability to sense and understand the feelings of others. Compassion comes when we are motivated to act upon our empathy for others. Americans tend to have a self-image of a people who are empathetic and compassionate. To put it another way: We see ourselves as the good guys. And, until recently, the rest of the world bought into that narrative with certain reservations. The America the world knew was that of a well-intentioned giant that occasionally stumbled into messes such as Vietnam and Iraq. They forgave those "sins" because they also knew an America that was generous in providing less fortunate nations with financial, technical and medical assistance. However, that narrative has changed. This is no longer an empathetic and compassionate nation. Judging by the results of the most recent national election, nearly half the voting population is comfortable with the idea of deporting millions of people whose only crime is that they lacked proper permission when they sought refuge in the United States. Yes, some of these undocumented individuals have committed crimes — but nowhere near as many as certain public figures would have you believe. In fact, more than half of those who have been arrested and deported since the current purge began have committed no other crime than illegally crossing the border. When someone tells you that other nations are emptying their prisons and sending the dregs of society here, that is a lie. In our fervor seeking to cleanse America of illegal immigrants, we are forgetting where we came from and how we got to where we are today. Unless you are of Native American ancestry, your family is not from here. The President's mother and current wife immigrated to this country. There were reasons your ancestors left their native lands to start a new life here. For whatever reason, they were seeking a new start. What is wrong with that? Do we lack empathy to allow people who are trying to escape drug lords and government oppression to seek a new life here? Have we forgotten that our nation has been morally, spiritually and financially enriched through the assimulation of these refugees? Must we set them up as scapegoats or fodder for political rantings? And, while we are at it, is it necessary or morally correct to picture dedicated career government employees, those who work for NGOs or anyone receiving government assistance from welfare to college loans as deadbeats and slackers? In questioning their humanity we are devaluing our own. If we embrace our traditional American values and show empathy and compassion for others less fortunate, perhaps we can be an America that actually is what we'd like to think it is. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.