Societal lack of Empathy

[_Jersey Girl]

Let me just stop right here and say, for crying out loud, this is why the topic frustrates me. Adults are all too willing to point out a lack of or low empathy in others (politicians, youth, other adults), when they are unprepared to discuss what empathy is, when and how it develops, at what stage of life the continuum of empathy begins (Hint: Infancy), the importance of attachment and bonding to the development of empathy, much less is anyone prepared to discuss societal remedies.

[_Some Schmo]

Let me just stop right here and say, for crying out loud, this is why the topic frustrates me. Adults are all too willing to point out a lack of or low empathy in others (politicians, youth, other adults), when they are unprepared to discuss what empathy is, when and how it develops, at what stage of life the continuum of empathy begins (Hint: Infancy), the importance of attachment and bonding to the development of empathy, much less is anyone prepared to discuss societal remedies.

I imagine that's because nobody can empathize with your frustration here.

[_Jersey Girl]

Let me just stop right here and say, for crying out loud, this is why the topic frustrates me. Adults are all too willing to point out a lack of or low empathy in others (politicians, youth, other adults), when they are unprepared to discuss what empathy is, when and how it develops, at what stage of life the continuum of empathy begins (Hint: Infancy), the importance of attachment and bonding to the development of empathy, much less is anyone prepared to discuss societal remedies.

I imagine that's because nobody can empathize with your frustration here.

Color me disgusted.

I'll live from it.

[_Res Ipsa]

Let me just stop right here and say, for crying out loud, this is why the topic frustrates me. Adults are all too willing to point out a lack of or low empathy in others (politicians, youth, other adults), when they are unprepared to discuss what empathy is, when and how it develops, at what stage of life the continuum of empathy begins (Hint: Infancy), the importance of attachment and bonding to the development of empathy, much less is anyone prepared to discuss societal remedies.

What are things that society could do differently to encourage development of empathy?

[_Gunnar]

Great topic, Jersey Girl! I wish that the likes of Trump and Cruz were empathic enough to understand the nature and importance of empathy and the golden rule, and even loving one's enemies. Some of the things they have said lead me to believe that they are almost totally clueless about those concepts.

[_Jersey Girl]

Let me just stop right here and say, for crying out loud, this is why the topic frustrates me. Adults are all too willing to point out a lack of or low empathy in others (politicians, youth, other adults), when they are unprepared to discuss what empathy is, when and how it develops, at what stage of life the continuum of empathy begins (Hint: Infancy), the importance of attachment and bonding to the development of empathy, much less is anyone prepared to discuss societal remedies.

What are things that society could do differently to encourage development of empathy?

The single most important thing that society could do differently to support the development of empathy is to establish a societal expectation that human beings learn about the development of their own children.


I grew weary years ago of listening to adults say things like, "These kids don't come with owner's manuals."

Yes, they do.

The problem is that adults take creating families as being something so common place, that they don't go out and seek the manuals and learn about the very human beings they are raising up, so that they can raise, guide, and nurture their children with intentionality.

They know more about how their smart phone works than they do their own child.

I'm generalizing, you understand.

[_Gunnar]

Well, we do need to pay for the privatized prison system. So there's that.

Well, which is the problem with you? The crime? or the punishment?

Notwithstanding any argument over the cost of incarceration - there is a real influence of drug use on the healthcare system, productivity, and the environment. Mountains of data support and conclude that drug use has negative implications on physical and psychological health. But perhaps you are assuming that given the FDA's hard stance on additives it would frown upon levamisole.

Premature mortality, various illnesses, and injury are increased by drug use (poisoning, overdose, etc..).
Marijuana farming has a high demand for water and pesticide use.
Meth production results in 5 to 7 pounds of toxic waste for every pound of meth produced.

So there's also that

One of the worst lies and most unfortunate misconceptions about the so called "war on drugs" is that we, as a society, are better off with it than without it. Few things are more obvious to me than the fact that the punitive legal prohibition approach to the problem of drug abuse, whether initially well intentioned or not, only exacerbated and helped to create the very situation it was intended to eliminate or prevent. Continuing to double down on that demonstrably failed approach is almost as foolish as trying to put out a fire by dousing it with gasoline, and then deciding, when the fire immediately only got worse, that the problem was that we didn't use enough gasoline! The primary beneficiaries of that approach are organized crime and the growing army of law enforcement personnel and bureaucrats required to implement and administrate it and deal with the horrible consequences of its ignominious failure!

[_ludwigm]

Notice the phrase you used, "I know what it's like". That's the key to empathy. It's called perspective taking.

I think "I know what it's like" is helpful, but I don't think it's necessary to have empathy. I've never had an unwanted pregnancy, for instance, but I can certainly empathize with a woman's desire to choose how to handle it. I've never been an African American, but I can empathize with the fear they must have when pulled over by a cop.

I don't think you have to have had the experience yourself. I think you just need to be able to draw on an experience in your own life that might be similar and feel what it must feel like to be in their shoes. There's effort involved in attempting to feel someone else's experience.

I suggest to read What Is it Like to Be a Bat?. It would be interesting...

I've never ever been homeless. My wife wasn't as well. She was taught by her parents (her father was a reformed pastor) to handle such people. Not by words; by deeds. I wasn't taught, I've learned it by own. Today - from our common life on - we have one homeless woman to help.
One homeless, because of our financial limits. Anyway, it is a lot more than the church's Fast Sunday money.

Does she deserves it? Do we know?
Do we care?

by the way, Jersey Girl, this is a really interesting topic. I've never thought this much about the development of empathy.

+1

[_Gunnar]

I suggest to read What Is it Like to Be a Bat?. It would be interesting...

I've never ever been homeless. My wife wasn't as well. She was taught by her parents (her father was a reformed pastor) to handle such people. Not by words; by deeds. I wasn't taught, I've learned it by own. Today - from our common life on - we have one homeless woman to help.
One homeless, because of our financial limits. Anyway, it is a lot more than the church's Fast Sunday money.

Does she deserves it? Do we know?
Do we care?

The world needs more people like you and your wife, Ludwig!

[_moksha]

Like the old conservative saying, "I felt a tiny bit of sympathy for the man with no hands until I caught a glimpse of the man with six arms, which made him a wiz on trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, then I felt inadequate with only two arms."