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Of course you're right. The quoted statement is part of a broader attack on self-responsibility that is taking place in the western world. We all are poor poor
by Kenji 10y ago
Of course you're right. The quoted statement is part of a broader attack on self-responsibility that is taking place in the western world. We all are poor poor beings who bear no responsibilities for our flaws. Bad at school? It's a mental disorder. Gambling addiction? It's a bug in the brain. Everybody else is responsible for one's woes. This way of thinking is incredibly toxic and prevents human flourishing. To blame other people for your faults is to deny yourself the opportunity for betterment. And I say that as someone who doesn't necessarily believe in free will.
- uw_rob 10y ago> This way of thinking is incredibly toxic and prevents human flourishing. To blame other people for your faults is to deny yourself the opportunity for betterment. This is a non-sequitur. Someone taking a stance against gambling doesn't mean they are problem gamblers. > Bad at school? It's a mental disorder. It goes without saying that not everyone who is bad at school has a mental disorder, but having a mental disorder can obviously have an adverse effect on performance at school. If you google for "Correlation between mental disorders and school marks" you can find some studies that seem to indicate that there is a correlation[0]. > Gambling addiction? It's a bug in the brain. Everybody else is responsible for one's woes What else would you call it? It has a negative expected value yet I've meet otherwise very smart people who gamble far more than they can afford desperate to make money. Doesn't remove responsibility, but why should we as a society be expected to accommodate businesses that hurt individuals? [0] http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814001876 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814...