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There's a larger % of the population that you might expect that have no capability for empathy, let alone anything higher The structure is great for those peop

by slifin 2y ago

There's a larger % of the population that you might expect that have no capability for empathy, let alone anything higher The structure is great for those people because then they can get their needs met without having to deal with ideas they do not understand like trust and mutual reciprocation or long-term relationships the structure is easy to exploit with no morals so we end up disproportionately rewarding these people That's why you can't just expect everyone to be respectful and for it to work

MrMcCall 2y ago
I didn't say I expect anything from anyone, but we all have the choice, with the very rare exception for those that are developmentally disabled and incapable of rationally choosing. For the vast majority of those of us who have the power to think and consult one's conscience, we can and do choose the course of our action. Over time, we can also choose to escape our ignorance and learn the ideals that facilitate humanity in our mostly mammalian body, and then choose to learn how to be better and then actualize being better. Very few of us have anything but a lame-ass excuse, usually falling back on one's cultural upbringing to make excuses for our deliberate, if unthinking, choices. The best "structure", as you put it, is to make empathy a major part of childhood education, teaching that we are all human beings, each differently endowed but worthy of respect to some degree. As well, we have to teach that we have to resist the inner urgings towards selfishness and ignorance in favor of willful action that will the benefit of the whole. But, no, I do not agree that most people cannot learn such a moral framework, and the proof is the simple fact that we are all living in groups, none of us being completely self-sufficient for all our human survival needs, not to mention those things that bring us entertainment and relaxation.
dukeyukey 2y ago
> There's a larger % of the population that you might expect that have no capability for empathy, let alone anything higher And another big % that purposefully surpress empathetic instincts because of other beliefs.
- MrMcCall 2y ago
  Willful ignorance and oppression of others have many causes, none of them anything less than an evil perversion of the life of compassion we should each be choosing to manifest. Such evil is always worse under the guise of religion, because religion is ONLY supposed to lead us to greater compassion for all our neighbors, especially those who are on different paths. We are to light the way forward for others by our own selfless, loving, generous, and kind compassion for others. A particularly tricky bit is that the Paradox of Tolerance requires us to "love" the oppressed differently than their oppressors, which may require what Holmes called "vigorous action" in the defense of the innocent. And it doesn't matter what the oppressor calls themself, because the beliefs and claims of the destructively self-deluded hypocrites carries no weight in the universe's court of truth, which is all there is.

by slifin 2y ago

MrMcCall 2y ago

I didn't say I expect anything from anyone, but we all have the choice, with the very rare exception for those that are developmentally disabled and incapable of rationally choosing. For the vast majority of those of us who have the power to think and consult one's conscience, we can and do choose the course of our action. Over time, we can also choose to escape our ignorance and learn the ideals that facilitate humanity in our mostly mammalian body, and then choose to learn how to be better and then actualize being better. Very few of us have anything but a lame-ass excuse, usually falling back on one's cultural upbringing to make excuses for our deliberate, if unthinking, choices. The best "structure", as you put it, is to make empathy a major part of childhood education, teaching that we are all human beings, each differently endowed but worthy of respect to some degree. As well, we have to teach that we have to resist the inner urgings towards selfishness and ignorance in favor of willful action that will the benefit of the whole. But, no, I do not agree that most people cannot learn such a moral framework, and the proof is the simple fact that we are all living in groups, none of us being completely self-sufficient for all our human survival needs, not to mention those things that bring us entertainment and relaxation.

dukeyukey 2y ago

> There's a larger % of the population that you might expect that have no capability for empathy, let alone anything higher And another big % that purposefully surpress empathetic instincts because of other beliefs.

MrMcCall 2y ago
Willful ignorance and oppression of others have many causes, none of them anything less than an evil perversion of the life of compassion we should each be choosing to manifest. Such evil is always worse under the guise of religion, because religion is ONLY supposed to lead us to greater compassion for all our neighbors, especially those who are on different paths. We are to light the way forward for others by our own selfless, loving, generous, and kind compassion for others. A particularly tricky bit is that the Paradox of Tolerance requires us to "love" the oppressed differently than their oppressors, which may require what Holmes called "vigorous action" in the defense of the innocent. And it doesn't matter what the oppressor calls themself, because the beliefs and claims of the destructively self-deluded hypocrites carries no weight in the universe's court of truth, which is all there is.