A call for compassion is a call for balance. Surely there is a place for self-interest, but without the countervailing forces of cooperation and compassion we get nowhere. People used to talk of enlightened self-interest. Now we are surrounded by technology that isolates us and an advertising culture that continually tells us what we deserve to have. No one asks what responsibility we have to other people. What compassion we do have is limited to the tribe or group we swear allegiance to. We need a larger conception of who belongs under the democratic tent. Surely it is large enough to offer shelter to all of us.
Rex,
Thanks as always for a thought provoking column. It’s refreshing to hear what government could be as opposed to the dysfunctional system we have now.
Great piece from your pen or keyboard
A call for compassion is a call for balance. Surely there is a place for self-interest, but without the countervailing forces of cooperation and compassion we get nowhere. People used to talk of enlightened self-interest. Now we are surrounded by technology that isolates us and an advertising culture that continually tells us what we deserve to have. No one asks what responsibility we have to other people. What compassion we do have is limited to the tribe or group we swear allegiance to. We need a larger conception of who belongs under the democratic tent. Surely it is large enough to offer shelter to all of us.