PK: > I’ve noticed this thing quite a lot in American life lately — this sort of > cramped vision of altruism in which it’s considered perfectly acceptable to > support only those causes that are directly good for you and yours. We even > have a tendency to view it as “inauthentic” when people support policies > that aren’t in their self-interest — when a rich man supports higher taxes > on the rich, he’s somehow seen as strange, and probably a hypocrite.
I wish PK hadn't used the word "altruism." Economists typically use the dictionary defnition: >>al·tru·ism (Noun) 1.The belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others. 2.Behavior of an animal that benefits another at its own expense.<< too often elites demand that people make sacrifices using these terms. Instead, we should think in terms of "empathy" or something like that, which doesn't always mean self-sacrifice. -- Jim Devine / "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- Karl, paraphrasing Dante. _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
