MinP

I agree with you, the article was well-written, and dealt very well with some difficult issues. I particularly likely the way it addressed the inadequacies of “hierarchies of compassion” that suggest we should calibrate our empathy to human suffering according to ideas of desert or obligation. Also, its point that empathy is the basis for ethics – a fact suggested also in the occurrence of the "golden rule" in so many religious and ethical traditions.

This variation on an old joke rather sums it up:

http://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/2pa8r9/the_most_successful_lawyer/

Hey guys - thanks for your comments. It's my first oped piece and I plan to do it more regularly so I appreciate the feedback. I'll respond to some of the comments here:

1)Daeron - you wrote:

"You seem to endorse the claim of sovereignty that Indonesia makes, you seem to be willing to accept that Indonesia has a right to kill between 100,000 to half a million people in West Papua, why?"

I am genuinely surprised at this comment. I wrote quite clearly that state sovereignty is not a concept that can trump human rights. I also wrote about the genocide in West Papua specifically to bring attention to it. I said that what is happening there matters and it is being done by an Australian-backed military.

The point I was making is this: because I, and others, empathise with the travesty of killing Myuran and Andrew, it doesn't make us moral hypocrites. Empathy in any case is a good thing, and we should use it to address other, greater injustices in the world. And because you empathise with 100,000-500,000 West Papuans who have been murdered by the Indonesian military, it doesn't make you a moral hypocrite for not instead empathising with greater causes of suffering in the world.

The point here is that anytime we empathise with people in suffering, it is a good thing. And I would hope that people who initially empathised with Myuran and Andrew, would go on and consider other causes of suffering (the horror in West Papua included)

2) Ojnab -

You seem to be criticisng the media for their coverage of Myuran and Andrew. I would object here. Ultimately, Myuran and Andrew represent something bigger. They represent the horror that capital punishment causes period. They represent an argument for rehabilitation and reform in penal systems. The story allows people to connect with the greater issues.

I believe there is a place for statistics etc. in publications. However, I also think that people tend to connect with stories that link to a greater issue. I agree that climate change is one of the world most urgent social justice issues. However, you'll notice that people in general connect far more with individual stories of humans than with barren statistics. If newspapers were to write about people kept in poverty due to climate change, it would probably have a greater effect. Ultimately, publications write about what people are interested in - so you're wrong about people "not caring" about what happened in Bali.

Also, "The writer obviously does not consider the unnecessary deaths through war"... that is completely unfounded. Just because I empathise with two reformed individuals who were taken out and shot, it doesn't mean that detracts from my empathy for others. In fact I would argue the more you get in the habit of empathising with individuals, the greater your capacity for empathy is. Can you produce any evidence that people who cared about what happened to the executed drug traffickers were more likely NOT to care about innocent people killed in war

3) David -

Noted. I didn't mean to include people such as yourself. When I said "we" I was talking about those of us that did empathise with the two condemned men during the coverage. Obviously a significant proportion of people didn't.

4) o sung wu -

This was kind of, funny? What makes you think I won't practice? I worked very hard for my medical degree and I promise if you knew the 90 hour weeks I was putting in (study + working at the restaurant) you would hardly call it extravagent.

I wonder if you also expect a person studying "commerce" to go into the field of commerce, or a person studying law to go on and be a lawyer? Medical degrees are extremely useful. There are many people who use them to go into politics, law, journalism and business. Neither me, nor anybody else studying any degree, has an obligation to you or anybody else with what we do in life.

Also in regards to the comment about the "trendy" burger store - probably the single most disgraceful aspect of humanity today is our treatment of non-human animals. I encourage you to learn about what excessive meat consumption is doing to our environment, our health and of course, to our fellow animals. I also encourage you to consider whether you should eat meat at all. We need to urgently change the way we view animals and I hope Soul Burger will be a brand that brings about some kind of revolution in thinking. I view flexitarianism as a feasible solution to the way we eat today.

FYI - I am practicing medicine next year.

5) Thanks MinP and Rhian for the kind world. I especially feel like you, Rhian, get the article! Empathy is the basis for our morality and we shouldn't make people who empathise with individual causes of suffering feel as though they are moral hypocrites. Empathy, anytime, is a good thing and as a rule, will lead to a better world.

Thanks for the comments guys

I would have been happy to do the job myself. Garbage like those two are better removed before they contaminate their surroundings, or any more people..

If you want to empathise with anyone, do it with the ambulance paramedics who have to try to salvage the drug overdose fools every weekend.

Empathise with the families of those who have lost their kids to the muck garbage like this pair were happy to bring in to the country.

Perhaps you would see things differently if you were treating the victims, rather than feeding them.

Hasbeen, if he starts practicing medicine he will surely get an opportunity to see the other side of the coin and his empathy will change as he matures.
David