After the Second World War, American psychologist Gustave Gilbert did extensive studies on the Nazis to discover how they could have committed such mass atrocities such as genocide. He conducted hundreds of interviews with captured Nazis. Gilbert utilized Rorschach tests, intelligence tests, thematic appreciation tests among many other methods to study the pathology of the Nazis.
The results of his study was varied and complex. But one factor seemed consistent in all his case studies...lack of empathy. Every Nazi, ex-Nazi or Nazi sympathizer demonstrated a terrifying, yet predictable, lack of empathy for their fellow human beings.
This is not really surprising. Lack of empathy is evident in all acts of cruelty. Dis-association is what allowed European invaders landing in the Americas in the name of their religion to massacre, enslave and decimate millions of Native Americans. Lack of empathy is evident in the horrific treatment and enslavement of Africans. This disconnect of humanity is evident in our current immigration policy and American foreign policy regarding Gaza, Ukraine and elsewhere.
Lack of empathy was once seen as disturbing, a psychosis. But now, more and more in the political and philosophical right are saying empathy is a weakness. Lack of empathy is not just a problem of the right. Historically, the extreme left under Stalin, Mao, Che and many others have also shown the cruelty that comes when empathy is de-valued.
In late February, Elon Musk, perhaps the richest man who has ever lived said, “The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy, the empathy exploit.” This is a man who is one of the top advisors of our current administration and widely admired by hundreds of thousands of Americans. Musk stated that "civilizational suicidal empathy" will destroy American society.
Last week, Musk's rival in obscene wealth accumulation, Jeff Bezos, decried "work-life balance." Bezos recently stated in an interview that "work-life balance" is a "debilitating phrase" because it implies a trade-off. He prefers to use the term "work-life harmony" and that work and life should be a circle. If one is happy at work then they will be happy at home.
This sounds great on the surface. But this statement show the vastness of the dis-connect of a multi-billionaire and the working class. I am personally fortunate to have a job that brings me a lot of fulfillment and that I enjoy. But even in my position as a teacher I have to guard my personal time fiercely. Many of my fellow teachers suffer burnout because their personal time is not respected by their supervising principals, students, student parents, fellow coaches etc. In fact, many of my colleagues consider it a badge of honor how many hours they put in at work and look down on those that don't put in the same amount of time. Yet, they wonder why they have family issues at home, why their spouse isn't happy and why their kids act out at home or school.
Bezos's lack of empathy is demonstrated by the fact he doesn't understand that for the majority of working humans their job exists only to pay the bills and buy food. It is a sad reality that millions of people do not have the luxury to work in a job that provides personal satisfaction. Many just don't have that option. Yes, it is ideal to try to find some happiness regardless the employment situation but sometimes you just have a job to pay the rent.
Coming from a billionaire who's own company has come under scrutiny for work-place abuses shows a complete lack of empathy for the struggles of those just trying to make it day by day. I'm sure it's a message that resonates with those who might spend $6000 for a ticket to a TED Talk. But for the single-parent working a double shift at a fast food restaurant to feed their kids, his advice rings hollow.
Regardless of your feelings toward the current President of the United States most would think empathy is pretty low on his list of qualities. In fact, I have heard many conservatives and evangelicals say they wanted a fighter in The White House not a moralist. This, of course, is ironic since they used morality as a reason to criticize past presidents. The current President, supposedly a billionaire, born into wealth, has shown an arrogant and hateful lack of empathy on a daily basis.
My point? I see greater and greater lack of empathy everywhere I look: the way people treat others at wal-mart, aggressive driving on the roads, bullying in the hallways, "casual" racism and automatically assuming the worst in people. It's easy to fall prey to these attitudes and when these attitudes are celebrated by our political and economic elites then of course they will trickle down to the masses.
I fear this lack of empathy is leading us down a dangerous and destructive path. We have seen what happened in the past when empathy was devalued, mocked and seen as weakness. Millions paid dearly with their lives and entire societies collapsed.
This is Holy Week for the Christian faith. The outstanding characteristic I see in the life of Christ is extreme and unbounded empathy and love for all: foreigners, the oppressed, the marginalized, those who hated Him including those who executed Him. Unfortunately, many who claim Christ as savior seem to have missed this, both in history and in the present day. They take His Name in vain those who profess they believe yet hate their neighbor.
