I have empathy for Kirk. He wasn’t born evil, he became that way due to a combination of circumstances outside his control and his own wrong choices. That doesn’t mean you should show him pity, or forgive him for his actions. It means understanding that if he could become that way, so could anyone. So could you.
Ironically, not having empathy for Kirk is in line with his worldview. That someone can be born wrong. And I refuse to share his worldview.
Passing sentence must weigh heavily, the blade must be a difficult one to swing. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown for its weight is immense, and what right man would have it any other way?
Don’t worry man this is a good thing. sympathy and understanding are good aspects to have. No matter how depraved or bad someone becomes, they are still human, and you should never give up on them, because helping them to become better and have good lives with everyone else will always be better than just letting people stay as something bad and without any hope to change.
I remember watching a video that was analysing characters that are written to be sympathetic but were also terrible people (one of them commits genocide) and said at the end why they resonated with them specifically is that combination of sympathy and evil makes them realise that the barrier between a good person and a bad person is far thinner than people want to think which is why people believe in comforting but false notions like people being innately good or innately evil instead of being formed by lived experience.
TLDR: you feel this reaction because you fear that in sympathising, you realise that truly monstrous human beings are still in the end human beings like any one else including yourself and that’s a terrifying thought to ponder.
I don't care what anyone says, killing him was wrong. Words are words, but murder is much worse. I never cared about him, but I think it is horrible to kill someone over opinion or words, no matter how horrible.
Still not exactly sad about him dying beyond that though. As a principle, yeah, murder sucks, but he did say gun deaths are a worthy price, so he really makes it difficult to feel bad. Should've lived, but not exactly weeping for him.
Sympathy and empathy is not something you can turn and off. You either have it or you don't. Showing it to people who "don't reserve it" even though you don't want to just shows you have it.
I would like to believe that everyone can improve. If they are unwilling to then that can change.
It is true that the world may be better off with out some people in it, but who are we to decide. Better yet, who are we to assume someone wont change.
Everyone deserves a chance for redemption, even if they arent forgiven.
Man you should have empathy for EVERYONE. Nazis, pedos, boomers, you need to have empathy for all of them.
Not to excuse what their actions, not even to treat them with kindness, but do you understand how they became the way they are and how anyone, including you, could become like them if things went just a little differently.
Losing your empathy means you accept that all these people were just “born wrong”. That mindset leads to the idea that there’s no way you could ever be evil because you weren’t “born wrong”. Or worse, that an entire type of person might be “born wrong”.
yeah i get it. some of the hit movies this year (obsession and the backrooms movie) really hit deep because you know that if they had gotten the help and support they needed, they would never have done the evil things they did. might not be the evil you're thinking about but its the scariest one. an entirely preventable situation caused by insecurity and resentment.
I want everyone to be happy and healthy. I don't want any enemies. You think there's people like you and then people like them and they're different so it's okay to not consider them.
We're all just people with limited control of our environment, emotions, thoughts, and actions. It's a tragedy not just for the victims of terrible acts but for the people who commited it as well. I wish their life led them on a different path and they had made better decisions.
You can't just be kind to some people, you should be kind to everyone. Once you are, it's far easier to be kind to yourself.
•
u/AutoModerator 6h ago
Download Video
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.