Of shoes and walking

I took part in a press conference today aimed at urging Congress to pass a clean extension of unemployment benefits. The theme of the event, and of similar events around the country, was "Walk in my shoes" and among the people who spoke was an unemployed electrician.

It occurred to me that the theme of walking in the shoes of other people fits pretty well. It's a basic matter of empathy, which aside from being a basic human trait also seems to be found in the animal world. Back in the 18th century, philosophers like Adam Smith and David Hume argued that the real basis of morality lay in the emotions. Smith's book on the subject was titled The Theory of Moral Sentiments.

As chance would have it, this week I picked up a new book at the library titled The Science of Evil: On Empathy and the Origins of Cruelty by Simon Baron-Cohen (cousin of Sacha of Borat fame). Unlike other books on the subject, this one zooms in on the brain. I haven't got through the book yet, but I think he argues that the root of  human cruelty and evil is a breakdown of empathy....which unfortunately seems to be pretty popular these days.

SPEAKING OF MORALS AND ECONOMIC MATTERS, check this out.

MINE SAFETY AND DISTRACTIONS. Here's a good blog post from Ken Ward at Coal Tattoo on Governor Tomblin's mine safety bill, which is more about drug testing.

AN ALZHEIMER'S BREAKTHROUGH? Maybe.

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