I think the most important force that drives humans is self-interest. No, not saying this is the only factor, but this is the top one, it is the way humans have evolved, part of the genetic make up, and end of the day, Darwin compels. And that altruism, philanthrophy and others of its ilk are indulged in because they are associated in some manner with a positive stroke. Also, the mind or brain – will not get into semantics- has a limited capacity to absorb information and process it. So we tend to classify, focus, sort and drop information that is not totally key to staying alive. To the extent that information that is dissonant with what we believe (or we like to think we believe, fine line there) we tend to drop or overlook. If we didn’t, we couldn’t function. There are hardware analogies.

There was a study sometime back that measured the emotional responses to situations where 2-3 people were involved, say in an accident; as versus a mass tragedy. The findings consistently showed that singular accidents tend to earn more empathy/ sympathy cookie points so to speak, as versus incidents where masses were involved, with the cut off at about five people. The brain just cannot grasp the enormity of a tsunami or a Darfur. On the other hand, a patient with cancer or a single child kidnapped, anyone can identify with. Maybe mirroring also plays a role here, in your mind you put yourself in that situation. I think there are people with higher empathy thresholds. As also trained professionals- doctors, social workers- with higher thresholds. But at best this can be only baseline incremental. No, a Mother Teresa or Gandhiji don’t fit into this grid,and I don’t know why.


Yes, Shiv, desensitization is one reason. If we weren’t, we couldn’t function, and it is happening too often to register, let alone prompt a shock reaction.
I am not so sure about seeking for a reason to live when we know we eventually have to go (I’m being polite ha). If you remember that tale about Yudhishthir and the yaksha, the secret which everyone knows and no one admits to is his own mortality, this is the greatest con job of all.

Mystic- yes, it is enormous and it is a tragedy but it is way too huge to draw a visceral response. A single mother with a starving child, yes; but a town full of mothers? That’s way too many. If copper or oil or similar is involved, aid will reach, that’s understandable without going into a value judgement, there is something in it for the countries lending a helping hand. Sometimes I wonder if there were no horror stories, no breaking news what would journalists write?

Disclaimer: half baked thinking, provincial and not linear at all, read at own risk.