So I was at the commencement for Providence College this afternoon (gf's brother graduated) and Ann Curry, an anchor for NBC was the keynote speaker. She gave a nice speech about being a late bloomer and how she was pushed by her mother etc. One part of it stuck out to me and made me think.
She was telling a story about a time she was in the eastern area of the Congo that has been torn apart for decades now. Civil war, massive looting, pillaging and raping. She visited a hospital where an 18 year old girl had been tied to a tree for months, raped until her legs gave out on her and then left for dead. Ann told a touching story about how she held the girls hand and tried to give her hope in this way. Long story short, girl survived and it was Ann's way of segueing into what she really wanted to talk about, empathy.
She said it was our greatest trait as human beings to show empathy and a willingness to help others. She said that those sitting before her in cap and gown should make it a point to try to help others as much as possible in their lifetime because it would make them happy people.
Altruistic bullshit aside, what really got to me was her brazen exploitation of this girl. How could Ann possibly feel empathy for the girls plight? She could have absolutely no way of knowing what it's like to be chained to a tree and raped by dozens of men. How could she possibly even begin to understand what the girl went through. She had no way of sharing the emotional trauma the girl went through because she had no way of relating. Sympathy yes, empathy no.
Oh, and she didn't forget to mention how the election of Obama makes our country less racist
She was telling a story about a time she was in the eastern area of the Congo that has been torn apart for decades now. Civil war, massive looting, pillaging and raping. She visited a hospital where an 18 year old girl had been tied to a tree for months, raped until her legs gave out on her and then left for dead. Ann told a touching story about how she held the girls hand and tried to give her hope in this way. Long story short, girl survived and it was Ann's way of segueing into what she really wanted to talk about, empathy.
She said it was our greatest trait as human beings to show empathy and a willingness to help others. She said that those sitting before her in cap and gown should make it a point to try to help others as much as possible in their lifetime because it would make them happy people.
Altruistic bullshit aside, what really got to me was her brazen exploitation of this girl. How could Ann possibly feel empathy for the girls plight? She could have absolutely no way of knowing what it's like to be chained to a tree and raped by dozens of men. How could she possibly even begin to understand what the girl went through. She had no way of sharing the emotional trauma the girl went through because she had no way of relating. Sympathy yes, empathy no.
Oh, and she didn't forget to mention how the election of Obama makes our country less racist
"Ah, you miserable creatures! You who think that you are so great! You who judge humanity to be so small! You who wish to reform everything! Why don't you reform yourselves? That task would be sufficient enough."
-Frederick Bastiat
-Frederick Bastiat
