Published: Thursday, November 4, 2010
A hundred years ago, my rationale for the above statement would have been that two human beings must ‘socialize’ before a third can come into existence. But this is not true anymore.
Thanks to modern technology, all you need now is a technologically advanced healthcare system with understanding administrators who appreciate a person’s need to have a child even if they lacked the ability to naturally bring that child into existence by socializing with another adult.
Whether you believe in God, evolution or both, our deteriorating ability to connect to each other is an issue that pertains to you. The fact that, naturally, a human is the product of two individuals socializing with each other reinforces the concept that no human can exist in isolation from others.
People, therefore, merit our care and attention. We are all, whether we choose to be or not, responsible for the welfare of humanity. This is called collective responsibility.
The “Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy” states that the notion of collective responsibility, like that of personal responsibility and shared responsibility, refers to both the causal responsibility of moral agents for harm in the world and the blameworthiness that we ascribe to them for having caused such harm. In simpler terms, all people are ultimately responsible for what goes on in the lives of others.
The problem with the above description is that it poses a threat to our inner self-satisfaction. It is, we have learned to believe, easier to live with the mentality of ‘every man for himself.’ We abide by this decree because it seems more appealing to believe that we are responsible only for ourselves and maybe, if we were feeling really generous, for our immediate family.
None of us wants to believe that the old man begging on the street is our responsibility because if we thought of him as our responsibility then we might have to go out of our way to help him, something we find ourselves better off without.
Yes, it is natural human tendency to avoid stress by deflecting responsibility on somebody else, whether that somebody is the government, the healthcare system, the educational system or the rest of the world. Anything works for us as long as we can sleep at night without having to worry about others.
“They are grown ups, they can deal with it” is often the first thought that comes to our minds when we see an adult struggling with a serious problem. Unfortunately, that thought speaks our sad life story. We grew up in a society that constantly told us to be independent, to be strong, and not to wait for someone to help you; you are on your own.
I recently read a book called “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” in which the author presented an argument with which I disagree. He dedicated several pages solely to the explanation of the limitations created by centering one’s values and morals on a singular aspect of life such as money, pleasure, work or religion.
The author concludes that chapter by explaining that we should be principle-centered people, basing our attitudes and behaviors on moral values such as integrity and honesty.
While the author is not entirely wrong, his writing diminishes the importance of family values in celebration of the ever-worshipped value of independence, which we wrongly consider to be the source of happiness.
Conversely, social research has proven that our widespread belief in the direct relationship between independence and happiness deserves revisiting. The Gallup Organization released data last July showing that among all the nations of the world, residents of Denmark are the happiest.
You may be wondering if Denmark hosts delightful weather or if it’s a wealthy country, but the truth is that Denmark falls behind the United States on both measures. What, then, makes the Danes’ lives so enjoyable?
The people of Denmark are happy because they share a sense of responsibility for others which is complemented by the satisfaction of knowing that other individuals in society will be there to take care of them shall the need arise. Denmark is not a socialist state, but it does have socialist welfare programs such as a free school system, free medical care, income support and unemployment benefits.
The US, on the other hand, is one of the most capitalistic countries of our world, where money is seen as salvation and every individual is responsible for his own salvation; if he fails, rest assured, nobody will save him.
While material wealth is grand, society, community and family are grander concepts that no amount of money can buy.
Yes, even in the 21st Century it is still crucial for us to feel part of a family, to feel integrated in society, because the human being is a social animal, not a lone one.
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