A timely lecture by sociologist Sam Richards for a society where empathy, which I am convinced is the one characteristic that sets us apart from the animals, is in increasingly short supply. As we advance technologically, and perhaps eventually move out towards the stars, we may meet an advanced intelligence of some sort. If and when that day comes, the example Richards poses vis-a-vis the Chinese and the United States is one worth remembering, even as we hope that any species we would meet has developed the empathic consciousness as a society that we have yet to embrace, or even really understand.
Paul Kimball
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