| NJ5 said: I don't have a problem with helping people, but I would expect them to help themselves. When you have resource-starved countries where the population multiplies like rabbits and keeps destroying its environment, that makes it harder for me to care about helping. No matter how much I help, certain places are on a path to destruction and "helping" only delays the problem and makes it bigger. Now there's already talk of taking Haitians off their island into other nations. They will most likely be a burden on society and government finances in the countries they move to (as if gov finances everywhere in the West aren't already strained enough). BTW this comes from someone who often donates to charity. I just find it hard to justify going the extra mile to help societies destroy themselves and spread their problems to other places. We propagate like yeast and then don't want to suffer the consequences of this uncontrolled and unsustainable expansion. |
Well although I agree with that first point as well, does everyone in this world have the means to help themselves? Or should this world be so self-centered that everyone is on their own? As a child, people helped me. As a young adult people help me. Why should I be the only one to enjoy help from others which I return to them. I don't have the means to do everything myself, and I live in America, so why should I expect the rest of the world to do it as well.
If we live in a world that continuously puts themselves in front of the whole, then of course it'll be easy to just say they should be able to do it themselves. But that's just a false representaiton of those who make that argument. They have plenty of people helping them in their lives. To deprive others of that same love and care is a logical contradiction.
I help myself on a daily basis and I try to help others on a daily basis. I think being under a capitalist society, like mine in America, we have a problem with understanding the concept of "doing something good for the sake of the act". It's actually surprising the American Christian society can't grasp that, considering their entire philosophy is completely taken from Nichomachean ethics written by Aristotle. He said doing virtuous acts required that it come from an unchangeable person, that person knows they are doing it, and they are doing it for the sake of the act. Essentiallyl doing the right thing because it is the right thing. In modern society, everything is dont for the sake of getting something in return. Why can't that return be the love of humanity, protection of our planet, or justice itself. Something more than just piece of paper or materialistic goods.
This isn't direct as a criticism of you, just giving an argument against the idea of doing something for the sake of something other than what you are doing which would go against the idea that "they should be able to help themselves". It just doens't seem a good enough argument to state that they should be able to help themselves when indeed everyone needs help.
