Sunday, August 16, 2015

It is an illusion to believe that you can be happy when no one else is. Or that other people will not be affected by your unhappiness.

--- Tor Nørretranders, in Altruismhttps://edge.org/response-detail/25500

A few excerpts:

What needs to go away is the basic idea behind the concept of altruism: the idea that there is a conflict of interest between helping yourself and helping others.
The starting point is neither selfishness nor altruism, but the state of being bound together. It is an illusion to believe that you can be happy when no one else is. Or that other people will not be affected by your unhappiness.
Therefore a simple rules applies: Everyone feels better when you are well. You feel better when everyone is well.