me_irl

The lack of it is not a trend, but a consequence of a deliberate effort to keep it that way.

I want to believe capacity for empathy and sympathy (both for good and bad) are inherent to us all (with some exceptions), even if clouded or even manipulated by the lack of critical thinking, which I do consider a skill one has to train (and not related to being smart/intelligent or dumb/stupid).

I believe, if we all had enough critical thinking (I know I don't fully have it, even if it has gotten better with time), we would have been working together for each other instead of fighting and fucking over each other for the benefit of people in positions of power.

So, hoping for an "empathy and critical thinking" trend isn't going to save us the same way hoping for a "cancer suddenly disappears" trend won't save someone with cancer. It is like this by design, not by coincidence, and we must do a deliberate effort to change it.

As suggestions I know of or have heard of:

• Bear in mind others might have gone through shit that made them the way they are right now (different culture, different conditions, trauma, indoctrination, etc.). To realize that no one is inherently evil, but the conditions we are given (our genes + our enviroment) shape us, has helped me stop hating others for their way of being, and instead wonder what led them to be like that. I never became more or less empathethic, I just changed my POV.

• Read and write more to train the brain to take information, process it, and send it in or out, more effectively. And be more mindful of what you do write. (It also helps train the brain against degenerative diseases. Won't stop them, but might still slow them).

• Check facts on more than one source to avoid biases, left-out info, or straight up lies or manipulation. Don't just read headlines and keep scrolling. Helps get a wider view of the world, know what goes on more precisely, and, like reading, trains the brain. (Also, bear in mind some articles are more about giving opinions or uncomplete information, than stating proven facts)

"More people should think more critically"

Monkey's Paw Curls

Everyone gets into fights with you because they're second-guessing every damned little thing

Nobody gets anything done because they're overanalyzing

Nothing actually improves, because nobody's priors changed and they all come up the same conclusions anyway

Heuristics exist for a reason. You're not supposed to be doing deep analysis all the time. It's exhausting and does not reliably improve your life unless you're generating real new useful insights.

If you can't trust anyone else, you can't rely on common wisdom or instinct, and you're constantly in positions to make costly errors because of trick questions, critical thinking isn't going to save you.

I have never heard a person talk about empathy introspectively. Invariably it has been about how someone else needs to be more empathetic, and almost always, the speaker would hypothetically be the beneficiary of this increased empathy.

How do I make a profit from that though?

Modern hot takes always gotta come with a picture of a rando.

The current global trend of fascism and cheap individualism is not spontaneous. It has been promoted with billions of dollars.

People actually subscribe to AI. As such, the likelihood decreases daily.

Well there are currently places where that is indeed a thing. Just not in the USA...

I hope she’s prepared for disappointment

everyone thinks themselves as empathic and thinking critically, in their own mind, it's everyone else that is wrong...

I swear people who talk like this are inadvertently signaling that they are sociopaths

A nice idea but highly unlikely.

I'm skeptical how can i make money off this?

Don't worry guys I'll comment something relevant as soon as I find out what's going on in that picture.

What am I looking at? Is that arm part of that lady's body? Why is she sideways?

Pfff nah I'm flinging my shit like a chimp that lost their mate

Has any of the trends so far required a lot of effort to do?

Narrator: It wasn't.