[diob]

Speaking as someone who came from a rather colorful childhood of abuse, I'm wondering what your personal past is? You're assuming so much about the lives that folks lead, and to me it speaks of a lack of empathy for the personal struggles each individual is enduring.

Stoicism will fix things in the west? I assume you mean the USA, but as a person in the USA, I have to say that we are about as stoic as you can get. We lean on personal responsibility for every little thing.

"Oh, you went bankrupt from cancer. Why didn't you plan for that? Don't you know around 50% of folks get that?"

"Oh, you went to college for a useless degree? Why didn't you have someone in your life teach you that was a mistake? Why didn't you reject the counselors in public schools who encouraged you down that path?"

"Oh, you eat too much sugar? Why didn't you reject the industry sponsored studies that downplayed their health effects?"

"Oh, you got covid? Why didn't you stay at home? What do you mean you're an essential worker? Why didn't you take care of your health so you weren't predisposed to it?"

It's not stoicism the west needs, but a dire injection of empathy and community.

[merpnderp]

It's not just an argument about stoicism vs empathy, but freedom vs control. How much paternalism do you want from your politicians? How much control over your daily routine do you want to give some barely accountable millionaire legislator/governor/president who's loyalties are only to you based on how many votes their donors can buy (the rate differs greatly depending on the politician). The more effectively money buys their votes, the less they give a crap about you.

[jessaustin]

We need a better word than "paternalism" for "not inclined to use a pandemic as an excuse to give trillions of dollars to the rich".

[Nasrudith]

Stoicism would be helpful because of how common emotional manipulation is as a vector from sociopaths and how those they manipulate wind up /acting/ almost indistinguishable from sociopaths except they don't even remotely serve their own interests. Look at the Covidiots spreading disease because a politician doesn't want to admit the obvious - that they fucked up big time.

Or the long list of fucking stupid moral panics oriented around children from people trying to get reelected and everything "satanic" which ironically enough many children could have told them was just plain dumb. While empathy would be good emotions alone aren't enough as even "a desire to protect one's offspring" may be twisted horrifically. Community I am deeply skeptical of as a value in itself given how often it winds up something deeply toxic and stupid from acting like dumb herd animals. Sure internal investment would be good but given their record community itself can piss off.