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by danShumway 1276 days ago
> Peoples morals do not improve, only temporarily

:shrug: Even if this was true, reducing harm and doing more good even in the short-term is a pretty worthwhile goal. Eventually people will slip up, and then they'll have to start again. I mean, I also have to shower every day to stay clean, but I'm not nihilistic about that just because I know I'm going to occasionally miss a few days.

But I also think this is also kind of observably false? I've seen racist/bigoted people become genuinely less bigoted over time. I'm not worried that they're going to suddenly relapse, and even in instances where they still have areas to work on or where they might slip backwards, it's still not really comparable to where they used to be.

> Let's just say that narcissism is the norm nowadays, especially in first world countries.

How does this make sense if people are immutable? Are they being born narcissists because of a new genetic problem? Is it that people's morals can improve or degrade, but only while they're children?

I don't see how you're squaring the idea that people can't change with the idea that society is becoming more narcissistic.

1 comments

> I've seen racist/bigoted people become genuinely less bigoted over time

I've never seen this, and I won't be fooled if I do see it as it will be temporary/circumstantial I think.

> How does this make sense if people are immutable?

We aren't entirely immutable but I find it challenging to draw the exact line.

People can and do become more narcissistic in a pathological sense, you get into contact with such traits from your environment, you eventually contract the decease.

That doesn't mean you can change who you are in any meaningful way, it's just that (even unconsciously) adopting narcissistic traits is now in effect a positive adaptation (higher chances of becoming more "successfull" etc).