Summary

The article emphasizes that compassion is essential to address the societal issues we face, including loneliness, loss of empathy, and various global crises.

Abstract

The article "Compassion is the Key to Repairing What’s Broken in our Society" argues that the lack of compassion and human connection is at the root of many societal problems, including the epidemic of loneliness, increasing narcissism, and a general disregard for the well-being of others and the planet. It suggests that building bridges of compassion through in-person interactions, strengthening social infrastructure, and implementing pro-connection policies can help combat these issues. The author highlights the importance of recognizing our shared humanity and letting go of prejudices to foster a culture of connection and empathy. The article also provides personal-level tips for cultivating compassion, such as speaking with kindness, listening without judgment, and helping others, which can collectively lead to a more compassionate society that actively works to heal the world.

Opinions

The author believes that society is facing a crisis of disconnection and lack of empathy, exacerbated by the overuse of technology and social media.
There is a critical need for society to prioritize in-person connections over virtual ones to foster genuine relationships and understanding.
The article suggests that societal issues such as climate change, war, poverty, and systemic racism can be better addressed through collective compassion and action.
The author posits that the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the issue of loneliness, making it more urgent to rebuild meaningful connections.
According to the author, showing compassion is not only beneficial for others but also enriches the lives of those who practice it.
The article implies that individual actions, such as offering help and expressing gratitude, can contribute significantly to societal change.
The author advocates for policy changes and social programs that encourage community engagement and support.
There is an underlying belief that humanity's survival is interdependent, and that compassion is key to our collective well-being and survival.

Compassion is the Key to Repairing What’s Broken in our Society

Being nice to people has become a lost value, and it’s killing us

Human beings need each other to survive. And yet, we are consistently destroying each other and the world we live in. We are facing multiple crises of epic proportions, and instead of coming together to solve them, we are tuning out and sitting in front of the TV, pretending that nothing’s wrong.

We are like ostriches with our heads stuck in the sand.

The thing is, though, ignoring a problem doesn’t make it go away. People deny climate change all the time, but that isn’t reducing its impacts.

There is war in Ukraine, the world is stricken with poverty, homelessness and starvation. Education is in crisis with a teacher shortage, book banning, and people striving to force false history to be taught in schools. We are facing systemic poverty and racism. There is a shortage of healthcare, child abuse is rampant, and we live in a patriarchal rape-culture.

But perhaps, the epidemic of loneliness is the most telling of our true situation.

The truth is, people are losing empathy, narcissism is increasing, and we can’t be bothered to care enough about each other or the earth enough to change things.

Build bridges of compassion

As a society, we need to be building bridges instead of walls. We need to connect in person more often, instead of just virtually. It is problematic to connect online because people often put forward a fake persona on social media often just shows a highlight reel instead of a true picture of people’s lives.

We need to find a way to bring people together in society so that we can recognize our similarities more than our differences. We need to learn to let go of prejudices that separate us and come together in our shared humanity.

Some of the suggestions that are being offered to combat the Epidemic of Loneliness, according to NPR, are:

Strengthening social infrastructure, which includes things like parks and libraries as well as public programs.
Enacting pro-connection public policies at every level of government, including things like accessible public transportation or paid family leave.
Mobilizing the health sector to address the medical needs that stem from loneliness.
Reforming digital environments to “critically evaluate our relationship with technology.”
Deepening our knowledge through more robust research into the issue.
Cultivating a culture of connection.

The longer we disengage from each other as a culture, the harder it will be to come together again. We had to isolate ourselves during the pandemic, but now we need to come out of hiding and build meaningful connections again.

It can be frightening to think about opening our hearts to other people, especially if they seem very different from ourselves. However, as we learn to show compassion and kindness to others, it benefits not just them but us as well. And it benefits society most of all.

Very Well Mind has some tips for becoming more compassionate on a personal level:

Speak with kindness
Apologize when you’ve made a mistake
Listen carefully and without judgment
Encourage other people
Offer to help someone with a task
Be happy for someone else’s success
Accept people for who they are
Forgive people for making mistakes
Show respect
Express gratitude and appreciation
Be patient

As we learn to become more compassionate individuals, we can build a more compassionate society as well. We can share resources with those who are most in need of our help such as those suffering from starvation, poverty and homelessness. The more we learn to care about others, the more we help them, we learn to heal the world.

We need to come together to heal the pain of those that are suffering, and to heal a world that we are destroying with global warming.

The fact of the situation is that we need each other to survive. People can’t survive alone in a vacuum. We rely on each other to meet our basic needs for food, water, shelter, medical care, and more. We need people in specialized professions to be able to maintain our quality of life.

For all we don’t care about each other, we need each other quite a lot. We need to make a change, we need to start to care, before it’s too late.

We either save each other, or we destroy each other. It is up to each of us to choose which way we want it to go. To make things better, we all need to step up and do better.