[quote=CA renter]
We should not conflate the desire to “do the right thing” with empathy.
[/quote]

CA Renter – people wouldn’t consider it “right” if they didn’t have empathy. As I have mentioned earlier, I am on the fence politically. There are conservatives who are like you who find self interest in kind acts performed by liberals. What I can’t understand is the belief, on both sides, that the other side is basically wrong (along with a bunch of other bad qualities). It’s similar to the battle of the sexes I’ve seen played out in other threads. We’re all a lot more alike than most are willing to believe – note the statistic in the article that showed that when religious donations were removed, the two parties contributed equally (I don’t think that applied to blood and volunteer hours). I think a lot of people take pride in not being (a) as closed-minded/intolerant/uncaring as the conservatives or (b) as irresponsible/unmotivated/immoral as the liberals. I think a lot of people need to demonize the other side in order to feel superior. I tend to think bad people (and good people) come in all genders, political affiliations, nationalities and yes, Brian, sizes (among other characteristics).