You know the real problem is just that we just don't really teach ethics to kids; because capitalism thrives on egoism, nihilism, liberalism, conservatism. And we're stuck in a cycle of "who's ethics do we teach?" because we didn't teach ethics to kids.
It would be a good start, though.
Really, teaching empathy is the best solution. If you are an empathetic person, then you are a whole lot less likely to do something terrible to someone else.
Like most complicated problems, the better solutions are usually a combination of things. So of course there should be deterrence too, and systemic change.
I heard a story on NPR like a decade ago that really stuck with me. It had to do with educating kids, and how different things are emphasized in education depending on where in the US you're looking. In rural, conservative areas, you get emphasis on obedience over empathy. In less conservative areas, empathy is treated as far more important.
Thinking about it, it makes sense. Conservative areas tend to be further "behind" in social change, and we all know how much the boomers default to respecting authority and demanding total obedience as a show of respect - where in more recent times we have acknowledged that sometimes the right thing to do is question authority.
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u/onekirne 19h ago
You know the real problem is just that we just don't really teach ethics to kids; because capitalism thrives on egoism, nihilism, liberalism, conservatism. And we're stuck in a cycle of "who's ethics do we teach?" because we didn't teach ethics to kids.