I’m off to college next year. It’s
time to start figuring out what kind of life I want to lead. Do I want to live
my life altruistically and make as big an impact on the world as humanly
possible? Or should my primary goal be to forge a career path for myself and simply
to live a happy, ethical life?
Would I rather be off in some failed
state or be working comfortably in a Manhattan high-rise? Yes, those are
extreme and unlikely examples. But they’re both hypothetically possible for
someone with my set of interests. I recognize that the answer will, in all
likelihood, lie somewhere in between.
This should be a forum for me to do my
own thinking, and I hope you’ll keep checking back for the ride. It should be
interesting.
Ancient religious doctrines from ahimsa to zakat speak to the value of altruistic behavior. Machiavelli said infamously
that all men are essentially self-interested and evil; zoologists have observed
altruistic behavior in the animal kingdom; psychological egoists hold that we
give merely for our own self-gain, even if only for that small “reward” we feel
when we place a one-dollar bill in a donation jar or hold a door open for a
stranger. A surprising number of people take a stance on altruism as it relates
to human behavior.
Some have argued that it’s best to
just embrace self-interest. If everyone acts in their own self-interest, it is
best for the system. The Scottish economist Adam Smith wrote of an “invisible
hand” that would enable the forces of self-interest in a free market to benefit
all of society; the concept of realism in international relations is little
more than a nerdy glorification of self-interest.
So as far as this blog goes, topics
will run the gamut from my personal observations to international news, but it
will all be viewed through a lens of altruism versus self-interest. Some topics will be light-hearted and some
will be a little more weighty. (I have a hunch that a wildly amusing YouTube
video entitled “MUST WATCH -- ALTRUISTIC CATS! (Part 3/7)” will be more readily
available than one on psychology of self-interest as it pertains to
international relations theory.) But if it doesn’t interest me, I won’t waste
your time with it.
