I think a civil society that I would choose to live in should be constructed as something more than a meritocracy based on intelligence, productivity, net worth, mental or physical health, etc. Otherwise we start to both blame and harm the weak, disadvantaged, or unlucky. While some contribute more than others to society at a given moment, if we are not a compassionate and inclusive and merciful society, then what is the point. After all, any one of us who (think we) are contributing more to society are just a bad accident or serious health issue away from not contributing or even requiring a great deal from society just for our survival.
The concept of protecting the "least among us" is really an advanced application of empathy -- the ability to imagine how others, including our potential future selves, experience life and what they feel about it.
There is also the issue of perspective. My son suffered from something called Schizoid Personality Disorder with various comorbidities such as depression and high functioning autism. He consistently made bad life decisions in certain areas, and would never fully launch and be able to survive without help from yours truly -- and even then he only made it to age 30. But he also would drop everything to help you if you needed it. My wife (his stepmother) had a flat tire on a busy city street near his house; he happened to spot her, and took over the situation and put everything right. He often did a lot of pro bono work for extended family, getting their computers working. He was devoid of self-pity or the need to complain. He had a fantastic sense of humor. He loved good movies and good food. He was a respectful and devoted son who would do anything that I asked him to do, and that he was able to do, and would not ask for help (to a fault) but when offered it, accepted it with genuine appreciation.
On the other hand he never could hold down more than minimum wage crap jobs, had an incredibly messy apartment, and despite our efforts to spruce him up, one could only describe his manner of dress as "slovenly". If you met him on the street you would not think highly of him based on appearance alone. If you were a prospective employer, you would wonder if he was trouble or not. His flat affect did not endear him to anyone. So based on perceived intelligence (though he was in fact extremely bright and intuitive, just not broadly or socially), on appearance and perceived attitude, he wasn't worth a shit. But he was my son and I loved him like any good father loves a good son. Unfortunately he wasn't dysfunctional enough to get all the help he needed from the system, yet not functional enough to thrive. One of the things I hope to see from society is that they do a better job with people like that, not a worse job. We shouldn't be looking for excuses to discard people. We've already emptied out the mental institutions and pushed them out into the streets as it is, over the past couple of generations.
The concept of protecting the "least among us" is really an advanced application of empathy -- the ability to imagine how others, including our potential future selves, experience life and what they feel about it.
There is also the issue of perspective. My son suffered from something called Schizoid Personality Disorder with various comorbidities such as depression and high functioning autism. He consistently made bad life decisions in certain areas, and would never fully launch and be able to survive without help from yours truly -- and even then he only made it to age 30. But he also would drop everything to help you if you needed it. My wife (his stepmother) had a flat tire on a busy city street near his house; he happened to spot her, and took over the situation and put everything right. He often did a lot of pro bono work for extended family, getting their computers working. He was devoid of self-pity or the need to complain. He had a fantastic sense of humor. He loved good movies and good food. He was a respectful and devoted son who would do anything that I asked him to do, and that he was able to do, and would not ask for help (to a fault) but when offered it, accepted it with genuine appreciation.
On the other hand he never could hold down more than minimum wage crap jobs, had an incredibly messy apartment, and despite our efforts to spruce him up, one could only describe his manner of dress as "slovenly". If you met him on the street you would not think highly of him based on appearance alone. If you were a prospective employer, you would wonder if he was trouble or not. His flat affect did not endear him to anyone. So based on perceived intelligence (though he was in fact extremely bright and intuitive, just not broadly or socially), on appearance and perceived attitude, he wasn't worth a shit. But he was my son and I loved him like any good father loves a good son. Unfortunately he wasn't dysfunctional enough to get all the help he needed from the system, yet not functional enough to thrive. One of the things I hope to see from society is that they do a better job with people like that, not a worse job. We shouldn't be looking for excuses to discard people. We've already emptied out the mental institutions and pushed them out into the streets as it is, over the past couple of generations.
