2019-02-02 Individualism
Empathy Cafe: Bridging Political Divides with Empathy Circles
Everyone invited, open to all. We divide into smaller breakout rooms and Empathy Circles.
Date: Saturday, February 2, 2019 at 10 AM – 12 PM PT
(See time converter for your time zone)
Topic: Individualism versus Collectivism
Location: Zoom Meeting Room URL: https://zoom.us/j/9896109339
Click on the link to enter the Zoom video conferencing room.
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VIDEO
(VIEW: Video on YouTube and on Facebook
(VIEW: Video on YouTube and on Facebook
Thank you everyone for coming today and expressing your thoughts openly and honestly.
So, I... thank you everyone for coming today and um, expressing your thoughts openly and honestly. I felt that was wonderful. And, um, I really enjoyed, um hearing everyone’s thoughts about uh, the different societies and decision-making. It’s always one of my favorite topics. And I’m glad that this structure provided a way for everyone to be heard um, by different people.
― Evan
I think it was an interesting circle.
I think it was an interesting circle. I’m gonna use my time, I just, there’s a couple things I want to respond to… .you know, I really felt a need to respond to.
First was, Evan said, I think Evan’s confusing empathy with sympathy, that you can empathize with someone and still not care, so to speak. Because, I can listen to someone and repeat it back, but if I don’t think it’s a good idea, I just don’t think it’s a good idea.
So there’s that. And also, I think my view, to kind of sum up a lot of this...one thing I like about our constitution….the way it's set up, it’s set up so we have the right to the pursuit of happiness. It doesn’t say we have the right to happiness. There’s a difference.
― David
I love, you know, having people from other countries and other perspectives, and uh, I had a really good time.
Um, well I really enjoyed everybody and I feel that I’m making progress as I just kinda do this as a habit. And I just, I enjoyed really hearing everybody. I love, you know, having people from other countries and other perspectives, and uh, I had a really good time. I only wish for, you know, sometimes I mean the technical, you know, issues would be the one where I would say that. But, I kinda feel it’s kinda like the growing pains. It kind gives seasoning to the whole experience. So I had a good time, thank you all.
― Bill
It’s gotta be somehow, um, some motivation to stay in the game. And I kinda have it, but I’m looking to increase that.
Um, I… I’m kind of having a hard time with these circles lately. Like, at first I was sort of looking forward to them and lately I’ve been kind of dreading them and not going out of my way to do it ...if I haven’t you know, committed. And I’m wanting to find a way... I think there’s kind of two things going on there.
One is like, just that we’re you know, getting in to some tougher things. We’re not just talking on the surface like when we started out about just the meta-issue of dialogue, we’re actually getting into other things.
And the other thing is that maybe I need to find some way to kinda make it personally sustainable for me and I’m not sure what that is. Because its, you know, if it turns into a thing that I am dreading then I’m not gonna do it and if other people... It’s gotta be somehow, um, some motivation to stay in the game. And I kinda have it but I’m looking to increase that.
― Meagan
today I feel kind of lack of, again, lack of right-wing perspective on what we talking.
Well it’s my second meeting uh, talking with you together in the empathy circle in public and I regret uh, that my language skills are not good enough and sometimes I lose some meaning of what you saying, I regret that. Unfortunately it's impossible to understand everything you saying.
That’s one thing; it’s very personal. But, well, today I feel kind of lack of, again, lack of right-wing perspective on what we talking. I feel like, only David was showing this kind of right-wing perspective and it's not enough when, uh, in the last, uh, statement Meagan expressed her feelings, and I would be interested what would David say.
Well, I know we do not cross-talk, we try to, we try the empathic listening, but still I would like to hear his point of view on what she said. And the third thing, I feel the need to talk what we actually mean by right, left, by socialist or conservatism. I think... I’m from a communistic country, post-communistic country. And I was actually adult when the system collapsed. I was acting in this country when it was still a communistic country and I feel that we sometimes talk about different things. We mean different things by right, left, and maybe it's a good idea to talk about that, to listen to each other: what we actually mean by that. Left, right, communistic, conservative, supremacist - what is it?
― Carolina
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