Do unto others as they would have done unto them. Takes the ethnocemtrism, religious centristism etc. out. Very easy to be very offensive/demaeaning by treating someone the way you want to be treated.
Step back a bit and be less specific, and it works better.
For example “I’d like to be greeted with a warm handshake and a friendly hello, so that’s how I’ll treat everyone” isn’t appropriate for all cultures. The general concepts of respect and courtesy, however, are universal. That’s how I’ve always interpreted “do unto others”.
I’d like to provide a helpful explanation, but I don’t know how to explain it more clearly than I already have. Hopefully someone will leave a comment that phrases things better.
You can greet everyone including people in foreign countries in your native language because that’show you like being greeted (that is specific and offensive) or you can take it more broadly and greet everyone in their native language because you like to be greeted in yours (that’s less specific and nice).
Some people just seem “immune” to the idea of empathy. I’ve heard pundits half-jokingly talk about the “liberal brain virus”, but sometimes I wonder if it’s actually the other way around: a real mental disorder that makes it difficult or impossible to imagine the perspective of others.
Of course, that’s just a guess based on absolutely nothing. It’s much more likely that some people are just selfish, insensitive pricks. They don’t get to escape responsibility for their behavior.
Add comment