Most of the Problems We Run Into

Most of the problems
we end up facing
arise at the exact spot where we think, "it's no big deal."

But because everyone's sense of what counts as "no big deal"
differs in scale and scope,
problems end up happening.

Since each of us has lived a different life,
you can't forcibly draw a line between right and wrong here.

Maybe it's really a matter of dignity and self-respect.
This is grounded in the idea that each person's life is dignified, and that subjective judgment, for the sake of one's own survival and comfort, has no choice but to be based on one's own best-possible rationality.

There is no
wrong
person,
only a different one.

That difference can
cancel the other out,
or seek coexistence.

Looking at human history, the process
is tepid and painfully slow, but
seeking coexistence is ultimately the mainstream conclusion
because it's advantageous.

Except there's a difference
between what's advantageous for all humans
and what's advantageous for those already sitting in the chairs.

So I guess that's why we have the word "deep-rooted evil"
- that's what you might think,
but no.

They are diligent. More meticulous than ordinary folks.
Of course, the result their methods produce
might not be reasonable by the standards of ordinary people.

There's a saying: "the ones who already have take even more."
If you can sympathize with that phrase,
then the reason they hoard and extort so much - you may not be able to empathize, but I think it's worth trying to understand.

They crave recognition.
The competition between their parents, siblings, relatives' children, is more fierce than we imagine.
They even get compared with the children of their parents or relatives who work in their family businesses.
They grew up in that environment.

They live inside their own war.

If they want to let go of their possessions,
we ought to respect that decision.

If either side pushes unilaterally,
there's no conclusion other than violence.

And that fight won't end with just me.
Children and grandchildren... a tail-to-nose chain of resentment.

Empathy, and respect for difference,
have appeared in human history for less than 100 years.
It's hard.
It's hard. But we just need to acknowledge that and keep trying, don't we?