Empathyists and Operationalists

Whether we lean Yin or Yang, we need both.

This is the final shot from the 1980 movie, “Resurrection.” In this moving scene, Edna Mae McCauley (played by Ellen Burstyn of “The Exorcist” fame) hugs a young boy who is dying of cancer. This film, for which Burstyn was nominated for Best Actress by the Academy Awards and Golden Globes, includes many scenes that are deeply moving. Even the most heartless of cynics would be moved by some of the scenes—especially this scene, in which a woman with healing powers secretly provides the gift of healing to a child who expects to live no longer than a few more months.

Originally written in February of 2020. Seems pertinent to the times.

"Operationalists and Empathyists "

Operationalists and Empathyists need to start respecting what each brings to the situation insight-wise.

I think this framing is helpful.

We don’t have to caricaturize Operationalists as uncaring bigots or dismiss Empathyists as emotionally manipulative hysterics. There may be wisdom in each point of view.

The emphasis that goes into political affiliations on the individual level is more related to specific access to wisdom and insights into the nature of things, which is something that many of us are reluctant to consider, but it's something we should consider because it could help to relieve us of the idea that the social sphere is a cynical, selfish non-kind place.

What if that *bad* person we resent is actually operating and/or empathizing not out of a desperate need to use stealthy conceptual tactics to outmaneuver us, but from a perspective that is sincerely able to *see into* (insight) the issue, situation, policy, or circumstance we are all sincerely looking into with the genuine intent to discover solutions?

Operational concerns are not hateful.

And empathy is not fake.

Both are needed, and neither need be taken off the table.

This harrowing scene from the 1998 film, “Deep Impact” depicts the moment of hard decision-making that a ship’s captain must make in situations in which the rescue of a crew member would mean the death of all other crew members. In this moment, we see the understandable horror and anger of one of the crew members at the thought of abandoning a “man overboard” who would spend the rest of his moments floating in space beyond all hope of return. At one point the captain (played by Robert Duvall) simply says in a gentle yet firm way, “it’s okay…. it’s okay.” The operational considerations had to supercede the empathy oriented considerations.

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Still....

It also helps to be on the lookout for sociopathic manipulations and Machiavellian tactics by those who might use ideas around nuance, liminality and the principles of balance and common ground to gain the upper hand as somehow above it all.

And still, the greater threat to getting good things done for the greater good and to moving the needle towards reality-based and ethically based solutions to real problems is our reluctance to be self-disciplined in resisting the strong magnetic pull towards the either-or and us-against-them options.

It's painful and sometimes boring to be aware of the full dimensionality of our perceived adversaries and to act with restraint.

But the benefits and outcomes—even the unrecorded and un-applauded ones—might be well worth it.

This clip contains the full final scene leading up to the moment when Edna Mae offers a healing hug to the dying boy.