All of Nic Tea's Comments + Replies

I find this very usefully as a new starting point. I have struggled in the past with allowing myself to book a holiday and feel good about it, buy a drink at a bar etc because I felt guilty about having thee nice experiences when some people do not have basic necessities or the support they need.

I feel I have disconnected from this to some extent/somehow, but I want to get to a place where I can feel happy and also feel like I am helping others to the best of my ability and means.

However, I always have a voice telling me 'I can do more'. For exam... (read more)

this is a struggle I have had- feeling guilt for holidays, buying new clothes, spending money on a drink at a bar. I feel I have become more disengaged from this. But I want to engage with this feeling and come to a happy 'or cheerful' agreement within myself that allow me to enjoy things in life too. There is always MORE we can do. I have savings, and I couldn't really say how much savings I 'need'. therefore I don't know how much I could be donating too others. It is hard to draw the line because so much is unknown about the future.

I totally agree with you about the issue of abstract problems. Many issues are so nebulous and far-reaching that it is so difficult to give a clear overview of the issue, the implications etc. By the time climate change is a concrete threat to the majority of people, it will be too late. There is a lot of focus on short-term rewards, particularly in government but also with human's desires, that make dealing with these problems in an effective way very difficult. I spent a few years in China, and although it is very economically capitalist, the societ... (read more)

The expanding circle of ethics is a a good way to portray our ethics hierarchy that I had not come across before. I see this circle as moving, since some people include all animals, most people would include slaves now. But we do start with those closest to us and move into a wider circle. It is easier for us to help our self, family, community than the wider population, as the latter is more abstract and complicated. Furthermore, by reading this article and comments, it makes me think of part of a Terry Pratchett book where the main character talks of the... (read more)