{"id":181,"date":"2011-03-22T10:15:00","date_gmt":"2011-03-22T10:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction\/"},"modified":"2012-09-26T00:41:42","modified_gmt":"2012-09-26T04:41:42","slug":"the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html","title":{"rendered":"The Trap of Numbness and Self-Satisfaction"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

I\u2019ve still been thinking about some of the questions we\u2019ve been picking over in the discussion of David Brook\u2019s new book<\/a> and attempts to alter personality\/moral character through pharmacology<\/a>. \u00a0I\u2019m sure some of my friends are delighted to find that there are transhumanist ideas I\u2019m uncomfortable with, and I\u2019ve been trying to nail down why.<\/p>\n

To refresh your memory, Tristyn asked:<\/p>\n

What if there was a drug that made you kinder, more charitable, more forgiving? Let\u2019s say even that it has some negative side effects\u2013 how about all the side effects of amphetamines, drugs commonly prescribed to treat psychology\/behavior (as opposed to the way, say, morphine treats the body, or even how antibiotics treat infections\u2013 hopefully the distinction I\u2019m making is clear?).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Most pharmacological intervention works by dampening your reactions to something. \u00a0Neurotransmitter analogues compete for receptors with whatever your body is producing naturally, so the signal is muted, or a cocktail of synthetic\u00a0signalers outcompetes your body\u2019s natural response. \u00a0I don\u2019t want the information that informs my moral choices to be suppressed for the sake of my\u00a0temperament.<\/p>\n

If I respond with anger\/frustration when I should respond with charity and love, that response is data that I can and should make use of. \u00a0Always, a fair amount of the fault is mine and needs to be mended. \u00a0But we\u2019ve all known people who seem to actively frustrate our help, who can be hard to love in a crisis. \u00a0Imagining that the only problem is my<\/em> reaction to their intransigence leads me back towards the selfish, prideful, goal-oriented approach to ethics that I still struggle with<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This time last year, when I had agreed to try prayer during Lent, I couldn\u2019t wrap my mind around the idea of praying for other people to change or improve<\/a>. \u00a0Asking for them to behave better was equivalent, in my mind, to conceding defeat and seeking a coward\u2019s way out of my own moral struggles. \u00a0My job was to behave well no matter the provocation, and their flaws did not constitute excuses for my failings. \u00a0I didn\u2019t stop to think that other people might experience their own disagreeable traits as a burden they wished they could shed, just as I wished I could let go of my impatience and lack of compassion.<\/p>\n

When I fail to treat people with charity, the culpability lies with me. \u00a0But, if I want to serve my friend, I can\u2019t focus only on my own faults. \u00a0If I shrink back from some burden my friend is carrying, the ultimate goal is to help her set it down, not just to overcome my\u00a0instincts\u00a0and be less stingy with my kindness.<\/p>\n

The pharmacological approach would blind me to my friend\u2019s struggle and need. \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve still been thinking about some of the questions we\u2019ve been picking over in the discussion of David Brook\u2019s new book and attempts to alter personality\/moral character through pharmacology. \u00a0I\u2019m sure some of my friends are delighted to find that there are transhumanist ideas I\u2019m uncomfortable with, and I\u2019ve been trying to nail down why. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[73,135,132,18],"class_list":["post-181","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-morality-in-practice","tag-kantianism","tag-may-i-kill-it","tag-pride","tag-transhumanism"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Trap of Numbness and Self-Satisfaction<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I've still been thinking about some of the questions we've been picking over in the discussion of David Brook's new book and attempts to alter\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Trap of Numbness and Self-Satisfaction\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I've still been thinking about some of the questions we've been picking over in the discussion of David Brook's new book and attempts to alter\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Unequally Yoked\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-03-22T10:15:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2012-09-26T04:41:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/-6byZTQ6JWAs\/TYhukHJze6I\/AAAAAAAABV4\/HJqmYCePMqg\/s320\/2_sw_large.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leah Libresco\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leah Libresco\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html\",\"name\":\"The Trap of Numbness and Self-Satisfaction\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2011-03-22T10:15:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2012-09-26T04:41:42+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/#\/schema\/person\/17ee17592b35b40040d5f5f7ea5ab464\"},\"description\":\"I've still been thinking about some of the questions we've been picking over in the discussion of David Brook's new book and attempts to alter\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/2011\/03\/the-trap-of-numbness-and-self-satisfaction.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Trap of Numbness and Self-Satisfaction\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/\",\"name\":\"Unequally Yoked\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/#\/schema\/person\/17ee17592b35b40040d5f5f7ea5ab464\",\"name\":\"Leah Libresco\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unequallyyoked\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/20e1e6a3a94c4e7928687804a41d888d?s=96&d=mm&r=r\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/20e1e6a3a94c4e7928687804a41d888d?s=96&d=mm&r=r\",\"caption\":\"Leah Libresco\"},\"description\":\"Leah is the author of Arriving at Amen and Building the Benedict Option. 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