Worldwide Stew

The Obligations of Witnessing

Many years ago, I worked in a little religious school. One of the children could barely speak. She had many siblings. She came to school with bruises. One day she accidentally fell out of the car. I told the principal that we should report the situation. I was told that it wasn’t our business and that reporting them to government authorities wasn’t right. I still anonymously reported them. My employment ended soon thereafter. I guess suspicion that I had called Child Protective Services was enough.

Why can't we be friends?

If canines and apes can cooperate, why can’t humans?

The excellent documentary, Inside the Mind of a Dog on Netflix makes the case that dogs relate to humans because they are creatures that value cooperation. In fact, this was a surprising evolutionary development. The dogs we have come to know, value, and love, have done so as a result of their desire to cooperate. They long for connection and cooperation.