Dear Editor,

I spent some time today on the reader forum of a major news website.

The forum relates to a news article regarding the Cholera outbreak in Haiti.

I was shocked more by reader comments than the article itself.

While there was strong representation by those whom I would call “morally intact,” the majority of those commenting felt that either it is all Haiti’s fault somehow, or that the people were not worth saving. I was (and am still) shocked.

How could someone feel, as one reader wrote, that it would be best if Haiti “fell in the ocean”?

Have they not seen the pictures of the children?

We as a people, bombarded by a constant stream of bad news, have become largely emotionally disabled.

That is, we are conditioned to avoid having to feel and get emotionally involved.

It is easier and more efficient (our speed of life insists on high-efficiency) to address issues cold, hard and cognitive, without involving those pesky emotions.

I know that this is not an original postulate, but one still worth mentioning.

For a long time we have heard that robots are becoming more and more like us.

I think that we are becoming more like robots and this is the cardinal concern.

So, what do we do to save our conscience? Move to a commune? That might be cool, but not very practical.

What I suggest is exercise for the soul.

If it works for the body and mind, why not the soul?

A good “workout” might require that you talk to someone who is obviously troubled. Call your mom. Give to a food drive. Open doors for other people. Make a child smile. Pray for peace.

Try and be positive. Be a net giver, not a taker.

Give it a couple of months, and you should be “fit” to the point where these habits come naturally.

It is easy to fall in line and become mechanized. Just don’t do anything; it may happen on its own. The hard part is rising above it all.

The question is simple; will you be man, or machine?

-Mark Estes

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