The paradoxical 'sin' of selfishness always amuses me, too. If I accuse you of the sin of being selfish, I am only upset because you will not do what I selfishly want you to do. The accusation is inherently hypocritical. Children also seem to understand this concept intuitively until they are "taught" that selfishness - ie acting rationa…
The paradoxical 'sin' of selfishness always amuses me, too. If I accuse you of the sin of being selfish, I am only upset because you will not do what I selfishly want you to do. The accusation is inherently hypocritical. Children also seem to understand this concept intuitively until they are "taught" that selfishness - ie acting rationally in your own self interest - is "bad". Children are intuitively suspicious of a person who seems to want to act against their own self interest.
The paradoxical 'sin' of selfishness always amuses me, too. If I accuse you of the sin of being selfish, I am only upset because you will not do what I selfishly want you to do. The accusation is inherently hypocritical. Children also seem to understand this concept intuitively until they are "taught" that selfishness - ie acting rationally in your own self interest - is "bad". Children are intuitively suspicious of a person who seems to want to act against their own self interest.