“The fundamental weakness is empathy,” Musk recently told radio podcast host Joe Rogan. “There is a bug, which is the empathy response.”
As Musk has established himself as at least the second most powerful person in an administration seeking a wholesale remaking of institutions, rules and norms, what he said matters, because it encapsulates a political plan. What the Project 2025 report set out in over 900 turgid pages, Musk’s remark captures in a simple pithy mantra for the social media age.
Plenty of conmen and torturers can tell you differently. Whether your soul can bear the burden of your actions is far removed from what you can accomplish with your abilities.
The skill of reading people is different from the skill of feeling their pain. Both are skills, and require practice. Some people are born better at it than others.
As for bearing the burdens of your choices, I agree with you.