Dying to Be Kind
The Michael Shermer Show | 26 May 2026 | 1h 30m | Listen Later 
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Podcasts | Spotify
Interview with Gad Saad about his book Suicidal Empathy: Dying to Be Kind. Argues that many Western institutions have learned to treat compassion as a substitute for judgment. In practice, he argues, this can mean extending sympathy toward the wrong targets (for example, criminals over victims), excusing destructive behaviour, rewarding ideological conformity over truth, or denying uncomfortable facts in the name of kindness. The result is a moral framework that feels humane in the moment but can produce outcomes that are unfair, irrational, or even dangerous.