I think that we shouldn’t exclusively focus on those in poverty. I think that we should not focus so much on other people suffering. Instead, I think that we should focus on athletic achievements and on the entertainment industry. I want to hear about Adrian Peterson breaking records, about who won the Oscar for Best Leading Actor, about Apple’s new iPhone 8 (or whatever number they are on).

The past week you may have seen the pieces of cardboard hanging from trees around campus, outlining the problems involved with poverty. While some of the statistics may surprise us, a lot of it is nothing new.

Even still, many of us will feel injustice or empathy when confronted with some of these statistics. However natural these feelings are, it does lead me to wonder as a simple philosophy major usually does. Mainly, I question whether we need to shift our focus?  Not from our current lives to those suffering in this world, but shift from our over-focus on the suffering in the world. I wonder if by focusing so strongly on the plight of others we actually bring about negative consequences.

One of the largest, by far, is when we focus so strongly on those who are less well off we create an “us vs. them” mentality, with those suffering versus those not suffering by ignoring any potential virtues people who are in the “well-off” category. 

For example, you can argue that people who are rich should be helping out the poor more, but have you considered that maybe the reason why they are rich is because of their own talents and strengths?

Can anybody deny that Steve Jobs was a tremendous leader and visionary who helped grow one of the most successful businesses ever, that Bill Gates through his own hard work and determination created a tremendous company, or that Mark Zuckerberg revolutionized social media through Facebook?  It has become a common stereotype that all rich businessmen and women, in the “1 percent,” did not inherit their wealth (in wealth transfers as a proportion of wealth has fallen by ten percent in 20 years).

Nonetheless, the fact of the matter is that these people, who are often seen as the “enemy” of the poor, in fact possess numerous qualities that are valuable. To ignore these qualities is to simply ignore reality.

Let’s not forget numerous other “well-off” people who are seen as a potential enemy.Professional athletes are often are criticized for being overpaid and not very useful for the advancement of society.

Let’s hold on a minute, as somebody who played sports throughout all of high school and as somebody who grew up idolizing athletes, I’m sure many people did, felt inspired by their athletic achievements.

When people see a clutch performance in the playoffs, it can be inspiring. It inspires us to be better. We recognize genuine excellence on the part of the athletes. There are so few people who are able to become great in sports because it takes a tremendous amount of discipline, work, and mental toughness.

What about actors and the entertainment industry?  Is not the advancement of the arts incredibly important? Who hasn’t had their mind put at ease by a comedy such as How I Met Your Mother, or somebody who hasn’t been inspired to be a hero by watching Batman or Superman?  Who after watching Breaking Bad, can honestly tell me that this classic Greek tragedy warning us of the dangers of Hubris is not important?  These are incredibly important things.

When we focus so strongly on just the plight of those suffering we lose sight of the virtues that are necessary for the highest human excellences. We lose sight of the greatest battle, the one within ourselves for self-development.

Nobody will improve if we do not improve. We remain stuck in one place. We don’t focus on the development of our own character, or even inquiring into what it means to live well as a person. We stop striving to become better and instead focus all our energies on those who are less fortunate then ourselves. Certainly one can help those less well off, but we must not lose sight of the goal of self-actualization, for to do so would be the most tragic thing of all.