I had a good conversation with my brother-in-law last night after his delightful serving of his Spaghetti a la Michael along with a pleasant bottle of Merlot.
Michael is a very experienced clinical psychologist who also does evaluations of criminal defendants for the courts. He evaluates the people who will be appearing in court and offers his professional opinion on such matters as compatency, suicidal tendancies, etc.
Many of those evaluations are for people who are "unable to care for themselves" but who still have the legal rights to a fair trial. Michael says he experiences Cognitive Dissonance in doing this work. He wants the work because it supports his business, but he still harbors some resentment that some people are unfairly taking advantage of the system (my words, not his).
Wikipedia says Cognitive Dissonance is an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding conflicting ideas simultaneously.
Michael also suggested that some of my feelings about trying to explain my concerns about the future of our society to people who don't seem to care or are in a state of denial are related to the same kind of problem. I have a concern if it really makes any difference and if I should really care. At times I just don't want to give a damn.
I need to think more on this aspect of doing things for people who don't seem to care.Should I even bother?
sam
