The COVID jerk
By Eric Schwitzgebel
FEBRUARY 3, 2022, 6 AM ET
... Jerks are people who culpably fail to appreciate the intellectual and emotional perspectives of others ...
... They don’t recognize that their preferred opinions might be mistaken. They have no interest in exploring alternative views ... Listening with an open mind is for other people ...
... Strangers and acquaintances are not unique individuals with diverse and worthwhile concerns. Instead, the world swarms with slimy salespeople, dippy party girls, clueless retirees, losers who couldn’t find a real job, illegal aliens, empty suits, cheaters, suckers, sheep ...
... If you’d like to do something that puts others at unusual risk — and what is “unusual” will vary with time and locale — get consent first ...
If you feel comfortable eating at a restaurant or drinking at a bar, that’s your call. Yes, you might catch COVID (perhaps you’ll be seated downwind of Sarah Palin). You might even inadvertently pass the disease to someone else, perhaps a relative. But if you haven’t been a jerk about it — if you’ve been open, rule-compliant, and respectful; if you told Dad how you’ve been living before exposing him to the indirect risk — then that’s bad luck, not an ethical slip ...
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/02/covid-jerk-sarah-palin/621466/