The Nuclear Warhead Named Empathy

According to Geezer Butler, Bill Ward, Tony Iommi, and Ozzy Osbourne, we must show the world that love is still alive. You must be brave.

You know, the guys from Black Sabbath, a band that made music that is menacing, haunting, and scary in a time when everyone else was singing about peace and love. Sure, they believed in peace and love too, but like this newsletter, they liked to deliver the message with a dark aesthetic. They are credited with being the first Heavy Metal band. Yes, a lot of the music has themes of horror, religion, drug abuse, the apocalypse, and other uncomfortable themes.

But what does that lyric above mean? What does Black Sabbath have to do with this? Let’s dive right in.

The Tie in

Recently, I had a Facebook interaction with an acquaintance who is for lack of a better term - a dude bro. He does Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he’s a bigtime poster of libertarian content, but now he’s full blown on the Trump train. He posted about a news article, bashing the person who was perceived as the victim, in a manner that was over the top. To where I questioned why I should even give this the time of day. But I chimed in anyway, since it had been up for a while, with no interaction from anyone that knows him.

I asked him what his opinion of empathy was.

He didn’t know what empathy meant.

Upon telling him what it means, and telling him that someday, he or someone close to him may be in a time of need, where it would make sense for others to act in an empathetic manner towards him.

He then said that empathy was stupid and it wasn’t for him. As if it was some kind of new food fad or a new singer that all the Gen Zers are into.

As I shook my head in pity, I wanted to tell him that empathy is the name of the game. Always has been, always will be. It is a major component to any variation of “Love Thy Neighbor.” But I didn’t because, according to Dale Carnegie, a person convinced against their will is of the same opinion still. I did not respond, and let the interaction fade into nothing.

Now, about Black Sabbath. Some of their heaviest songs were about empathy. For the human race, for one another. For the fear that we all fear in dealing with existential crises brought to us by each other, such as nuclear annihilation, or polluting the planet past the point of no return, war, etc.

They were not celebrating those subject, rather warning of them. When those songs were written, the world was in the post WWII nuclear age, with the USSR rattling its sabre, and the Vietnam war in full swing. Sometimes, they wrote the songs from the point of view of the antagonist. Like a masterfully written piece where you know the main character is in the wrong.

Was Facebook dude bro shitting all over what it means to have compassion for others? That’s what it looked like. If he were to do a deep dive into Black Sabbath lyrics, would he find them to be “stupid”? Who gives a fuck.

Never Sleep On Empathy

People like this are a dime a dozen. With opinions you can wipe your ass with many times over. But just because they may be against something that we all need every now and then doesn’t mean you should ever turn your back on it. Wanna know why?

1. Empathy allows you to tap into other people’s emotions, minus the tinfoil hat. It’s like a cheat code for human interaction.

2. It’s a bulletproof vest for your relationships. The difference between “I feel you” and “I couldn’t give a damn about you.

3. It is a shortcut to success. If business revolves around relationships, and empathy helps keep your relationships running smoothly, do the math.

Don’t EVER sleep on empathy. It is NOT stupid. It is a necessary piece for everyone’s personality so you don’t become a hated asshole. If you want to grow your empathy muscles, check out content by Gary Vaynerchuk, Jeffrey Gitomer, and of course Chris Voss.