I am a trial lawyer that handles personal injury cases. The outcome for my clients is determined by what a jury determines is fair. I try to make the jury feel things so they can empathize with my clients injury or loss of a loved one. My adversary (insurance defense lawyer) attempts to speak to the juror's "lizard brain" (brain stem where we are concerned with survival) so they will not empathize with the plaintiff. This is done by implying that by giving the victim money, they are some how injuring themselves. Higher taxes, higher insurance premiums, high cost to do business, more expensive goods, etc. The message being “for your own survival, you need to turn your back on the victim and treat them harshly in order to save yourself.” The verdict will turn on who told a better story. I suspect that because the reptiles have no capacity for empathy, it (empathy) is actually a higher form of intelligence. An emotional intelligence, if you will. That said, I find the ability to set aside emotions and do harsh things to other people tends to exist among people we would judge as being selfish. A lack of empathy comes from the “what’s in it for me?” crowd. That has been my experience having handled well over 1,000 cases over the past 38 years in litigation. Thanks for your even handed article on such an important topic.