It also can explain our moral attachments to those we see as members of our immediate tribe.

We need the humanities only if we are committed to the idea of humanity.

It did not, because our bond is based not just on common threats, but on shared ideals.

I grew up in Kenya, where my compatriots follow the English Premier League zealously, perhaps because of our colonial connection to England.

If we can get under that heavy self, light a torch of awareness, and find our essence, our connection to the infinite and every other living thing.

Here, we express our attachment to the main objective of the peace process the creation of a Palestinian State existing side by side with Israel within fixed and internationally recognized borders.

We need the humanities only if we are committed to the idea of humanity. If the humanities have become obsolete, then it may be that humanity is losing its salience.

When I think about reasons to preserve our transatlantic bond for future generations, I don t think about my security. I think about theirs.

Both empathy and compassion seem to come naturally to humans. But both responses are fragile, and can be quelled or reversed by a large number of factors including the degree to which we identify with the person who is suffering.