{"id":476,"date":"2025-08-29T18:12:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-29T16:12:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.familie-kleinman.nl\/brain\/?p=476"},"modified":"2025-08-29T18:12:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T16:12:18","slug":"complex-ethical-stuff-handle-with-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.familie-kleinman.nl\/brain\/index.php\/2025\/08\/29\/complex-ethical-stuff-handle-with-care\/","title":{"rendered":"Complex Ethical Stuff, handle with care"},"content":{"rendered":"

Grey is wrong, black and white are good (for no apparent reason).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On the upper level, where my CEO Bob resides \u2014 hey Bob! \u2014 there is a critical filing cabinet labeled \u201cComplex Ethical Stuff.\u201d<\/em> The very first file was actually discovered by my Janitor \u2014 hey Roger! \u2014 but he deemed it far too important to keep or thrown in the incinerator. So up it went to Bob, to be handled with care.<\/p>\n

Bob doesn\u2019t get many of these files. Most of my daily life never makes it into this cabinet. But when something does\u2026 it usually means trouble \u2014 and the expenditure of a lot of CPU cycles.<\/p>\n

The cause<\/h2>\n

The first file was handed over to Bob when I was about 16 or 17. That was the first time I became aware of this type of file. Maybe there are older ones, but to be honest, I think those were labeled as kernel panics.<\/p>\n

We had to write an essay that would be peer-reviewed by classmates, and we could choose any subject. At the time, there was quite a lot of nuisance caused by a group of older men near our local library. I decided to write down some of my observations about that in my essay.<\/p>\n

The group of men happened to belong to a particular ethnic background. In my essay, I wrote that it seemed harder for the local police to take action against them, and that a group of Dutch men in the same situation would probably have been treated differently. I tried to explain why, weighing the pros and cons from both sides, and noting the presence of an atmosphere of racism \u2014 something the police were clearly eager to avoid.<\/p>\n

It is over 30 years ago now, and I can still vividly remember how the whole situation unfolded.<\/p>\n

Looking back, I really did my best to be neutral \u2014 to take the gray, nuanced position instead of writing from a black-and-white perspective.<\/p>\n

That essay did not fare well. When I got my peer reviews back, there was one common thread running through them: \u201cI was a racist.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

And just to be clear: that was never my intention. Not then, not now, not ever. I was simply trying to show how complex the situation was \u2014 and that the only right answer would be a nuanced, \u201cgrey\u201d one, rather than black or white.<\/p>\n

And again, to make it clear: this really stung. Even though none of my classmates ever mentioned it again, it haunted me for months. There were many moments during that period when I wanted to stand up and apologize in front of the class.<\/p>\n

The first file<\/h2>\n

This was when my autism kicked in. But instead of a classic kernel panic, some other process started running. For the first time, I noticed the difference between a simple panic and something else entirely \u2014 a new category I would later call \u201cComplex Ethical Stuff.\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

I was on the verge of throwing this file out of the window, but Roger found it. He didn\u2019t toss it into the incinerator either \u2014 instead, he handed it over to Bob. Thank you for that, Roger!<\/p>\n

Somehow \u2014 and definitely not to sound condescending \u2014 I realized that in a nuanced situation it depends entirely on the reader: whether they are wearing a pair of white glasses or a pair of black glasses. And only a very few people will ever read the text for what it really is.<\/p>\n

Then vs now<\/h2>\n

This was true 30 years ago \u2014 and it feels even more true now in 2025. Just take a look at the current political climate. Look at how President Trump views the world: you are either a friend or an enemy. And if you are an enemy, he will do whatever it takes to push you out of his way by any means necessary.<\/p>\n

Or take the rhetoric about the so-called \u201cLeftist Elite.\u201d<\/em> Again, it is black or white. As if the color grey has been completely outlawed.<\/p>\n

And where do I stand? I honestly like the color grey. I\u2019ll take in the view from the \u201cwhite\u201d standpoint, then make a U-turn and look from the \u201cblack\u201d standpoint. But I enjoy being somewhere in between \u2014 where the truth probably resides. That\u2019s where I can think through the pros, the cons, the what-ifs. And yes\u2026 it\u2019s actually fun to burn some CPU cycles on these matters.<\/p>\n

So yes, expect more of these \u201cComplex Ethical Stuff (CES)\u201d<\/em> stories on this blog.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d love to hear your comments.<\/p>\n

Brain out.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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