Why Do We Laugh At Other People's Distress?

Outside of hunting and other animal instincts, when animals see another animal in distress, they often rush over to help, to provide comfort, sometimes they lick or cuddle, they do what they can to try and make things better.

In this YouTube video [1], adult elephants rush over to help a baby elephant.

Humans on the other hand are a different kind of species. When we see other people (or animals) in distress, we often laugh at them, we think it's funny, entertaining. Fails and pranks are common on YouTube, often captioned with language that reads, check out this hilarious video.

In this YouTube video [2] a father laughs when his son crashes into a tree. The caption: Boy on bike crashes into tree HILARIOUS. That doesn't even make us animals because animals don't do that. It makes us selfish creatures, a strange kind of species.

We have to change from personal selfishness (seeking to benefit ourselves) to mutual bestowal (seeking to benefit others). Are we going to have to learn parenting and relationship skill from animals?
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References:

1. Baby Elephant Falls On Its Back At Zurich Zoo, Adult Elephants Rush Over To Help. www.youtube.com. Retrieved Oct 16, 2014.
2. Father of the Year - Boy on bike crashes into tree HILARIOUS. www.youtube.com. Retrieved Oct 16, 2014.

Copyright © 2014, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.