my friend Quentin asks in response to "Sustainability and Perspective"

How do you balance "trying to make a difference" with awareness of others and sensitivity to the full impact of one’s actions?

Quentin,There are a few ways I seek this balance.

Firstly, I use my doer’s code.

I am a human scientist and photographer. I live by my doers code. 1: Do something. 2: Do what you enjoy. 3: Do what you are good at or get good at it. 4: Do what makes a difference. 5: Do what is right.

secondly, I ask myself how much I know about the people I am speaking with, how much I have seen them (% of the day/year/semester) this represents how little of their life experience I have shared. usually infinitesimally small in comparison.

Thirdly, I judge my response by the ethics of the child substitute. (a measure I have developed and made my own.) how would my treatment of any other thing, animal, person, community be received if I substitute small children for the object of my actions?

for example: immigration: these children are seeking to escape persecution, death, torture, looking to be educated and be successful. should we close the doors on these children? knowingly leave them to face death, dismemberment, and every violation of freedom? or should we welcome these children with open arms, treat them as our own, provide them with every measure of freedom and success as is necessary to allow them to grow without fear, injustice, and pain.

Scientific Research: mist netting birds: we know these children pass through this area regularly. let’s set up nets to trap them. We can hold them in cloth bags for a while until we can take their blood and weigh them. yes they will scream and struggle for a bit, but when in the bags they will calm down. and when we are done we will let them go to continue their lives. it’s good. wiht this knowledge we can protect many thousands of these children. it’s for science.

Of course this is very simplistic and subjective, emotional and extreme.
For those that disagree, would you prefer, extremes in the pursuit of kindness or to continue to treat all others as if they are not equally worthy of respect as we are?