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[–] varialus 1 point 2 points (+3|-1) ago 

Because a certain amount of empathy and sympathy for the suffering of life other than you and your immediate in-group is healthy. Do you literally not care even the slightest smallest amount? Or do you just not care enough for it to measurably influence other priorities that are much more important to you? There's a big difference between the two. Practically speaking it's not a big difference, but morally it's an important difference.

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[–] CapinBoredface [S] 1 point -1 points (+0|-1) ago 

Why does my empathy have to extend to them? For all you know I could already volunteer at shelters and shit.

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[–] varialus 1 point 0 points (+1|-1) ago 

It doesn't have to extend to them, but people, who do have at least a tinsy amount of empathy for all living creatures that can feel pain, will likely view you as a monster if you literally feel nothing for them. That's pretty much the only disadvantage, unless you want to be viewed as a monster by many people. I'm not saying that it should determine whether people view you as a monster, but that's just the way it is.