I make no secret of it that I was *brutally* abused as a child, both physically and sexually. So, when I was in undergrad, I hung around people like me - people from abusive homes who went to college. One of them said something to me that stuck:

"I cannot empathize with people who had happy childhoods."

This is something I have spent my entire adult life fighting against. I do my best to try to empathize with and open up with people who *did* have happy childhoods. What I've found - consistently, and regardless of stated political affiliation - is that there's the following barrier:

"People who are hurt, will hurt other people. Therefore, I refuse to empathize with people who have been hurt. Such people are threats, and they should be crushed."

This idea is weirdly common among people who had perfectly stable and happy childhoods who never struggled to work for anything. I find it to prevail strongly in politics-heavy fields (Academia, HR) but it is usually viewed with disgust in skill-heavy fields (Engineering, Agriculture).

I haven't quite pinned down *what exactly* the common thread is that creates this barrier. However, I must draw the conclusion that I should avoid large groups of people who have such upbringings. I have made the effort, and I find that there is little hope of mutual empathy with people who were not maltreated as children.

Sharing empathy with people who hate you is emotionally painful, and I am going to stop doing it.