I recall a dialogue with a social worker in which I was mercilessly critical. It may be a personal bias, but I just feel that they are living a lie or at least portraying one. The general assumption or the image portrayed by social work is that it is conducive for making our society more livable, or that it helps the ones they counsel, I feel is totally unfounded.

When counselling prisoners of otherwise, often what is taught is goal setting, long term planning and assessment of pros and cons and of consequences. The clients are taught to think before acting, taught to reason and to be rational in their decision making.

And I question, what do these people know about reason or rationality when they often exhibit to know little about the world and macroeconomics? Teaching their clients to assess situations and react to situations based on institutionalized values, authorized standards of good and bad is beneficial to their clients? Maybe, since they will not commit crimes, will not go against the grain of society, will not get themselves into trouble with the authorities.

But what do they hope to change? Reproducing the culture and its supporting modes of thought and behaviour will not change the imperfect system, it will only serve to reinforce strengthen it. These people may very well be propagating the system that put their clients in their custody in the first place. But they have everything to gain; everything from a neverending supply of clients, to their their continued relevance and of course, their regular pay checks.

But sometimes, I feel that in their ignorance, or their microscopic views, they forget that our duty, first and foremost, is towards humanity, not to the state, not to the nation, and not even to the institution that feeeds you.