Today's quote:
To lead a society, the MM says in his precise Victorian English, "one must understand human nature. I have always thought that humanity was animal-like. The Confucian theory was man could be improved, but I'm not sure he can be. He can be trained, he can be disciplined." 
source: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2010/01/singapore/jacobson-text 

I can't say I'm not bought over by these words. And I'm quite wowed by the stunning honesty of these words. I like honesty.
But I think some humans-- emphasis: some-- constantly rise above the animal-like nature of the rest and they end up being givers and nurturers. Like Mother Teresa and Gandhi, etc.
I believe in the goodness of humans. But I also believe only a special few have the ability to harness this goodness. The rest don't. The rest are kind, yes, but in small ways-- they lapse in between goodness and animal-likeness. That special few like Mother Teresa and Gandhi, they are able to go against societal norms and they are also at least 95% selfless.
I am not saying that just because humanity can be trained and disciplined, he should be trained and disciplined all the time. Nope, that is the is-ought fallacy-- just because something is, doesn't mean it ought to be.