open/close all folders
Anime and Manga
"My concern limits me. He has no limits. I care too much about the consequences of my actions. He doesn't care at all."
— Hiroki Sugimura, Battle Royale
Griffith: I came here to know for certain whether anything will shake my heart. While I stand before you in this new body of flesh... it seems... I am... free.
Guts: You mean after what you did, after all those you betrayed, you don't feel anything?!
Griffith: I'll not betray my dream. That is all.
Guts: You mean after what you did, after all those you betrayed, you don't feel anything?!
Griffith: I'll not betray my dream. That is all.
— Berserk
"How unfortunate. You found (Hinamori). I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to find out like this. I should've chopped her up and hidden the pieces."
— Sosuke Aizen to Toshiro Hitsugaya, Bleach
"So your family got slaughtered. What's the problem here? Think of yourself as lucky, and go back to the way you lived life before. Look at it this way. Being killed by me is the same as encountering a great calamity. You don't need to think so hard about it. Rains, winds, volcano eruptions, earthquakes. Nobody tries to swear revenge on a natural disaster, no matter how many lives it takes."
— Muzan Kibutsuji, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
"Persistent. You're all seriously persistent. And it bores me. It sickens me from the bottom of my heart. Whenever you open your mouth, you only remember that one dumb notion about avenging your parents, kids, or siblings."
— Muzan Kibutsuji, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
Tanjiro: Don't you dare play the victim card after killing and eating scores of people! You evil demon, I'll be the one to behead you!
Zohakuten: Were any of the humans I devoured members of your family?
Tanjiro: ...No.
Zohakuten: Then it has nothing to do with you.
Zohakuten: Were any of the humans I devoured members of your family?
Tanjiro: ...No.
Zohakuten: Then it has nothing to do with you.
Goku: Are billions of lives just disposable toys for you to play with?!
Beerus: But of course they are, Goku. I'm a deity. What's more important: one backwater world, or a battle of gods? It's not even a question.
Beerus: But of course they are, Goku. I'm a deity. What's more important: one backwater world, or a battle of gods? It's not even a question.
"Do you look at insects and worms on the ground and think them foolish? No. Your position is so far above theirs that you cannot feel one way or the other about them, right? That is how I see humankind."
— Father to Ling Yao, Fullmetal Alchemist
Girl: Are my father and little brother dead too?
Hiro Shishigami: Why does that matter? We were talking about One Piece.
Hiro Shishigami: Why does that matter? We were talking about One Piece.
Diavolo: Your rationale intrigues me. Just what were you thinking? I had a great deal of respect for your excellence and devotion to the mission until now. Was your judgment clouded by your promotion to Capo? Or, did your hubris seduce you into thinking you had the power and ability to overtake me?
Bucciarati: Once Trish regains consciousness, I'll be sure to let her know you never existed!
Diavolo: Trish, you say? Why bring her into this dispute? My daughter is of no concern to you and your ilk.
Bucciarati: Demon! You could never understand what's in my heart!
Bucciarati: Once Trish regains consciousness, I'll be sure to let her know you never existed!
Diavolo: Trish, you say? Why bring her into this dispute? My daughter is of no concern to you and your ilk.
Bucciarati: Demon! You could never understand what's in my heart!
Zeppeli: Bastard ... how many lives have you sucked to heal those wounds?
Dio: Do you remember how many breads you have eaten in your life?
Dio: Do you remember how many breads you have eaten in your life?
"Oh really? Is it because they're neutral? That's just not right, now is it? Not when all the others are risking their lives fighting against mankind's enemy."
— Muruta Azrael, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
Migi: My kind are simply feeding to stay alive, and nothing more. It's natural for life forms to eat other life forms. You just find it unpleasant that it's your own kind that is being eaten.
Shinichi: Well, yeah, of course. Human life is a precious thing, isn't it?
Migi: I don't know. I can tell you that I value my own life, although I've never really considered any other life forms to be all that valuable.
Shinichi: Yeah, bet you haven't. 'Cause you seem to be more like an animal or an insect.
Shinichi: Well, yeah, of course. Human life is a precious thing, isn't it?
Migi: I don't know. I can tell you that I value my own life, although I've never really considered any other life forms to be all that valuable.
Shinichi: Yeah, bet you haven't. 'Cause you seem to be more like an animal or an insect.
— Parasytenote
"I have never felt anything in particular. You see, for the longest time now, I haven't been able to distinguish between people and things. To give an example ... to break your arm like this, or to break a glass? Wherein lies the difference to me?"
— Seishirou Sakurazuka, Tokyo Babylon
"Hmph... Put yourself in my shoes. Would you bother yourself with the feelings of insects? It is impossible..."
— Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, One Piece
Fan Works
Leon: Dammit, how could you?! Those were innocent humans! They had nothing to do with this!
Jovian: You speak as if I care.
Jovian: You speak as if I care.
Fang Fang: We may be lesser beings to you, but at least we value a life no matter what it is, something that clearly you, as powerful and ascended as you claim to be, cannot understand.
Hex: It's not that I don't understand. It's just that I couldn't care less.
Hex: It's not that I don't understand. It's just that I couldn't care less.
— Rosario Vampire: Brightest Darkness Act VI
Film — Animation
Orphan #1 (Roc): Hey, what's your story?
Fievel: I'm looking for my family.
Orphan #2 (Pee Wee): Hey, fellas! He's looking for his family.
Orphan #1 (Roc), Orphan #3 (Noodles): [mockingly] He's looking for his family!
Fievel: I'm looking for my family.
Orphan #2 (Pee Wee): Hey, fellas! He's looking for his family.
Orphan #1 (Roc), Orphan #3 (Noodles): [mockingly] He's looking for his family!
Jack: What do you think, bug? Do I wait for the cats to steal the map and then kill them, or do I just kill everybody all at once?
Ethical Bug: Uh you know, I'm starting to think you don't appreciate the value of a life.
Jack: What? No. I mean, I love these guys. [Walks over a bridge of his men to cross, while painfully groaning] Flex the glutes, I need a solid surface.
Ethical Bug: Uh you know, I'm starting to think you don't appreciate the value of a life.
Jack: What? No. I mean, I love these guys. [Walks over a bridge of his men to cross, while painfully groaning] Flex the glutes, I need a solid surface.
"You idiot! That wasn't kindness, it was cunning! She's a Gypsy! Gypsies are not capable of real love! Think boy! Think of your mother..."
Bob Parr: That man out there, he needs help!
Gilbert Huph: Do not change the subject, Bob! We're discussing your attitude!
Bob Parr: He is getting mugged!
Gilbert Huph: Well, let's hope we don't cover him!
Gilbert Huph: Do not change the subject, Bob! We're discussing your attitude!
Bob Parr: He is getting mugged!
Gilbert Huph: Well, let's hope we don't cover him!
Film — Live-Action
Leroy: You ask me and I say you don't even feel sorry for what happened to that little boy.
Rhoda: Why should I feel sorry? It was Claude Daigle who got drowned, not me!
Rhoda: Why should I feel sorry? It was Claude Daigle who got drowned, not me!
N'Jobu: No tears for me, son?
Killmonger: People die every day. That's just part of life around here.
Killmonger: People die every day. That's just part of life around here.
Ego: Who in THE HELL do you think you are?!
Peter: YOU KILLED MY MOTHER!
Ego: I tried so hard to find the form [changes form to David Hasselhoff] that best suited you... and this is the thanks I get? [changes back to his normal avatar] You really need to grow up!
Peter: YOU KILLED MY MOTHER!
Ego: I tried so hard to find the form [changes form to David Hasselhoff] that best suited you... and this is the thanks I get? [changes back to his normal avatar] You really need to grow up!
"If he dies? He dies."
— Ivan Drago, Rocky IV
"Have you finished Charlotte's Web yet? Spoiler alert: she dies at the end. But she leaves a big, creepy egg sac."
— Dr. Ivo Robotnik, Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)
"You don't kill as many people as I have and still sleep like a kitten if you feel shit like 'love'."
— Deadshot, Suicide Squad (2016)
Holly Martins: Have you ever seen any of your victims?
Harry Lime: You know, I never feel comfortable on these sort of things. Victims? Don't be melodramatic. Look down there. Tell me. Would you really feel any pity if one of those... dots... stopped moving forever? If I offered you twenty thousand pounds for every dot that stopped, would you really, old man, tell me to keep my money, or would you calculate how many dots you could afford to spare?
Harry Lime: You know, I never feel comfortable on these sort of things. Victims? Don't be melodramatic. Look down there. Tell me. Would you really feel any pity if one of those... dots... stopped moving forever? If I offered you twenty thousand pounds for every dot that stopped, would you really, old man, tell me to keep my money, or would you calculate how many dots you could afford to spare?
Terence Fletcher: Now... now answer my question. Were you rushing? Or were you dragging? ANSWER!
Andrew Neyman: Rushing... [sheds a Single Tear; Fletcher quickly notices]
Fletcher: Oh my dear god... are you one of those single-teared people? Do I look like a double fucking rainbow to you? You must be upset, are you upset?
Neyman: No... [Neyman tries to wipe his tear]
Fletcher: No, so you don't give a shit about any of this?
Neyman: I do give a sh—
Fletcher: So are you upset? Yes or fucking no.
Neyman: Yes...
Fletcher: You are upset...
Neyman: Yes...
Fletcher: Say it.
Neyman: [mumbling] I'm upset.
Fletcher: Say it so the whole band can hear you.
Neyman: I'm upset...
Fletcher: Louder!
Neyman: I'm upset!
Fletcher: LOUDER!
Neyman: I'm upset!
Fletcher: You are a worthless, friendless, faggot-lipped little piece of shit whose mommy left daddy when she figured out he wasn't Eugene O'Neill and who is now weeping and slobbering all over my drum set like a fucking nine-year-old girl. Now, for the final... FATHER FUCKING time... SAY IT LOUDER!
Neyman: [now red-faced and bawling uncontrollably] I'M UPSET!
Fletcher: Carl. [Carl replaces a crying Neyman on the drums] Start practicing harder, Neyman. "Whiplash"... bar 1-25, big boy tempo. 5, 6, and...
Andrew Neyman: Rushing... [sheds a Single Tear; Fletcher quickly notices]
Fletcher: Oh my dear god... are you one of those single-teared people? Do I look like a double fucking rainbow to you? You must be upset, are you upset?
Neyman: No... [Neyman tries to wipe his tear]
Fletcher: No, so you don't give a shit about any of this?
Neyman: I do give a sh—
Fletcher: So are you upset? Yes or fucking no.
Neyman: Yes...
Fletcher: You are upset...
Neyman: Yes...
Fletcher: Say it.
Neyman: [mumbling] I'm upset.
Fletcher: Say it so the whole band can hear you.
Neyman: I'm upset...
Fletcher: Louder!
Neyman: I'm upset!
Fletcher: LOUDER!
Neyman: I'm upset!
Fletcher: You are a worthless, friendless, faggot-lipped little piece of shit whose mommy left daddy when she figured out he wasn't Eugene O'Neill and who is now weeping and slobbering all over my drum set like a fucking nine-year-old girl. Now, for the final... FATHER FUCKING time... SAY IT LOUDER!
Neyman: [now red-faced and bawling uncontrollably] I'M UPSET!
Fletcher: Carl. [Carl replaces a crying Neyman on the drums] Start practicing harder, Neyman. "Whiplash"... bar 1-25, big boy tempo. 5, 6, and...
— Whiplash
Literature
"I see," she said. "Obviously your host mind is giving you some trouble. I'm sure you are aware that your host body is the biological son of my own host body."
Not a shred of emotion. Not a shred of guilt. It was sitting there, using my mother's body, knowing... knowing, like no one else could possibly know, the agony my mother must be feeling at seeing me.
I nodded. "Yes, Visser."
"You must learn to control your host more completely. My own host is in here creating an awful racket," she said, tapping her head. "But I do not let her weeping and wailing disturb me."
Not a shred of emotion. Not a shred of guilt. It was sitting there, using my mother's body, knowing... knowing, like no one else could possibly know, the agony my mother must be feeling at seeing me.
I nodded. "Yes, Visser."
"You must learn to control your host more completely. My own host is in here creating an awful racket," she said, tapping her head. "But I do not let her weeping and wailing disturb me."
— Animorphs #15: The Escape
Horst: Johannes... please, I'm trying to get this straight. You shot her father dead... in front of her?
Johannes: Yes.
Horst: My God.
Johannes: [frowning in confusion] Hold on. Are you suggesting that she might still be upset about that?
Johannes: Yes.
Horst: My God.
Johannes: [frowning in confusion] Hold on. Are you suggesting that she might still be upset about that?
He picks himself up and looks around. There are ten, maybe a dozen injured. Some quite seriously. The town's one hospital is a small, flimsy affair: no traffic, no violent crime, why would any other provision be necessary? A small emergency room, a burns ward and a cardiac ward, that's all. Anything more chronic would have to be shipped out.
Gordon dusts himself down and steps over a screaming woman. The screeching is annoying him. He wants to get away from it. He sees the sign for the Felicity Casino, and decides he might as well spend his money in there.
He kicks away the injured hand that's clawing at him and skips down the steps.
Gordon dusts himself down and steps over a screaming woman. The screeching is annoying him. He wants to get away from it. He sees the sign for the Felicity Casino, and decides he might as well spend his money in there.
He kicks away the injured hand that's clawing at him and skips down the steps.
— Colony
Dolarhyde felt that Lecter knew the unreality of the people who die to help you in these things — understood that they are not flesh, but light and air and color and quick sounds quickly ended when you change them. That they are more important for the changing, more important than the lives they scrabble after.
Dolarhyde bore screams as a sculptor bears dust from beaten stone.
Dolarhyde bore screams as a sculptor bears dust from beaten stone.
Live-Action TV
Philip Lombard: Oh, all right, Miss Claythorne... if it will make you happy, I am sorry for staring.
Vera Claythorne: Mr. Lombard, I doubt you are sorry for anything.
Lombard: Smart girl.
Vera Claythorne: Mr. Lombard, I doubt you are sorry for anything.
Lombard: Smart girl.
Angel: You set things in motion, play your little games up here in your glass and chrome tower, and people die — innocent people!
Holland Manners: And yet, I just can't seem to care.
Holland Manners: And yet, I just can't seem to care.
— Angel
"When you become a vampire, the demon takes your body, but it doesn't get your soul. That's gone! No conscience, no remorse... it's an easy way to live."
— Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
"My sister puts up a front so the world won't see how vulnerable she is. Me, I put up a front so the world won't see how vulnerable I'm not. I don't care who these fingertips belong to, only what my new friend out there is trying to say.
They make it look so easy, connecting with another human being. It’s like no one told them it's the hardest thing in the whole world."
They make it look so easy, connecting with another human being. It’s like no one told them it's the hardest thing in the whole world."
"Do you know why I'm going to let those people die? It's not a plan; I don't get anything from it. It's just that I don't care. I'm not like you. I don't even want to be like you! I don't and never, ever will CARE!"
— Kazran Sardick, Doctor Who, "A Christmas Carol"
Davros: Those men are scientists! They can help you! Let them live! Have pity!
Dalek: PITY. I HAVE NO UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORD. IT IS NOT REGISTERED IN MY VOCABULARY BANK. EXTERMINATE.
Dalek: PITY. I HAVE NO UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORD. IT IS NOT REGISTERED IN MY VOCABULARY BANK. EXTERMINATE.
The Doctor: First you turn an innocent man into your acolyte, force him to betray his friends and then you do this monstrous thingnote to him!
The Rani: Stop being sentimental. What's happened? Animal matter has been metamorphosed into vegetable matter. So what?
The Rani: Stop being sentimental. What's happened? Animal matter has been metamorphosed into vegetable matter. So what?
"A true hedonist puts pleasure before everything! Before another's pain, before another's life! People are just... animals!"
—Ana Demiachia, Father Brown
Barry: And you just don't care how many lives you destroy trying to get it... how many people you kill?!?
Hunter Zolomon: NO, I DON'T!
Hunter Zolomon: NO, I DON'T!
Hal: Reese, do you know what empathy is?
Reese: No.
Hal: Well, empathy is putting yourself in people's shoes so you can feel what they do. If you hurt someone, empathy makes you hurt as well.
Reese: Then why would you want empathy?
Reese: No.
Hal: Well, empathy is putting yourself in people's shoes so you can feel what they do. If you hurt someone, empathy makes you hurt as well.
Reese: Then why would you want empathy?
— Malcolm in the Middle, "Reese Cooks"
Shaw: I have what's called an Axis II personality disorder.
Drug Dealer: What's that supposed to mean?
Shaw: It means when I kill you and your friends, I'm not gonna really feel anything.
Drug Dealer: What's that supposed to mean?
Shaw: It means when I kill you and your friends, I'm not gonna really feel anything.
John: You said that the victims all took the poison themselves. He makes them take it. Well, maybe he, I dunno, talks to them? Maybe he used the death of her daughter somehow?
Sherlock: Yeah, but that was ages ago! Why would she still be upset? [John stares at him]... Not good?
John: Bit not good, yeah.
Sherlock: Yeah, but that was ages ago! Why would she still be upset? [John stares at him]... Not good?
John: Bit not good, yeah.
— Sherlock, "A Study in Pink"
Sherlock: [watching a grieving family] Look at them. They all care so much. Do you ever wonder if there's something wrong with us?
Mycroft: All lives end. All hearts are broken. Caring is not an advantage, Sherlock.
Mycroft: All lives end. All hearts are broken. Caring is not an advantage, Sherlock.
"This creature was discarded at birth as a poor imitation. He was shown no compassion, no conscience. Therefore, he has none. He knows only one thing: survival."
— The Martian Manhunter on Bizarro-Clark, Smallville
Soulless Sam: So, say you got a soul, and you're on a case, and your brother gets abducted by aliens.
Dean: Yeah, and you do everything you can to get him back!
Sam: Right, you do. But... what about when there are no more leads for the night? I mean, you're supposed to just sit there in the dark and suffer, even when there's nothing that can be done at that moment?
Dean: YES! You sit in the dark and you — you feel the loss.
Sam: Absolutely, but — but couldn't I just do all that and have sex with the hippie chick?
Dean: No!
Sam: It would be in the dark.
Dean: Yeah, and you do everything you can to get him back!
Sam: Right, you do. But... what about when there are no more leads for the night? I mean, you're supposed to just sit there in the dark and suffer, even when there's nothing that can be done at that moment?
Dean: YES! You sit in the dark and you — you feel the loss.
Sam: Absolutely, but — but couldn't I just do all that and have sex with the hippie chick?
Dean: No!
Sam: It would be in the dark.
Music
"I can make a difference
I can change the world
But I have made my choice
I could help the helpless
Become a force for justice
But I don't really care"
I can change the world
But I have made my choice
I could help the helpless
Become a force for justice
But I don't really care"
—Lesbian Bed Death, "I Use My Powers for Evil"
Podcasts
"She's an innocent, precious, delightful, trustworthy, honest, hardworking, dependable, sensuous woman, and I am murdering her."
— Corin Deeth III, Kakos Industries
Tabletop Games
Becoming a Brute requires dissociation. The slasher must stop thinking of people as people. They are merely objects to be torn up. They might make funny noises, they might speak to the Brute and seem almost like he is, but they are creatures that are fundamentally "other," as far as he is concerned. The degree to which this notion has taken hold in the mind of a Brute is a good litmus test for how close to becoming a Mask he is.
— Hunter: The Vigil: Slasher
Judging by the "soulless Technocrat" stereotype, one might think this Flaw is actually a Merit. Hardly. Much as the Union prizes efficiency and reliability, most Technocrats still treasure a bit of humanity. If you've got any, it doesn't show; you could order the slow torture of a baby as casually as you could order a soda, then listen to the screams without flinching. Even your fellow Technocrats find you creepy. Consequently, most comrades avoid you and Control keeps a very close watch over your activities. People this cold tend to wind up among the Fallen, and your superiors already consider you a flight risk.
— The Icy flaw, Mage: The Ascension — Guide to the Technocracy
Video Games
Mr. Freeze: Do you know what it is to love someone? To really love them?
Hugo Strange: No.
Hugo Strange: No.
[Dwarf] does not have feelings of emotional attachment and has never felt even a moment's connection with another being.
Athena: As we speak, the war for Olympus rages on and mankind suffers.
Kratos: Let them suffer. The death of Zeus is all that matters.
Kratos: Let them suffer. The death of Zeus is all that matters.
Poison Ivy: I make the world a better place.
Batman: People are dying, Pamela.
Poison Ivy: Exactly.
Batman: People are dying, Pamela.
Poison Ivy: Exactly.
Wonder Woman: After all this time, Kal?
Superman: Maybe this has gone too far...
Wonder Woman: Words of weakness.
Superman: Maybe this has gone too far...
Wonder Woman: Words of weakness.
Viridi: Your disregard for life is just astounding. Could you be any more callous?
Hades: Well, I could try.
Hades: Well, I could try.
"Very good. You don't miss a thing. I can not feel...sorrow...No matter what misery befalls the worlds. No matter what you think, what you feel, or how you exist."
— Xemnas, Kingdom Hearts II
Noob Saibot: You have no family?
Skarlet: Yes. I am an orphan, Bi-Han.
Noob Saibot: Then who will mourn you?
Skarlet: Yes. I am an orphan, Bi-Han.
Noob Saibot: Then who will mourn you?
Shao Kahn: You burn with guilt, don't you?
Raiden: For the pain I have caused others, yes.
Shao Kahn: Compassion is for fools!
Raiden: For the pain I have caused others, yes.
Shao Kahn: Compassion is for fools!
Alex Mercer: This... source, it's the key to genetics, but it's also a machine churning out the worst viruses ever seen, things that — if they got out of the lab — could literally erase human civilization as we know it.
Interviewer: And how did that make you feel?
Alex Mercer: I wasn't paid to feel.
Interviewer: And how did that make you feel?
Alex Mercer: I wasn't paid to feel.
"Mission accomplished. The survival rate was 4% and valuable human resources were lost, but that is war. The mission objective takes priority over everything else. Holding to that principle is why I have never failed a mission."
"It's cute how you went out of your way to learn this insignificant woman's fate. Piece of advice: a bleeding heart can only weigh you down."
— Kirsten Geary, The Secret World
"Empathy will always be the downfall of the Cooper Clan."
— Clockwerk, Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
"If you’re experiencing explosive decompression, please try to avoid staining the seat cushions. Those things are expensive!"
— Dr. Eggman PA announcement, Sonic Colors
"Finally, with the energy collected from the Extractor, I can rule the world! Pity about the damage done down there, but there's still enough left for me to conquer."
— Dr. Eggman, Sonic Lost World
"Still your tongue, Blumiere... Can't you see you've been duped by a dirty human? You have brought shame to my name... and to the entire Tribe of Darkness!"
— Blumiere's father, Super Paper Mario
"I would like to spend some time today to talk about the value of human life. There is no value to human life. Now that I have your attention..."
— General Marder, Titanfall 2
"Where's the pipe? Looks like that guy's giant head is in the way. Possibly the result of poor local management. Out with the old, in with the new. That's what I always say."
"These must be the robots that built this factory. I thought they had all been torn apart and scrapped for parts years ago. Oh look! There's one left. It's so cute! But the pipe is right behind his head. Well... you can't stop progress."
— The Sign Painter, World of Goo
Pneuma: Don't you feel anything? Father's sadness, the world he longed for!
Malos: How could I? That isn't my role in this world.
Malos: How could I? That isn't my role in this world.
Visual Novels
Mom: I know moving schools can be hard
Nicole: And if I cared, it absolutely would be. But Mom, I figured out that if you just don't engage with other people's emotions or desires, nothing's a burden.
Mom: Excuse me?
Nicole: Like I'll put it like this... ...Anytime a guy asks for my company, asks me out, asks for anything... and I make decisions entirely for myself, not concerned for their feelings, there's no stress.
Mom: Honey, that sounds a little mean-spirited, don't you think?
Nicole: Yeah well, what's the alternative? Being used to do shit? People, especially men, are the perfect pawns when you don't give a fuck about them or whatever they want.
Nicole: And if I cared, it absolutely would be. But Mom, I figured out that if you just don't engage with other people's emotions or desires, nothing's a burden.
Mom: Excuse me?
Nicole: Like I'll put it like this... ...Anytime a guy asks for my company, asks me out, asks for anything... and I make decisions entirely for myself, not concerned for their feelings, there's no stress.
Mom: Honey, that sounds a little mean-spirited, don't you think?
Nicole: Yeah well, what's the alternative? Being used to do shit? People, especially men, are the perfect pawns when you don't give a fuck about them or whatever they want.
Webcomics
Vriska Serket: Oh pleeeeeeeease. I hardly think I'm a 8ad person for failing to give a shit a8out a 8illion meaningless dead Nepetas, do you?!
Sollux Captor: n0, y0u're n0t a bad pers0n f0r THAT PARTICULAR reas0n, I guess.
Sollux Captor: n0, y0u're n0t a bad pers0n f0r THAT PARTICULAR reas0n, I guess.
"Can't you empathize with how little I care about your suffering?"
Prosecution: Mr. Kornada performed these malicious acts with full knowledge that he was circumnavigating barriers that otherwise would have stopped him.
Blunt: Objection. Mr. Kornada. Does not possess. The levels of empathy. Necessary. To be malicious.
Mayor: Sustained.
Blunt: Objection. Mr. Kornada. Does not possess. The levels of empathy. Necessary. To be malicious.
Mayor: Sustained.
— Freefall
"Hello, Mr. Kornada. I'm calling to follow up on your recent ethics test. You were asked the classic trolley car problem. You said that you would redirect the trolley to hit one person rather than hitting five. It was your reason for doing so that disturbed us. 'It would do less damage to the trolley car.' Yes, you are correct, but I really think you're missing the point here."
Web Original
"Marcy, your father died a week ago. Get over it, and get on the high dive."
— Coach Ball Brownstein, Swim Coach from Hell
"And at this point, you're probably asking, 'Oh my god, Alpharad, do you feel bad for what you're doing to your friends?' And like... [chuckles] ...No, this just feels like I'm playing a game of The Sims."
Cell: So... Are we cool?
Android 16: You ate my family.
Cell: Don't lose your head. They were my family too.
Android 16: You ate my family.
Cell: Don't lose your head. They were my family too.
"[LaHaye and Jenkins] are like a commuter who sees on the morning news that a school bus has exploded on the expressway, killing all 37 children on board, and whose only reaction is, 'That's gonna slow down my commute.'"
— Fred Clark on Left Behind, Slacktivist
"What I lack in compassion I make up for in lack of compassion."
"[Regent] knew he should feel bad for the dork, but he only felt annoyed. He felt worse about the fact that he didn't feel bad than he did about what he'd just read."
— Worm, Interlude 10
"You can command someone to take the action of empathizing, which means the attempt is there. But you require the capability to empathize to even be magically compelled to do so."
— Critical Role, after Caduceus uses a Command spell to force Trent Ikithon to empathize with him.
Western Animation
"The Joker doesn't care about anyone but himself. He never has, and he never will."
— Batman to Harley Quinn, The Batman
"What I like about Cindy is that she has so much less compassion than other girls."
— Riley Freeman, The Boondocks, "The Fundraiser"
"Wait a minute! Listening to other people's nightmares is my worst nightmare!"
Race Bannon: Doesn't it bother you that millions will die?
Jeremiah Surd: Does it bother me when I step on ants crossing the sidewalk?
Bannon: How'd you get so twisted?
Jeremiah Surd: Does it bother me when I step on ants crossing the sidewalk?
Bannon: How'd you get so twisted?
— Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures, "Escape to Questworld"
Daffy: I've told you peons a thousand times not to starve on my property! It lowers the value!
Unnamed mouse: [while on his knees and having taken off his hat] Please accept our humblest apologies Señor el Grande, we had no wish to offend—
Daffy: [whips the mouse] Speak when you're spoken to!
Unnamed mouse: [while on his knees and having taken off his hat] Please accept our humblest apologies Señor el Grande, we had no wish to offend—
Daffy: [whips the mouse] Speak when you're spoken to!
— Looney Tunes, "Assault and Peppered"
Robin: So, why did you do it? For money? Status? Those dark powers?
Slade: Not everything is so cut-and-dry, Robin.
Robin: Selling out our world for your own personal gain seems pretty cut-and-dry to me.
Slade: With or without me, there was no stopping this.
Robin: But you played a part. And just like everything else you've ever done, it's made people suffer.
Slade: It's what I do best.
Slade: Not everything is so cut-and-dry, Robin.
Robin: Selling out our world for your own personal gain seems pretty cut-and-dry to me.
Slade: With or without me, there was no stopping this.
Robin: But you played a part. And just like everything else you've ever done, it's made people suffer.
Slade: It's what I do best.
Spike: [to Tom after he picks up and pokes at Jerry] Ah leave the poor kid alone, huh? Can't you see he's got the springtime blues? [...] He's lonely for a girl mouse.
Jerry: [sighs sadly]
Tom: [looks at Jerry, then laughs]
Jerry: [sighs sadly]
Tom: [looks at Jerry, then laughs]
— The Tom and Jerry Show (2014), "Frown and Country"
Optimus Prime: I thought you hated being part organic. Why did you do the same thing to Wasp?
Blackarachnia: Isn’t it obvious? If I could change him back, then I can change myself.
Optimus Prime: And what if he goes offline in the process, like you almost did?!
Blackarachnia: Well, that’s the price of science, isn’t it?
Blackarachnia: Isn’t it obvious? If I could change him back, then I can change myself.
Optimus Prime: And what if he goes offline in the process, like you almost did?!
Blackarachnia: Well, that’s the price of science, isn’t it?
Real Life
"I would... talk to her about that and get her mind off of the, uh, anything she was nervous about. And think, you know, she thinks, oh, this guy cares, and which I, I didn't. I just wanted to, uh, get her in the vehicle and eventually kill her."
— Gary Ridgway, The Green River Killer
