Subsidizing Anxiety

"As lofty and noble as the concept of empathy may sound, and as well-intentioned as those may be who make it the linchpin idea of their theories of healing, education, or management, societal regression has too often perverted the use of empathy into a disguise for anxiety, a rationalization for the failure to define a position, and a power tool in the hands of the "sensitive"." - Friedman, A Failure of Nerve, p133.

Here Friedman takes a shot at one of the idols of modern therapy - empathetic listening.  It is more important, they say, to make a person feel heard and understood than it is to solve their problem.  A youtube clip went viral to make the same attack.