BuckSaver: While I suspect that in general women tend to be more altruistic than are men, the author might have delved further into the socio-economic correlates of compassion People born outside of Canada and those with lower household incomes are less likely to face the higher taxes required to furnish the benefits associated with granting further "unique" rights and privileges to aboriginal Canadians. Sometimes self-interest is just self-interest rather than representing some kind of deeper moral failure.