Denzil McDaniel writes on human nature as we consider current conflicts

As the television cameras panned out to a wide shot, the message on the massive screen in the stadium could be clearly seen, “Please respect the kicker”.

Some chance. The 82,000 capacity crowd booed, jeered and whistled in a cacophony of noise, and all in anger because one of their English players received a Red Card early in the game.

Never mind that every single expert agreed it was a Red Card, and certainly never mind that the challenge had left Ireland player James Ryan lying confused somewhere in a medical room with a serious concussion.

If there ever was any truth to the idea of English fair play, Saturday’s behaviour wasn’t it.

Sport has a habit of bringing out the feral beast in the mildest of fans, and the selfish nature of competitive loyalty to our own side can skew any perspective.

That’s particularly so in elite sport, where money, power and prestige produce an environment where skulduggery reaches alarming levels.

The pressure on a 15-year-old Russian girl after a failed drugs test at the recent Winter Olympics ended with the child failing a number of times on the ice, and leaving the Games in tears.

What is it about human nature that reduces us to cheating and reprehensible behaviour in the pursuit of money and glory? It’s one unsavoury side of our character.

On Sunday, Chelsea football fans on their way to a Premier League match were interviewed about the situation the club is in following the freezing of owner Roman Abramovich’s assets.

One fan told the cameras the Russian owner’s treatment was absolutely disgusting.

“We all feel bad for the Ukraine people, of course we do. But why should we have to suffer when it’s nothing to do with us?”

Suffer?

They were playing, by the way, Newcastle United – now owned by Saudi Arabians – as we learned that the country had just publicly executed 81 people in one day; 73 Saudis, seven Yemenis and one Syrian.

Suffer?

As we watched the daily destruction of Ukraine, with people dying on the streets, others huddled in corridors and makeshift accommodation, and families fleeing in the biting cold to get away from war, there are many images of suffering.

The video of a very distressed, heavily pregnant woman being carried on a stretcher from the ruins of a bombed maternity hospital in Mariupol was hard enough to watch, and it was even more harrowing when news emerged that both mother and baby had died.

The inhumanity of war brings real suffering to people all over the world; if war doesn’t put things into perspective, you’ve got to wonder what would.

There are many responses. We saw the bravery of one Russian woman in particular, when Marina Ovsyannikova walked onto live television on Russian news with a placard which said, “Stop the war. Don’t believe propaganda, they’re lying to you here.”

Considering the attitude of Putin’s Russia to any display of dissent, that was courageous.

And, in this country, the response by ordinary people to the humanitarian crisis of suffering has been extraordinary.

The kindness and compassion of people in this area in donating money and much-needed supplies are a clear indication of our abhorrence of evil and our empathy for those in need.

If only we responded to the suffering in all war-torn regions.

Indeed, if only we could keep the perspective in our daily lives that our own little problems and everyday disappointments are minor compared to what others are going through.

A bit of inconvenience at your football club isn’t really suffering, is it?

Indeed, remember too some of the difficulties that people in our own country are going through, notwithstanding they are not compared to the trauma of war.

Different people react differently as to how they respond in helping others.

In The Sunday Times magazine this week, I read about former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s lifestyle now.

He takes a hands-on role, for example, in a local warehouse with Amazon, getting microwaves, irons, kettles, electrical equipment and bedding out to needy families.

And in the interview, he passionately talks about how sad it is that some children have no beds, bemoans the disaster for people faced with soaring fuel prices, and the real dilemma faced by those who have to choose between heating and eating. And he gives of his time to help.

The son of a Presbyterian Minister, Brown now lives a quiet life on the coast in Scotland; he’s 71, lives off his pension (albeit a pretty good one), takes no salary for roles with the United Nations and World Health Organisation, and donates the proceeds of his book sales to charity.

Tony Blair, on the other hand, has made millions of pounds for giving speeches and brokering deals for the Qataris.

And another former Prime Minister, David Cameron, has been embroiled in a financial scandal in the Greensill Capital lobbying controversy.

In terms of a moral compass, in terms of helping others, are you a Brownite or a Blairite?

Are you greedy and selfish, or do you care enough to share with the vulnerable?

As it happens, this Sunday is International Day of Happiness, organised by the United Nations.

In a sense, it’s a sign of our times that we now have to organise a day to be happy and we can be cynical about it and the self-proclaimed modern aim of ‘wellness’.

It is, though, not about walking about with a grin on your face; the UN says development goals include seeking to end poverty, reduce inequality and protect the planet.

Stating that happiness is a human right and a goal for all, it references the crisis situations happening around the world in Ukraine, Yemen, Gaza and elsewhere.

The UN points out that on the International Day of Happiness, “we are reminded that our actions matter and that each of us can help build a more compassionate world wherever we are”.

As unfashionable as it may seem in this harsh and conflicted world sometimes, there’s something inherently good and rewarding about giving to others, and helping those who need it for whatever reason.