The passing of Robin Williams made me think about how I've matured in my perspective on compassion. The world too often tries to invalidate a person's suffering if it appears that in some way they either brought this pain upon themselves or haven't done what it seems they should to address it.
Granted, everyone should take responsibility for their own issues if they are of sound mind, but the raw truth is that their pain is real - regardless if anyone thinks it is "justified" or not. Many people will withhold compassion for a person they view as irresponsible, because they think that's what they should do in order to hold that person accountable.
But I think you can have compassion for someone while still holding them accountable for their behavior. I can often see where a person's poor choices or perspective is the key factor behind their unhappiness, depression, etc. so I'm certainly not going to be supportive of such self-destructive tendencies - but my heart still goes out to them. No doubt that sometimes "tough love" is called for, but I'd rather risk being compassionate when it's possibly not warranted than to be cruel and inflict needless suffering on someone who's already burdened with more pain than they can handle...