Persecution

In other words, persecution wasn’t holding the Jewish community back — it was pushing it forward.

The reason, according to Veblen, was that Jews were perpetual outsiders, which filled them with a “skeptical animus.” Because they had no vested interest in “the alien lines of gentile inquiry,” they were able to question everything, even the most cherished of assumptions.

And this is also one of the great privileges of being a gay man. And one of the things that youngsters want to dismiss.

in reference to: Accept Defeat: The Neuroscience of Screwing Up | Magazine (view on Google Sidewiki)

Google Sidewiki entry by Marlboro

I didn't know it was.

in reference to:

"why is science so successful?"
- Accept Defeat: The Neuroscience of Screwing Up | Magazine (view on Google Sidewiki)

Welcome to the www

where the corrosion of authority has been acceptable since Day 1. I'm glad to see you're finally getting the memo.

in reference to:

"The ease with which students or parents can defame and ridicule teachers on social networking sites such as Facebook is increasingly alarming schools and the education union, which says it is a growing problem."
- School sues parent for bitter website (view on Google Sidewiki)

Yah, right

Everyone else is expecting bread and circuses.

in reference to:

"parents should not be looking to the government to provide entertainment for their children"
- Flash Mobs Take Violent Turn in Philadelphia - NYTimes.com (view on Google Sidewiki)

The Gravy Train is Coming to an End

I am so saddened that a group of middle class professionals are seeing their pay checks cut right before their eyes. Perhaps the state realizes that it is getting very little value for its money, so this is some of the first pork to be chopped off. Thank goodness psychiatry will have to leave some of its victims alone. It's so amazing how a person can become well enough to be released from coercive services when the money runs out.

in reference to: http://acmhck.org/DocumentView.aspx?DID=363 - Powered by Google Docs (view on Google Sidewiki)

Arrest at Wal-Mart After Racial Slur

I'm assuming he realized exactly how hurtful his comments were. That's why he made them

in reference to:

""I'm assuming this person didn't realize how hurtful his comments were," she said."
- Arrest At Wal-Mart After Racial Announcement In New Jersey (view on Google Sidewiki)

The Real Problem with Public Education

is not the teachers, but the parents.

in reference to:

"The problem with public education, they claimed, was the teachers. And of course not all teachers were performing badly in their jobs. No it was the teachers in unions that were dragging down our educational system."
- Diary of a Heartland Radical (view on Google Sidewiki)

The Real Crisis in Mental Health Care

I'm all for helping the mentally ill, but many times the treatment is seen as coercive and less than benign. One of the problems with government subsidies for the mentally ill is that a large percentage of the money goes to employ middle class professionals, with very little of it actually trickling down to the people it's supposed to help.

in reference to: Pension Pulse: The Real Crisis in Health Care? (view on Google Sidewiki)

Iceland, the Mouse that Roared

Iceland is the lone bright spot in this financial mess.

Prior to this mess, Icelanders were considered the brightest, hippest population in the entire world. They were the first to adopt innovation and embrace change. Analysts who watched the tech sector noted they were 6 to 12 months ahead of the Japanese in adapting to new technologies and at least a good 18 months ahead of the Americans. They seem to be a highly educated and engaged people.

It is so sad that I have to look outside of America for other people to point to the right path.

in reference to: The Silver Bear Cafe (view on Google Sidewiki)

So what I'm hearing here, doctors

is that they're not responsible for their behavior. Nice.

in reference to:

""It may be that because of these exaggerated dopamine responses, once they focus on the chance to get a reward, psychopaths are unable to alter their attention until they get what they're after," Buckholtz said. Added Zald, "It's not just that they don't appreciate the potential threat, but that the anticipation or motivation for reward overwhelms those concerns.""
- Psychopaths' brains wired to seek rewards, no matter the consequences (view on Google Sidewiki)

Timmy Must Be Fired, Or Obama Must Be Impeached

Why can't we have both?

in reference to: Timmy Must Be Fired, Or Obama Must Be Impeached - The Market Ticker (view on Google Sidewiki)

I think

that most of the democratically-elected governments thought that as well. And now they all have big headaches.

in reference to:

"“I think the government really regrets the Internet,” he said, pausing for effect. “Originally, they thought it would be like the newspaper or the television — just another way to get their view out to the people. What they didn’t realize is that people can type and talk back. This is giving them a really big headache.”"
- Saturday Profile - Heartthrob’s Blog Challenges China’s Leaders - NYTimes.com (view on Google Sidewiki)

The Death of Mortgage Refinance Looms

They're rather short sighted in discussing death. The real death will occur as interest rates rise and homeowners are prudently locked into these 30-yr low rate loans. I wouldn't want to be an investor holding these notes.

in reference to: The Death of Mortgage Refinance Looms (view on Google Sidewiki)

Second Thoughts

And now they're getting queasy over throwing money down the giant rat hole that is ditech.com.* When this lender became an FDIC-insured bank, the troubles with the mortgage market and bad mortgages were far from over but just getting started.

*d/b/a GMAC Mortgage Corp

in reference to: TARP Oversight Panel Finds Fault With GMAC Bailouts - NYTimes.com (view on Google Sidewiki)

It's called empirical evidence

And I thought science eschewed "faith" and "belief."

in reference to:

"Some have suggested that critics of antidepressant efficacy should keep quiet and not publicize their work.  The reasoning is that if the effectiveness of antidepressants depends in large part on the faith of patients and their doctors,"
- Antidepressants: Do They "Work" or Don't They?: Scientific American (view on Google Sidewiki)

Afghan curbs on live media coverage of Taliban attacks

In the future, everything in the present will be tape delayed 15 minutes.

in reference to:

"Afghan curbs on live media coverage of Taliban attacks"
- BBC News - Afghan curbs on live media coverage of Taliban attacks (view on Google Sidewiki)