1. It is often said that unhappy people are usually more successful and more creative than their happier counterparts — those who are not content are always in want of more — more money, more honeys, higher social status, etc… while “happy” people just stay as is. Personally, I think the correct term for those people are “blissfully ignorant” and “power hungry emotionless jerks”. I’ve met plenty of very happy and very successful people — The secret of their success? They all enjoy what they’re doing.

2. I travel on the corporate dime a lot, and when I do, I come into contact with a lot of older people who enjoy giving me financial advice. Really. That’s all they talk about. Maybe it’s because I look like a spoiled brat? I do look 18 sometimes. “Hi kid, nice to meet you. By the way, are you working? If you are, you must learn to save, save, save! How much are you saving? Is your 401k maxed?.. etc..” But take it from a person who grew up witnessing the self-destruction of the baby-boomer generation all my life … I’ve seen how much debt some of you can get into. Yet despite all this frantic plea for me to save money, I’ve never once heard anyone tell me important financial lesson #2: Invest — Invest directly and indirectly (in yourself and in others).

3. The younger generation is less likely to be religious, and we aren’t any “less” moral for being so. At the same time, we are not “agnostic” nor “atheist” because both those terms begin with a postulate of a God. Much like postulating that there isn’t a Santa Clause, one wouldn’t call themselves asantaclausist. It seems trivial and provincial to narrow down your life philosophy into something that was never meaningful to you in the first place. That being said though, it doesn’t mean religion is meaningless. The foundation of morality and the historical/cultural value of the Bible, Koran, Confucius, or any holy scripture is something that I strive to understand. This is not “religious tolerance” as some may believe. It’s called religious sampling, cultural appreciation; we are no longer just a Christian nation, but a Buddhist nation, a Muslim nation, a nation of believers and non-believers.

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Update: Holy cow, that was preachy.

Update 2: Stalk much?

NPR has a great article about how cognitive dissonance, the tension someone feels when they hold two contradicting beliefs, can actually be a fuel for self justification. I would usually break the story down a bit more, but I have to run. So sorry.
Anyway, here’s a simple snippet from the article:

Half a century ago, a young social psychologist named Leon Festinger and two associates infiltrated a group of people who believed the world would end on December 21. They wanted to know what would happen to the group when (they hoped!) the prophecy failed. The group’s leader, whom the researchers called Marian Keech, promised that the faithful would be picked up by a flying saucer and elevated to safety at midnight on December 20. Many of her followers quit their jobs, gave away their homes, and dispersed their savings, waiting for the end. Who needs money in outer space? Others waited in fear or resignation in their homes. (Mrs. Keech’s own husband, a nonbeliever, went to bed early and slept soundly through the night as his wife and her followers prayed in the living room.) Festinger made his own prediction: The believers who had not made a strong commitment to the prophecy—who awaited the end of the world by themselves at home, hoping they weren’t going to die at midnight—would quietly lose their faith in Mrs. Keech. But those who had given away their possessions and were waiting with the others for the spaceship would increase their belief in her mystical abilities. In fact, they would now do everything they could to get others to join them.

At midnight, with no sign of a spaceship in the yard, the group felt a little nervous. By 2 a.m., they were getting seriously worried. At 4:45 a.m., Mrs. Keech had a new vision: The world had been spared, she said, because of the impressive faith of her little band. “And mighty is the word of God,” she told her followers, “and by his word have ye been saved—for from the mouth of death have ye been delivered and at no time has there been such a force loosed upon the Earth. Not since the beginning of time upon this Earth has there been such a force of Good and light as now floods this room.”

The group’s mood shifted from despair to exhilaration. Many of the group’s members, who had not felt the need to proselytize before December 21, began calling the press to report the miracle, and soon they were out on the streets, buttonholing passersby, trying to convert them. Mrs. Keech’s prediction had failed, but not Leon Festinger’s.

Also, there is a pretty awesome Singularity Summit going on during my birthday. (Sept 8 & 9)  If you’re a fan of AI or Kurzweil, you should come join me!  Even if you are not a fan of  AI, I can guarantee that it will at least be philosophically profound.

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Current and surprisingly related read: Freedom Evolves, Daniel Dennett
Other current reads: Kurt Vonnegut, A Man Without a Country

Hey children — here’s a good one! The first prize of a Creationist Science Fair goes to an 8th grader who disproves the theory of evolution by making stalactites from Epsom Salts:

Brian Benson, an eighth-grade student who won first place in the Life Science/Biology category for his project “Creation Wins!!!,” says he disproved part of the theory of evolution. Using a rolled-up paper towel suspended between two glasses of water with Epsom Salts, the paper towel formed stalactites. He states that the theory that they take millions of years to develop is incorrect.

“Scientists say it takes millions of years to form stalactites,” Benson said. “However, in only a couple of hours, I have formed stalactites just by using paper towel and Epsom Salts.

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In recent events, an Ohio woman was outraged by the following “anti-religion” quote:

The Way I See It #347

Why in moments of crisis do we ask God for strength and help? As cognitive beings, why would we ask something that may well be a figment of our imaginations for guidance? Why not search inside ourselves for the power to overcome? After all, we are strong enough to cause most of the catastrophes we need to endure.

– Bill Scheel
Starbucks customer from London, Ontario. He describes himself as a “modern day nobody.”

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