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Author Archives: N.S. Palmer
Your Curse Can Be Your Blessing
Is your life “cursed” in some way? A traumatic childhood? Health problems? Poor self-esteem? You can turn your curse into your blessing. The American novelist Ernest Hemingway said it well: “Life breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong in the … Continue reading
Who Gets Veto Power?
A while back, I worked for a tech company where I reported to the company’s CEO. The main thing I learned was never to take a job at a company founded and run by a business-school professor. The other thing … Continue reading
Why Common Sense Is So Uncommon
Why is common sense so uncommon? I’ve been reading Robert Curry’s excellent new book Reclaiming Common Sense. It got me thinking about why I and many other people often lack common sense. For example, in college I was a libertarian. … Continue reading
One Way to Reduce Fake News
Regardless of their political views, most Americans think that “fake news” is a real problem. And it is. Often on purpose. Partisans flood the media with so much disinformation that it’s hard for anyone to know what’s happening. Even the … Continue reading
Posted in Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society
Tagged Chyrons, CNN, Disinformation, Fake news, Infotainment, Misleading, MSNBC, News Media, Propaganda, Rhetorical question, The New York Times
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How to Get a Healthy Society
In my previous blog post (“What’s Your Choice?”), I said that the main question of morality is not “what’s right or wrong” but “what kind of people we choose to be.” At first glance, that statement seems absurd, bordering on … Continue reading
What’s Your Choice?
Some people might get mad at me for saying this, but I’m against kicking puppies. I’m also against being mean to children and old people. I like democracy but I agree with Winston Churchill that “it’s the worst form of … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Life, Psychology, Society
Tagged Belief, Choice, Decline of violence, Evolutionary Psychology, Existential choice, Foundations of morality, Genetic influences on belief, Group beliefs, Moral Choice, Morality, Retributive justice, Steven Pinker, The Better Angels of Our Nature
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Compare and Contrast
“Compare and contrast.” It’s a staple of essay questions on college final exams. But be careful about applying it to life. Many people make themselves unhappy by comparing themselves to others who seem better off. They think that the other … Continue reading
Facing Moral Dilemmas
What makes things moral or immoral? People have lots of different views about it. My own view is that what’s moral: maximizes human happiness, minimizes needless suffering, and avoids doing things that are almost universally considered wrong. But even if … Continue reading
In Defense of Taylor Swift
There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who think that Glenn Miller’s 1941 song “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” absolutely rocks, and those who don’t. I think that the song absolutely rocks, which explains why I don’t know much about … Continue reading
Posted in Life, Psychology, Society
Tagged Big Band music, Gay, Glenn Miller, Leftist, LGBT, Life of Brian, Never satisfied, Party Line, Political correctness, Pop culture, Pop music, Taylor Swift, Woke
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Which Values Are Most Important?
I don’t live in a bubble. I’m lucky to have friends, family members, and loved ones who disagree strongly with some of my beliefs. That gives me perspective. Challenges to our beliefs help us in three ways: They make us … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology
Tagged Anti-Semitism, BDS, Haidt, Ilhan Omar, Israel, Jihad Squad, Moral Psychology, Rational disagreement, Tlaib
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The Thousand-Year View 