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Category Archives: Human Relations
Give Thanks for Thankfulness
On the American holiday of Thanksgiving, we give thanks for a lot of things. In developed countries, we’ve got food. We’ve got shelter. Even the poorest among us have access to resources and luxuries that were unimaginable only a hundred … Continue reading
The Way to Go
“To every man there openeth A Way, and Ways, and a Way. And the High Soul climbs the High way, And the Low Soul gropes the Low, And in between, on the misty flats, The rest drift to and fro. … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Judaism, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Society
Tagged Concepts, Generalization, Justice, Number, Poetry, Us versus Them, Wisdom
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Job and Culture
In yesterday’s blog post, I referred to “automatic pilot.” And as often happens when I write, I wondered if I needed to explain what it was. Any readers who didn’t understand “automatic pilot” would have missed my point. Suppose that … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Judaism, Political Science, Society
Tagged Book of Job, Communication, Community, Cooperation, Culture, Diversity, Heritage, Social Conflict, Trust
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Get Help from Your Automatic Pilot
We spend a lot of our lives on automatic pilot. We act out of habit, without thinking about what we’re doing. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. If we had to think our way through everything we did, we couldn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Bible, Christianity, Human Relations, Judaism, Psychology, Society
Tagged Bible Study, Habit, Learning, Observance, Practice, Prayer, Religion, Skill, Virtue
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Oh Say, Kin You See?
Football player Colin Kaepernick refused to stand during the American national anthem. And people on all sides of the political spectrum went nuts. Why? The most obvious reason is that they either endorse or dispute his complaint: “I am not … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Political Science, Psychology, Society
Tagged American Flag, Evolution, In-Group, Kaepernick, Kin Selection, National Anthem, Psychology, Tribal behavior, Tribe
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Can Truth and Niceness Coexist?
Suppose that Joe believes he’s a parakeet. Is that okay? It depends. If Joe goes to work, obeys the law, fulfills his responsibilities, and doesn’t drive people nuts by making bird noises, then I’d say it’s okay. The belief makes … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Philosophy, Psychology
Tagged Delusions, Mental Illness, Pragmatism, Psychology, Psychology of Belief
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What If We Can’t Agree?
What if we just can’t agree about some issues? Suppose that we’ve had calm, rational conversations with people on the other side of the dispute. It does happen occasionally. And suppose that each side understands the other. People on each … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Political Science, Society
Tagged Compromise, Democracy, Dispute Resolution, Federalism, Social realism
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Detoxifying Social Media
Social media started as an enjoyable way to chat with people who shared our interests. But it soon developed a dark side. It started to generate hostility and hysteria. Crazed mobs started to harass and threaten people who made social … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Philosophy, Political Science, Society
Tagged Facebook, Mass communication, News Media, Social Conflict, Social Media, Twitter
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Respect the Other Person
When you disagree with someone, how can you keep the argument focused on the issues? You don’t want to get sidetracked, and you especially don’t want the discussion to turn into a screaming match. The previous blog post (“How to … Continue reading
How to Argue Productively
Most arguments aren’t productive. But argument can be productive if you do it right. The First Rule The first rule of productive argument is the same as in many other areas: Define your goals. Do you want to discover the … Continue reading
Posted in Human Relations, Philosophy, Political Science, Society
Tagged Argument, Debate, Disagreement, Evidence, Rational Argument, Reason, Reasonable, Respect
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The Thousand-Year View 