Category Archives: Life

Wise Paths to Happiness

Posted on July 28, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

What’s the best way to find happiness in life? In some ways, that’s a silly question. There are many ways to be happy in life. Or unhappy. But despite individual differences, most people can find happiness in similar ways. A … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Philosophy, Psychology, Society | Tagged Attitude, Constructive attitude, Good advice, Good habits, Happiness, How to be happy, Life advice, Overcoming challenges, Positive thinking, Rationality, Reasonableness, Self-improvement, The meaning of life, Wisdom | 4 Comments

What We Are and What We Do

Posted on July 27, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

Would you like to join the Chess Club? It’s for people who like chess, like to talk about it, and like to play it. It’s a human group. You can be a member if you satisfy at least one of … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Common interests, Culture, Freedom of association, Gaijin, Group membership, Hafu, Human groups, In-Group, Japan, Japanese culture, Membership, Out-Group, Voluntary association | Leave a comment

When Smart People Get Stupid Ideas

Posted on July 8, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

If you want to hear stupid ideas, talk to a stupid person. But if you want to hear incredibly, mind-bogglingly stupid ideas, talk to a smart person. It’s not a new insight. Political pundit William F. Buckley once said that … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology | Tagged Arrogance, Common sense, Dartboard fund, Evolutionary Psychology, Intelligence, Over-confidence, Prediction, Satoshi Kanazawa, Smart people, The evolutionary legacy principle, The Savannah principle | 3 Comments

What Is Humanity?

Posted on July 1, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

Back in the 1960s, the great rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote Who Is Man? based on lectures he gave at Stanford University. But to ask “who is man?” assumes that we’ve’ previously answered the question “what is man?” If humans are … Continue reading →

Posted in Jewish Philosophy, Judaism, Life | Tagged Fukayama, Heschel, Human Dignity, Human life, Human Rights, Human worth, Identity, Justice, Materialism, Morality, Scientism, The other, What is man | Leave a comment

Grokking Our Disagreements

Posted on June 26, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

I finally got around to reading Robert Heinlein’s science fiction novel Starship Troopers. When I was growing up, I read two or three science fiction novels a week. How I missed Starship Troopers, I don’t know. And one of my … Continue reading →

Posted in Epistemology, Human Relations, Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Assumptions, Disagreement, Fair Witness, Grok, Grokking, Handling disagreement, Heinlein, Social Conflict, Starship Troopers, Stranger in a Strange Land | Leave a comment

Life is a Judgment Call

Posted on June 18, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

The bar patron asked the bartender, “Is life worth living?” The bartender replied, “It depends on the liver.”1 In other words, it’s a judgment call. Most of us crave simple patterns to explain life. We crave simple rules to guide … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Psychology | Tagged Driving, Duties, Judgment call, Moral judgment, Moral responsibilities, Risk, Roundabout, Traffic, Traffic accident, Traffic circle | Leave a comment

The Lowered Expectations Dating Service

Posted on June 16, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

Utopian schemes try to create a perfect society. They usually cause more suffering than they cure. It’s a bad bargain. Moreover, people seldom agree on what a perfect society would be like. No matter how good it is or in … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Divine discontent, Expectations, Imperfection, Lowered expectations, Oppression, Perfectionism, Social Change, Social perfection, Utopia, Utopian, Voltaire | Leave a comment

Truth, Lies, and Bullsh-t

Posted on June 13, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

“I am lying,” said Epimenides the Cretan. So if he was lying, then he was telling the truth. And if he was telling the truth, he was lying. Epimenides also made the Statue of Liberty disappear. Sorry. That was a … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Bullshit, Honesty, Lying, Morality, Politics, Social norms, The Invention of Lying, Truth | 3 Comments

You See What You Expect

Posted on June 10, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

Why do smart, sane, honest people sometimes disagree no matter how hard they try to find the truth? Name an issue: Abortion Feminism Immigration Islam President Trump Racism My friends and I often have stark disagreements about those issues. But … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Life, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology | Tagged Ames room, Assumptions, Constructive disagreement, Disagreement, Illusion, Optical illusion, Perception | 1 Comment

Trick or Treat

Posted on June 7, 2019 by N.S. Palmer

Is it okay to “trick people” for their own good? That question comes up early in John Staddon’s book The New Behaviorism. I’ve just started reading it, and it’s a thought-provoking analysis. Behaviorism is a psychological approach that, true to … Continue reading →