Category Archives: Society

They’re Not Lying

Posted on December 21, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

Do you have friends who say things that are obviously wrong? Maybe it’s politics, religion, gender, or some other touchy subject. This might help: Your friends aren’t lying. And they’re not evil, either, unless you have very bad judgment about … Continue reading →

Posted in Epistemology, Human Relations, Life, Psychology, Society | Tagged Beliefs, Debate, Error, Evolutionary Legacy Principle, Evolutionary Psychology, Fallible, Human judgment, Infallible, Knowledge, Lying, Mistake, Tolerance | Leave a comment

Can We Measure the Quality of Debates?

Posted on December 16, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

As an undergraduate mathematics major, I had to take three semesters of statistics. I’m pretty good at mathematics, but statistics is a different animal. To adapt the famous last words of English actor Edmund Gwenn, “Mathematics is easy. Statistics is … Continue reading →

Posted in Epistemology, Human Relations, Life, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Einstein, Logical argument, Logical fallacy, Measurement, Operationalization, Political Debate, Special Relativity theory, Statistics | Leave a comment

Why My Father Was Never Sick

Posted on December 14, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

In “Unbreakable” (2000), Bruce Willis played a middle-aged man who discovered that he was an invulnerable superhero. Obviously, superhero movies require our suspension of disbelief. In “Unbreakable,” the hardest thing to believe was not that Willis’s character was invulnerable, or … Continue reading →

Posted in Life, Psychology, Society | Tagged Attitude, Constructive attitude, Courage, Determination, Good luck, Grit, Luck, Lucky | Leave a comment

Visit a Foreign Country

Posted on December 5, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

“The past is a foreign country,” advised British novelist L.P. Hartley. And it’s true: Most of us have quite enough trouble keeping up with the present. We’re too busy to think much about the past. Of course, there are different … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Christianity, Human Relations, Judaism, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Classic radio, Common good, Courage, Heroism, Lone Ranger, Morality, Patriotism, Rule of law, Self-reliance, Westerns, Wisdom | 2 Comments

Abnormal Isn’t Normal, But It’s OK

Posted on December 3, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

“Abnormal” is not an insult. And “normal” is not a compliment. People bend over backwards these days to avoid calling anything “abnormal.” Apparently they think it might hurt someone’s feelings. For example, Robert Plomin’s recent book about human DNA argues … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Abnormal, Bell curve, DNA, Empirical rule, Human difference, Normal, Normal distribution, Plomin, Population genetics, Social harmony, Standard deviation, Statistics, Us versus Them | 2 Comments

Not Hard To See It Coming

Posted on November 29, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

Viewed from 2018, the world of pre-9/11 America looks like a model of peace and sanity. It wasn’t, of course, but compared to what we’ve had since then, it seems that way. As of now, America’s crisis du jour is … Continue reading →

Posted in Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Caravan, Globalism, Globalization, Migrants, Nationalism, Open borders, Soros | Leave a comment

Challenge Makes Us Stronger

Posted on November 26, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

I just finished reading The Coddling of the American Mind, an excellent book by lawyer Greg Lukianoff and psychologist Jonathan Haidt. The subtitle is How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure. The book’s main thesis … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Psychology, Society | Tagged Campus life, Campus unrest, Challenge, Coddling of the American Mind, Free speech, Haidt, iGen, Personal growth, Political correctness, Safe spaces, Snowflakes | 2 Comments

We Can Have Unity Without Unanimity

Posted on November 24, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

Winston Churchill (1874-1965) was Prime Minister of England during World War II. He rallied his people to fight back against Nazi Germany even though some of them advocated surrender. Faced with such disagreement, Churchill said something that’s still relevant in … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Relations, Jewish Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Society | Tagged Compromise, Disagreement, Fundamental values, Negotiation, Politics, Priorities, Setting priorities, Social discord, Social Peace, Social unity | 2 Comments

Give Thanks for Thankfulness

Posted on November 22, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

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 →

Posted in Christianity, Human Relations, Judaism, Philosophy, Psychology, Society | Tagged Blessings, Constructive attitude, Encouragement, Gratitude, Helpful beliefs, Life, Pilgrims, Positive thinking, Thankfulness, Thanksgiving | Leave a comment

It’s What You Don’t See That Misleads You

Posted on November 15, 2018 by N.S. Palmer

Often, it’s not what you see that misleads you. It’s what you don’t see. In economics, it’s called “the broken window fallacy.” Broken windows create jobs for people who replace windows. Therefore, the fallacy concludes that broken windows are a … Continue reading →