Haven’t read it yet, but Rex linked to this, and it looks interesting. My general definition of “cheating” is this: Doing something your partner wouldn’t approve of behind their back. So, given that, I don’t think you can say definitively whether porn is adultery or not; it depends on the contract inherent in your individual relationship. Visit site »
Oh man. Great idea. This is going to be huge in NYC, I’m sure. Visit site »
“In the world of evolutionary biology, the question is not whether God exists but why we believe in him. Is belief a helpful adaptation or an evolutionary accident?” Interesting stuff. Are humans hard-wired to believe in God (or something beyond what we can rationalize)? If so, why? Could it be that evolution is actually responsible for people believing in God? Visit site »
Really good stuff here — a lot of it rings true form my relationships. Via Wilson. Visit site »
This is a story about young women who post photos of themselves performing silly, drunken acts like peeing on a waterfall or dancing on a table. Predictably, the old fart who wrote the story — as well as several who were interviewed for it — seems incredibly concerned that these young ladies are not thinking about the consequences of showing themselves in this state in public.
I, however, have a theory, which says there will actually be no consequences at all. Why? Because everybody is doing it.
I’m just realizing theory might be worth a blog post of its own, so I think I’ll stop there, and go into more details in a more fleshed out post in the future. :) Visit site »
Great article about the generation of folks just entering the workplace — those born between 1980 and 1985, give or take. I’ve definitely noticed this sense of entitlement amongst some of these kids. Besides all the reasons discussed in the article, I think some of it comes from seeing the success of the Mark Zuckerbergs and Kevin Roses of the world. Young people in our industry sometimes believe they are a saviour of sorts, and expect it means they won’t have to start in lower-level positions, won’t have to pay their dues, and won’t have to do as they’re told sometimes. As anyone who’s worked with me know — I’m all for rocking the boat when it needs to be rocked — but you do sort of have to work your way into boat-rocking position.
Or maybe, after 11 years of working full time in this industry, I’m just getting old. Visit site »
Another wonderful post by Rands, this one is an absolute must read for anyone who lives or works with a computer nerd. Visit site »
Wow, I had no idea. Visit site »
Jeremy has some great thoughts here on the nature of online conversation. Based in part on a back-and-forth he and I had over the weekend, I was feeling similarly depressed about the ability for people to communicate as civil human beings for the past couple of days. Besides that exchange, I managed to (seemingly) offend Eric Meyer and Christian Montoya, and I had to read this incredibly depressing post and its subsequent comment thread. I was quite down for a while there— so much so that Michelle noticed and I ended up venting to her about it.
While I generally don’t agree with Jeremy’s belief that comments on blogs are a bad idea, over the weekend I knew exactly what he was talking about. I think the best piece I’ve ever read on on this topic is Wilson’s Shouts and Echos.
I don’t have much positive to say on the matter — I just hope it stops, at some point. Visit site »
This is pretty badass. It’s a detailed chart of one person’s relationship over the course of several years. Check it out. Via Rexy (I’d like to see one of these for Rex’s relationships!). Visit site »
Advice to anyone who thinks racism is no longer much of an issue: read this.
Update: And read this, for more details. Visit site »
53% of those surveyed said that evolution (when defined as “the idea that human beings developed over millions of years from less advanced forms of life”) is either “definitely true” or “probably true.” However, 66% said that creationism (“the idea that God created human beings pretty much in their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years”) is true. That seems contradictory, to me. I believe creation and evolution can co-exist, but not when they’re framed with those definitions.
38% said “man developed, with God guiding,” and 43% think “God created man in present form.” Only 14% think “man developed, but God had no part in (the) process”.
24% of Americans believe that both the theory of evolution and the theory of creationism are probably or definitely true. This also proves that 24% of people are either idiots or didn’t read the definitions of evolution and creationism the survey uses. Again, I do think it’s possible for one to believe in both evolution and creationism, but you would have to define creation differently than they have done with this survey.
Finally, I find it astonishing that 19% of those who don’t believe in evolution chose “I believe in Jesus Christ” as their justification for it (this was the most popular response). I don’t think much of anyone, including evolutionists, doubt the existence of Jesus Christ. Believing in Jesus Christ is no reason to not believe in evolution. Every other choice on the list is reasonable, but “I believe in Jesus Christ” is just a laughable response to “Why don’t you believe in evolution?” Visit site »
AfterEllen.com has a list of the top 100 hottest celebrities as chosen by lesbians. It’s an interesting view into how women (well, at least lesbian women) view each other, compared to how men view women. They compare the list with a similar list by Maxim. Visit site »
I’ve been a little sickened at how many people have not only jumped to the defense of Derek Powazek and Heather Champ, but also jumped at the opportunity to publicly blast Paul Cloutier — whom they almost certainly know nothing about.
There are two sides to every story, and yet almost no one bothered to ask about the other side of this one. Instead, they just blindly took Derek’s side.
I don’t know Derek or Heather, but I have a lot of respect for both of their work. I don’t know Paul, either. Do you? Because it’s one thing to stand by your friends. But it’s another thing entirely to blast someone you don’t know because someone else you don’t know said they deserved to be blasted.
Next time, try a healthy dose of perspective. Try to see both sides of the story. My agnostic self has been called a fence-sitter many times, but days like the past few make me glad I am. Visit site »
What makes someone a racist? What differentiates the remarks of Mel Gibson, Michael Irvin, and Michael Richards? When is it okay to make a joke about a racial stereotype? If said stereotype statistically defensible, is it more appropriate to joke about? Gladwell is, as per usual, brilliant. Visit site »