Anger is a Myth

Alright, the title is a little misleading, but it’s close. People approach anger in different ways, some “blow off steam” while others will meditate. What’s the best option? I have no clear idea, but the good news is that one blogger explores some myths about anger.

Myth 1: Anger and aggression are natural for humans

The idea that humans are born with a basic instinct for anger and aggression has been used to explain just about everything from marital arguments to global warfare.

Although this way of thinking makes some sense, it has one major flaw.

Successful evolution has been based on cooperation, not destructive conflict and aggression. Even primates fight in an organized manner.

Improve Your Self-Esteem and Save the Planet

Consumption in itself is bad for the planet, no matter how you cut it. Material things are generally made from finite resources (like how oil is made into plastic); so the less we buy the better we treat the planet.

This isn’t hard to do. In fact, it’s easier for people who have high self-esteem. Apprently, some new reseach is out that argues that the more confidence an individual has the less likely it is that they will buy material objects for comfort.

“By the time children reach early adolescence, and experience a decline in self-esteem, the stage is set for the use of material possessions as a coping strategy for feelings of low self-worth,” they write in the study, which will appear in the Journal of Consumer Research.

The paradox that findings such as these bring up, is that consumerism is good for the economy but bad for the individual. In the short run, it’s good for the economy when young people believe they need to buy an entirely new wardrobe every year, for example. But the hidden cost is much higher than the dollar amount. There are costs in happiness when people believe that their value is extrinsic. There are also environmental costs associated with widespread materialism.

I guess this can be further backed up by examples that billionaires don’t like spending their money.

Esquire Magazine has 6 Ideas

Esquire has an article looking at six ideas that will change the world.

Indeed, these are ideas that will have a huge impact on our lives in ways that we cannot fully predict. Some of these ideas like “burying our CO2” don’t sit well with me though. That being said, I’m torn between “the pollution magnet” and “the next plastic.”

Plastic has changed little since its heyday in the 1960s. It’s still ubiquitous, oil based, and dirty as hell for the environment. Makes you wonder what we’ve been doing all these years.
For one thing, not listening enough to chemist Geoffrey Coates. In his lab at Cornell University, he’s been reinventing plastic. Making it environmentally friendly and biodegradable — with orange peels.

McDemos – For Easy Protesting

protest!Ever wanted to tell people what you think but can’t find the time to fit into your busy schedule? I know I have! Well, we’re in luck because a group of artists have created quick and painless demos in the heart of the Old Empire (you know, the one that the sun never sets in). Introducing McDemos:

Ever wanted to bring capitalism crashing down but can’t get time off work to do it?

Wanna force liberal parliamentary democracy to bow it’s corpulent head in shame but have to take the car into the garage AND do the shopping?

Do you get the urge to jab John Prescott with a stick till he cries like a fat girl but can’t find a stick?

Then McDemo’s is for you, we’ll find the stick and do the jabbing! Let us demonstrate for you!

In this busy 24/7 world you often don’t get the time to make your voice heard, so isn’t it about time you contracted your protesting needs out?

We’ll ruin multinationals while you relax with a cocktail by the pool. We’ll force MPs from office while you catch up with Desperate Housewives on E4. Let us demonstrate for you!

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