April 16, 2009
Training for Failure
I wonder what would have happened had Dr. Sherman's plan been put into action? It would certainly relieve stress -- and provide a much more realistic view of the world -- if we were all taught from day one to accept our mediocrity. Reported in the Newark Advocate, Dec. 1, 1936:Training for Failure
It seems that parents are wrong in counseling their youngsters to study hard and aim for the presidency.
Anyway, Dr. Mandel Sherman, mental hygiene specialist at the University of Chicago, advises that young people be trained to become failures, in the ordinary sense of the word.
"Our educational system is suffering from an overdose of success stories," he contends. "One person in 10 is neurotic, one in 22 insane today because we train only for success. And only a few can be successful from a material standpoint."
Youth perhaps should be taught that a successful life need not include fame and riches. But history, studded with instances of handicapped youngsters who fought their way to success, indicates that it would be difficult to get the younger generation to bow its head to the inevitability of failure.
It seems that parents are wrong in counseling their youngsters to study hard and aim for the presidency.
Anyway, Dr. Mandel Sherman, mental hygiene specialist at the University of Chicago, advises that young people be trained to become failures, in the ordinary sense of the word.
"Our educational system is suffering from an overdose of success stories," he contends. "One person in 10 is neurotic, one in 22 insane today because we train only for success. And only a few can be successful from a material standpoint."
Youth perhaps should be taught that a successful life need not include fame and riches. But history, studded with instances of handicapped youngsters who fought their way to success, indicates that it would be difficult to get the younger generation to bow its head to the inevitability of failure.
Blackfly
Posted By: Paul | Date: Thu Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (10)
Category: Insects, Music, Cartoons, North America
Category: Insects, Music, Cartoons, North America
Florida Skunk Ape
Who knew that Chuck's state boasted its own Bigfoot, in the form of the Florida Skunk Ape?
Posted By: Paul | Date: Thu Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (13)
Category: Cryptozoology, Regionalism
Category: Cryptozoology, Regionalism
[News] Chuck’s Links for Thursday, April 16, 2009
Bizarro World: (1) Two yrs ago, a little girl saved the life of her 84-yr-old landlady, and now the woman's relatives are evicting the girl's family. (2) If you work for the state of Massachusetts and also deploy with the Massachusetts Nat'l Guard, you get both salaries; if your Guard unit deploys to Iraq, though, you get only the higher of the two salaries. (Seriously.) (3) East St. Louis, Ill., cop Kristopher Weston, 28, apprehended a high-profile murder suspect so impressively that he was called before the City Council for praise . . and five minutes later, the Council voted a list of police layoffs that included Kristopher Weston. Chicago Sun-Times /// Boston Globe /// St. Louis Post-DispatchYou'd think a Border Patrol agent trying to smuggle in illegal tortoises would know the law better than to disguise the shipment as "scorpions" (since they also are usually illegal). Reuters via MSNBC
An Ontario man with an auto-immune disease that has impaired his vision, swollen up his hands, and left him often in morphine-level pain, has been spotted by an insurance investigator during a couple of his better days, thus encouraging his employer to order him back to work . . in his job as a bus driver. Canoe.ca
A Hong Kong maid was accused of trying to poison her boss, but it was all a misunderstanding because she was only adding menstrual blood to the boss's soup, and everybody knows menstrual blood can only help things. Agence France-Presse via Yahoo
Jennifer Madrigal filed a complaint against Guadalupe Andrade in Ogden, Utah, for putting a curse on her (imminent auto accident!), but Madrigal's OK because she hired a witch doctor who saved her with the ol' magic egg ritual. KSL-TV (Salt Lake City)
Awesome multitasking: driving (80 mph) while having sex (real sex, too, not just oral). Agence France-Presse via Yahoo
Update: Our old friend Steve Rocco, once the strangest elected official in California, finally went to trial this week for that petty theft (stealing ketchup from a Chapman University dining hall). Associated Press via Yahoo
[Jury Duty] OK, here are John Kincaid (top) and Christopher Fitzgerald, who stand accused of holding up a dirty-video store in Kilgore, Tex., and the question for you is: Assuming they're guilty, which of the two came up with the idea? TheSmokingGun.com
Today's Newsrangers: Dean Larson, Kathryn Wood, Emory Kimbrough
Transparent Face Mask
From Popular Science, March 1940:
Slipped over the head, a bag of cellulose tissue designed for use in skiing and other outdoor sports offers protection for the face without interfering with vision. The transparent mask can also be used as a shower cap, an apron, a tray cover, and a turban, the makers say.
Maybe it didn't interfere with vision, but the interfering with breathing probably posed a problem.
Posted By: Alex | Date: Thu Apr 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (16)
Category: Inventions, Products, 1940's
Category: Inventions, Products, 1940's
April 15, 2009
First Ever WU-vention!
Okay, it's not yet as big and popular as Burning Man, but the first gathering of WU-vies has occured. KW, Jules and Madd Maxx chose to meet recently. And here's photographic proof.Syrup shortages were reported in the region throughout the following week.
Madd Maxx and object of desire.
Left to right: Jules, KW.
The IHOP Corporation takes no responsibility for illegal and immoral acts committed upon its premises.
Posted By: Paul | Date: Wed Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (53)
Category: Conventions, Daredevils, Stuntpeople and Thrillseekers, Food, Human Marvels, Obsessions, Photography and Photographers, Restaurants, Signage, Subcultures, Public Indecency, Sex Symbols, Reader Recommendation, Bohemians, Beatniks, Hippies and Slackers
Category: Conventions, Daredevils, Stuntpeople and Thrillseekers, Food, Human Marvels, Obsessions, Photography and Photographers, Restaurants, Signage, Subcultures, Public Indecency, Sex Symbols, Reader Recommendation, Bohemians, Beatniks, Hippies and Slackers
California State Fair--1913
Sorry about that failed post earlier today. The host seems to have deleted that video. Thanks go to Expat47 for bringing the matter to my notice.Nonetheless, I've found the essential bit: the train collision.
Enjoy!
Posted By: Paul | Date: Wed Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (8)
Category: Destruction, Fairs, Amusement Parks, and Resorts, 1910's, Trains
Category: Destruction, Fairs, Amusement Parks, and Resorts, 1910's, Trains
Junk Food Junkie
Posted By: Paul | Date: Wed Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (5)
Category: Food, Nutrition, Humor, Music
Category: Food, Nutrition, Humor, Music
Extended Breastfeeding
Weird Universe has touched on the subject of extended breastfeeding before, but it's a subject that's worth a second look. In this video, Veronica Robinson describes how her daughters have developed a "long-term relationship" with her breasts.
Posted By: Alex | Date: Wed Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (34)
Category: Babies, Food, Children, Parents, Breasts
Category: Babies, Food, Children, Parents, Breasts
Involuntary Public Masturbation
This article surely ranks among the great medical classics of all time: Involuntary Masturbation as a Manifestation of Stroke-Related Alien Hand Syndrome. It was published in the American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation [Volume 79(4), July/Aug 2000].It describes an unusual case of Alien Hand Syndrome, that being a rare condition in which a person's hand seems to develop a mind of its own. In this case, a 73-yr-old man developed Alien Hand Syndrome after suffering a stroke. I'll let the authors tell the rest of the story:
When transferred to the rehabilitation service 4 days later, he was noted to have left upper limb apraxia with involuntary movements. He stated, "my left hand has a mind of his own." He developed a tonic grasp reflex with inability to release. He also had a tendency to reach and grasp onto objects with the left hand, such as the telephone cord or the remote control for the television, and was unable to release despite verbal commands. He would persistently grab his comb or fix the collar of his shirt. He also demonstrated difficulty performing bimanual activities, such as eating. The patient's wife also expressed deep concern when her husband's left hand would publicly expose his genitals and begin masturbating. This occurred on many occasions when the patient was conversing with his caregivers and was confirmed by the authors on their daily rounds. The behavior was never seen to occur through the action of the right hand. The patient also denies any history of excessive self-stimulation, sexual dysfunction, or exhibitionism. During his hospital stay, the patient expressed frustration and dismay when he realized that he was masturbating publicly and with his inability to voluntarily release his grasp of objects in the left hand.
The story has a happy ending. After a few weeks of therapy, the man's condition got much better, although, on occasion, his hand would still act out a bit:
The patient's wife reported several occasions when his left hand would still act on its own. The patient once adjusted the thermostat with his left hand without realizing it. Another time, at a bingo game, his left hand unknowingly grabbed a chair and pulled it along as he walked to the bathroom. He was able to release the chair when his wife asked him to open his hand. The patient demonstrated evidence of intermanual conflict. For example, the patient tended to simultaneously bring both hands to his mouth when eating, one holding a piece of chicken and the other holding the fork. However, the patient had ceased performing involuntary public masturbation activities with the left hand.
(via Mind Hacks)
Posted By: Alex | Date: Wed Apr 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (20)
Category: Health, Science, Psychology, Public Indecency, Brain
Category: Health, Science, Psychology, Public Indecency, Brain
Category: School, Self-help Schemes, Psychology