I came across the article In Defense of Happy Pills recently on the subject of SSRIs i.e. antidepressants such as Zoloft and Prozac. It’s a subject close to my heart as for many years I struggled over the choice of talk therapy versus drugs (or both.) My own inherited attitudes about the nature of depression and suffering prevented me from getting the help I needed for too long.
The crux of the article is very insightful about the nature of these drugs and people’s ambivalence towards them. I think this quote sums the matter up well (and in favor of the drug therapy):
But why should someone who suffered trauma have to suffer more to overcome it, if there’s a less difficult, equally safe, and effective alternative? Why shouldn’t the shy be on a level playing field with the naturally outgoing if that is what they want? Why is it easier for us to let go of the idea that physical suffering is a message from God that we should bear in order to temper our souls than it is to shake the idea that emotional pain must be endured for our own good?
This is the point, those enduring the pain and suffering of depression want it to stop right now, today. We will do anything to stop it, including suicide. Talk therapy simply takes too damned long. If you find yourself taking these drugs (and indeed having your life restored to you in the process) understand that while your friends, family, or society may not understand, but some fellow depressives out there certainly do.
The One Real Reason You Are Stressed Out, Overweight, Depressed or Angry. Ok, you might think this is a tad overblown, but the author’s hypothesis is that the reason we are all suceptible to marketing is because we all believe that we aren’t suceptible to marketing. Hence the endless cycle of buying more things you do not need and depression that ensues when thing purchased does not satisfy you.
WordPress just released a security update. Help get the word out…
Via Metafilter – the story of how Infocom failed. Infocom produced Zork and a whole host of text adventure games. They’re still pretty much some of the most imaginitive and challenging games to play.
The sense of loss and remorse is palpable throughout Anthony Bourdain’s report on the the state of things in Beirut, Watching Beirut Die.
The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy has helpful guides to effecient appliances like room air conditioners for one.
In response to Myshele Goldberg’s article The Real Tragedy of Student Debt, I cannot help but shake my head. The author complains of an education debt totalling a whopping $70,000. She points out, reasonably, that this is no way to start a working life. No shit, Myshele. I quote:
Yet I made my choices based on the values I had been taught — that helping others is more important than making money for yourself, meaningful career is more important than net worth, and brains, determination, and charisma are the key ingredients of success. I realize now that I subscribed to the fantasy of an equal society, when in fact everyone’s options arise from class, race, gender, and a thousand other subtle differences in our experiences, assumptions, and privileges.
Unfortunately, she failed to take a very basic fact into account: you can only pay back what you earn. Taking out tens of thousands in education loans in order to secure an MA and a low-paying job is bad business no matter how you slice it. The fact of the matter is the vast majority of ‘meaningful’ jobs pay such low wages that they are only open to the independently wealthy. This may be inconvenient, but it is the truth.
Is Steely Day really peeved at Owen Wilson for ‘borrowing’ the theme of the song “Cousin Dupree” for the Hollywood travesty You, Me, and Dupree. Who knows, but the open letter to Owen’s brother Luke is pretty funny regardless.
If the heat is making you as crazy as its making me, you probably want an air conditioner. If you can’t afford one, you can always improvise.
In 1997, these authors produced a paper regardinga mathematical model of possible necktie knots used to tie a necktie, in essence creating a “Theory of Tie Knots.” Naturally a book followed. They discovered 9 aesthetic necktie knots and presented their finding in Nature. I found the site looking for the Pratt Knot, a unique necktie knot that produces a thicker and more symmetric knot than the traditional four-in-hand.