Why are you back here if you find the place so objectionable?

- Jebbie

Perhaps because adnoto’s level of investment and ego strength allow her/him to raise discomforting yet valid and important points that others, by timidity or lack of insight, would not in adnoto's absence.

in which men and women bargain away their autonomy, actualization, control of their own bodies by contracting away exclusive rights to their intimacy and for the sake of a fairy tale they are domesticated to, because they are expected to, we would be astonished if their sense of loss, of being trapped, of forfeited freedom did not lead to resentment, anxiety, a need to vicariously regain that freedom, and ultimately anger. The popularity of such shows has meaning. As does a culture of anxious, depressed, addicted aggressors chronically acting out ego defenses.

There are constructive means to cope with, regain, and integrate disowned freedom and sexuality as alternatives to projecting onto “naughty” or shamed others.

Nah. Even the live audience seemed to be in courtesy laugh mode.

But painful, yes, from unwanted recognition of truth in characterizations of the cynical betrayal of “Change We Can Believe In”. That does hurt.

is that if we subject our Leaders to these types of inconveniences and long, bogged-down criminal proceedings, then respect for authority and for the near blindingly shining image of Strength and Change and Pragmatism that is “America” could suffer some degradation, both here and abroad, as well as the Bipartisanship, not to mention Love of Country and of New President, and that the American System of Government could in fact become significantly slowed, impaired, distracted from its ongoing mission and focus on providing for the common good.

That could be destabilizing.

What citizen would want to risk a disruption of the world’s model Democracy?

- legitimized American documentary filmmaker, interviewed while apparently neither under duress nor acutely intoxicated

Type I Error: Criminalization, moral judgment, and/or stigmatization of use of potentially dangerous addictive substances (e.g. food, methamphetamine, nicotine, cannabis) produces some public good and can be defended as such.

Type II Error: Acute cannabis intoxication and its regular use does not typically result in functional, social, motivational, memory, and cognitive impairments and is never a stressor that can contribute to mental health problems, e.g. I would without hesitation entrust my young children to caretakers who toke up daily!.

Type III Error: Success as a “professional” (professor, attorney, etc.) or obtaining a college degree in this culture is somehow evidence of intact intellectual and social functioning.

Type IV Error: An individual who commits a significant portion of her or his life to achieving the status of “world’s best” at some attribute or ability is somehow “successful”, well-adjusted, healthy or admirable, as opposed to disordered.

Choose one or more of the above absurdities to advance, then enter thread.

are healthy drives and unmet needs, along with distorted views of commitment and fearful entrapment by social norms and expectations.

Something more substantial, more empowering, grounded in sound principles of the human psyche and potential for growth, yet entirely readable, is The Four Agreements by Miguel Ruiz. It’s a start.

From those usefully constructed profane lies metastasize the pathology that you will use to transform your Nation’s acts of arbitrary terror and mass killing into rationalizations for more death, destruction, and ruined lives, all for lack of courage and will.

What is this “war” your bold generals are executing? How did it start?

There is, of course no “war”, explaining the good American’s desperate need to create the lie that begets the next lie - “ . . . . these tragic costs of the war, . . .”. Now we have constructed not only a “war” – some conflict that just must be fought - but now with a justification where none can ever exist, because after all ”costs” are always paid for the sake of something, some good or end. Metastasis.

All that’s left now is to get your god on Our Side.

Killing to save face – it’s not just for Republicans anymore.

There’s no need for confusion or sense of opacity here:

What's hugely upsetting to me is the promise of more U.S. troops in Afghanistan. I thought that was just a campaign theme for national security fetishists, but Obama appears to mean it and, my god, what a horrible idea.

in the face of ample evidence for both a) cynical lying and posturing for votes and b) intellectual deficits of a degree consistent with beliefs that this could be a viable and successful approach.

Wholly consistent with its presenting pathology and lack of insight, Team America likely sincerely experiences the gratuitous killings as win-win.

whose esteem and standing will become even more solid, I believe, if he is able to integrate rather than minimize apparently credible contentions that Mr. Moyers, however important and on-target his work has been, has exhibited some very maladaptive judgment and behaviors (that seem more serious than “snooping”, link at sig) in the past.

The antidote to tribalism and its consequences includes evaluating events and behaviors without distortions of loyalty and the us versus other template, especially when the potential payoff of reciprocal validation and support tempts us to do otherwise.

Not listening to New Leader.

Thank goodness the chewing-out they’ll get is going to be from a Constitutional Scholar. That shall rectify this anomalous oversight forthwith, and make America proud and hopeful once more.