I ghostwrote the book "How to Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life" by Art Linkletter and Mark Victor Hansen (buy a copy and slide a quarter into a po' writer's pocket, wouldja?), and in the research for that book, I found many things that contributed to a long vitality. That's the issue: living until 100 and dancing the tango until 98, then declining fast with no time for the humiliation of identity loss or lameness.

Exercise, balanced diet, weight control, having a purpose, keeping a sharp and active mind, having a circle of friends--all have been proven to extend the vital time of life. While CR may extend the quantity of life, it does not necessarily extend its quality, and it does not address the major issues of attitude, sense of passion and purpose, or mental and brain health that also affect length and quality of life.

CR is one approach to a critical question: how do we live as long and well as possible? It's not the only answer.

It's wonderful to see Salon peering into the non-reductive side of the debate over the nature of consciousness. There are so many mysteries surrounding the ephemeral nature of "I" that to reduce them to the purely mechanistic workings of neurotransmitters seems absurd. Truth has rarely suited our common sense notions of what "should" be true. Need I remind readers of the nature of relativity when Einstein uncovered it in the early 20th century (surely proof that his was perhaps the greatest visionary mind of its or any time)? Newtonian laws of motion governed everything and made sense to us, yet here came a patent clerk telling us that time was not absolute, that if you traveled fast enough it would slow down, just for you? Reality rarely conforms to what is supposed to be true.

Science is a method, not a belief system. And to keep an open mind and investigate the myriad possibilities for concsiousness, with an eye on evidence of psi phenomena and out of body experience, is not mysticism nor a backsliding into superstition, as so many scientists seem to fear. It is good science, and it is reason.

Reincarnation and non-physical consciousness may not be true. Or they may. Or some middle ground may be the truth that we cannot imagine. But an open inquiry into the topic, led by the wisdom of Buddhism which predates both Christianity and Islam, seems to be a marvelous path to follow, opening doors to wonders of mind and spirit. It is only when we close our minds and say "No, I know the answers. I need not ask further." that we lose as a people.

Bout damn time somebody started showing the Resident the withering disrespect and contempt he has earned. Webb has it 100% right: the institution deserves respect. The man deserves nothing but scorn and loathing.

Makes my engine purr. Kate is delish.

ARROGANCE.

The arrogance of a man who's never had to face consequences for anything in his life, thanks to family connections. Somehow, all things just work out for me, don't they Dad?

Not in the real world, son.

I've been a Southern Californian for all of my almost 42 years, and my wife's not even from the state. Yet only a few months ago, mentally adrift from the beach town we thought would be our home for 20 years, we both realized at the same time where we needed to resettle and raise our two small children: San Francisco. Like that great Tribune column that says, "Live in San Francisco, but leave before it makes you soft," we plan to discover the city and its wonders for ourselves. It's as if we have always wanted to be there, were meant to be there. We don't know where just yet, but we're thrilled to finally be surrendering to the siren song.

Emphasis on the word "blown."

JoAnne:

Just for your information, Einstein was the one who referred to quantum action at a distance as "spooky."

Holly, I'm with you. My contract with Cingular ended two days ago (I drank a large beer in celebration) and I've been looking forward to fleeing that lame-ass company for months. Then...doh! I find out that Apple has roped their sexy new device to...the Evil Empire!

I'm a craven slave to all things Apple, I admit it. I would crawl on my lips over broken glass to hand Steve J. my $599 for the 8 GB iPhone, but with Cingular? Ugh. Tough choice.

Better yet, I could wait until version 2 or 3, when the screen will be smudge proof and the price will have come down $200.

It's very sad that James Kim died, and his father's efforts are, of course, in part an expression of grief. But the only people to blame for his son's death are, to be brutally honest, James Kim and his wife. They made a series of extremely unwise decisions that got them into a dangerous predicament: turning onto a tertiary road in bad weather, traveling in winter without adequate supplies, failing to turn back when it became clear they were out of their depth, etc.

The world is so connected now that many people feel that as long as they have a cell phone, they cannot get into too much trouble. Ask park rangers at mountainous parks how many tired climbers call them to be rescued from slopes they never should have tackled in the first place. Technology is never a substitute for good sense. In winter driving, you always take supplies, you always travel major arteries where help passes by regularly, and when in doubt, you change your plans, hole up and wait out darkness or bad weather.

I have only condolences for the Kim family, and hope others can learn from their poor decision making.