Tag Archives: society

Culture, Marriage & Parenting

Ashley Madison’s Not-So-Sexy Secret

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Noel Biderman really wants you to have an affair.  So much so that he has made illicit passion his life’s passion.

Lest you think Noel is just a benevolent benefactor, tirelessly working to help bring infidelity to your doorstop,  I should point out that Noel is financially incentivized to encourage you to cheat on your spouse. More specifically, Noel makes money if you choose (1) to break your marriage vows, and (2) to utilize his company–Ashley Madison–to do so.   Continue reading Ashley Madison’s Not-So-Sexy Secret →

Christianity, Politics

Matt Walsh Doesn’t Respect the Office of the President, But He Should

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Blogger Matt Walsh published a post yesterday entitled, “I don’t respect the president or his office, and neither should you.” Matt’s premise—as the title makes abundantly clear—is that we should not feel obligated to “respect the office” of the President.  Actually, he goes a step further by affirmatively arguing we should not respect it.

I won’t recap the whole post—if you want to read it for yourself, I imagine he would appreciate your visit. But here are a few highlights (lowlights?) that caught my eye: Continue reading Matt Walsh Doesn’t Respect the Office of the President, But He Should →

Culture

Mozilla: Champion of Equality…Some Restrictions Apply

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Mozilla co-founder Brendan Eich–the guy who created JavaScript–resigned yesterday as CEO from the Mozilla Corporation and from the board of the nonprofit foundation that wholly owns the company.

Here are some of the reasons he did not resign:

Incidentally, the various company founders and/or CEOs who did the things described above retained their positions.
Continue reading Mozilla: Champion of Equality…Some Restrictions Apply →

Culture

Breaking Up with Valentine’s Day

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You know that pit in your stomach when you know you have to end a relationship but you are dreading the moment?

Will the other person yell at you, cry incessantly, sit silently without uttering a word . . . .  I suppose if you dated a certain popular songwriter, you’d also have to wonder if she will be penning a song about your relationship in the months to come.  There is also the nagging question: “Am I doing the right thing?”

When I sat across from Valentine (“Val”) a few weeks ago at a quaint little French bistro, I had none of these concerns.  I had outgrown her, and not only did she have a right to hear why, she needed to know why.  The conversation went something like this:
Continue reading Breaking Up with Valentine’s Day →

Culture

No One Is Watching Your Facebook Movie

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Lately my Facebook news feed is inundated with posts that say “Here’s my Facebook movie. Find yours at https://facebook.com/lookback/.”

I confess, I watched the first one that popped up, because I wanted to see generally what they looked like.  And then I watched mine.   That was sufficient.

Don’t get me wrong, I completely understand the appeal of watching a compilation of  milestone events in your life, and to the extent those milestone events occurred on (or were captured by) Facebook, that’s great.  But what I don’t understand is why any of us would be under the delusion that others would feel the same intense longing to watch a video recap of our Facebook experience.

Agree?  Disagree?  Let me know.

Culture, Marriage & Parenting

Why My Wife’s Job Is Harder Than Mine

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I work at a large, top-200 law firm in one of the ten most populous cities in the country. The hours can be grueling, there are constant deadlines, and the work is mentally demanding.  Any partner in my particular practice area can assign me work, which means I have more than 30 potential bosses.  At any given time, I am working on projects for three to five partners, all of whom believe that their assignment should take priority over any other work.  As a result, there have been many long days (and long nights).

Moreover, being a lawyer at a large firm is a high-stress endeavor.  Even small mistakes can have significant implications and, as a result, tensions can run high.  And of course, because excellence is expected, partners are unlikely to give much positive feedback for a job well done; instead, the reward for good work is more work.

It doesn’t get much better when I venture outside my office.  Lawyers are often the butt of jokes, and society, in general, has little regard for my profession.   In fact, 34% of Americans say that “lawyers contribute little to nothing to society“?

I do not share this to complain or to engender any sympathy. I’m well compensated for my work and am grateful for the opportunity to work at my firm.  My point is simply that the position of “associate” at a major law firm is generally regarded as a very difficult job. With that said, I make the following observation with great confidence: my wife’s job is harder.
Continue reading Why My Wife’s Job Is Harder Than Mine →

Christianity, Culture

Duck Dynasty Star Shot Down By A&E

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The news of Phil Robertson’s suspension is all over the internet.  The twitterverse is abuzz.  Lost in many of the stories and tweets is the full text of his relevant comments to GQ, so let’s start with those:

“It seems like, to me, a vagina—as a man—would be more desirable than a man’s anus. That’s just me. I’m just thinking: There’s more there! She’s got more to offer. I mean, come on, dudes! You know what I’m saying? But hey, sin: It’s not logical, my man. It’s just not logical.”
. . .
Continue reading Duck Dynasty Star Shot Down By A&E →

Culture

Driving the Wrong Way?

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Overheard in my office today:

I’m italian…I have rage, I’m going to end up in trouble some day. You should hear me when I drive, I curse like a sailor.

This matronly woman (in age and appearance, not behavior), proceded to justify her attitude toward other drivers and to recount with glee the tactics she utilizes to prevent other cars from merging into her lane. If it isn’t perfectly clear already, the tone of her monologue was boastful, not remorseful.

C.S. Lewis once said:

Human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and can’t really get rid of it.

I wonder if we, as a society, are starting to shed that little voice.

Culture

Black Friday

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People are already talking about Black Friday at the office, or as I like to call it, “The Dark Day After The Thankful Day Where We Wait In Long Lines Push People Out Of The Way And Spend Without Conscience, Often Using Money We Either Don’t Have Or Could Better Use, All In An Effort To Try And Synthesize Happiness Instead Of Focusing On The Blessings All Around Us.”

Disclaimer/Explanation:  And yes, I get that it is possible to find some great deals and that there are sometimes good, and even financially sound, reasons for hunting for the Black Friday deals, and I admit that I have definitely taken advantage of such deals, BUT I also think that is often not the case and it is often just an excuse to satisfy our wants. In other words, it often is not – “oh, I’ve been planning on getting a such-and-such and I can get it for 50% off”, but rather, “let’s go out and buy a bunch of crap – after all, it’s on sale!”

The sad reality is that the day AFTER Thanksgiving has–for many–become the most important day of that weekend, at the expense of Thanksgiving and the attitude of gratitude that it is meant to cultivate.   (Similarly to how Christmas has in many ways become more about “what am I gonna get” or even “what am I gonna give” instead of commemorating and celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, but that’s a topic for a different post in about a month!)

Disclaimer/Explanation 2:  Yes, I realize the disclaimer/explanation part was longer than the substance of the post.