News is bad for you – and giving up reading it will make you happier

Post by segmondy » Mon, Apr 15, 2013, 6:48 PM UTC

edw519 wrote: post #187

With 7 billion people in the world, it's very likely that these things will happen today: - someone will get killed in a horrible car accident - a child will be killed in a freak accident - someone will die from cancer, leaving much grieving behind - someone will molest a child - someone will lose all their money in a scam - someone will get raped - someone will be killed by a never-to-be-found hit-and-run drunk driv…

  - someone got killed in a horrible car accident (friend)
  - two people died from cancer, leaving much grieving behind (aunt, mother of sister's friend)
  - someone lost all their money in a scam (friend)
  - someone got killed by a never-to-be-found hit-and-run drunk driver (friend)
  - someone will beat a woman (neighbor)
  - someone got be murdered (someone i've met at a bar)
  - my favorite teams lost (three of them, NFL, NBA, NCAA)

Post by Paul_D_Santana » Mon, Apr 15, 2013, 8:23 PM UTC

Skibb wrote: post #177

Paul_D_Santana wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes! Definitely! It is such an incredibly excellent book. I listened to the Audible version twice in one month (26 hours in total). I think everyone should check it out, at least for the alternate viewpoints on doing things. I actually wrote about this on my own site (link in my profile). On topic, I absolutely love the part in the book that says " Replace reading the newspaper over breakfast or dinner with activitie…

Tim, it's ok, we get it, you love your own book. Calm down babe. ;) Joking aside, the book has some very interesting ideas and personally has inspired me to seek change in my professional and personal life. Although, a blueprint everyone can follow word by word it's not.

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Apr 15, 2013, 8:49 PM UTC

Zelphyr wrote: post #214

bluedino wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Think about it this way - what if someone is being raped every day in the parking ramp at your office, or murdered on the street you ride your bike to work each morning? If you heard about it on the news, you could change your route to work or ride with a buddy to increase your safety.

Nobody is going to be raped in the parking ramp at your office EVERY DAY. It may happen once but statistically it'll never happen again in that location. Someone may be murdered on the street you ride your bike to work each morning. And, unless you live in Compton its unlikely to ever happen again. And if you do live in Compton why the hell are you riding your bike to work through a war zone you moron?! :) But lets j…

Post by Peaker » Mon, Apr 15, 2013, 10:31 PM UTC

irclover wrote: post #138

greenyoda wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the article (written in 2006), Aaron Swartz wrote: "This seems to be true, but the curious thing is that I’m never involved. The government commits a crime, the New York Times prints it on the front page, the people on the cable chat shows foam at the mouth about it, the government apologizes and commits the crime more subtly. It’s a valuable system — I certainly support the government being more subtle about comm…

Seriously? Is that what happened? Completely unprovoked, the government did something bad? I kinda read that he broke the law and the government were prosecuting him for it.

Post by gadders » Mon, Apr 15, 2013, 10:44 PM UTC

greenyoda wrote: post #226

irclover wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously? Is that what happened? Completely unprovoked, the government did something bad? I kinda read that he broke the law and the government were prosecuting him for it.

The sentence they gave him seemed to have been way out of proportion to the crime he committed, and the time and taxpayer dollars that the federal prosecutor spent on him could have been spent on more significant crimes that actually put citizens in danger. So yes, I think the government did do something pretty bad here.