Letters Remain

Tag: fear

  • The 50th Law

    Power is greater than happiness, contends Robert Greene inĀ an online discussion with Eliezer Yudkowsky about Fear, Power and Mortality (quality summary thereof), as happiness is fleeting and unremitting. Also discussed in this conversation is strategistĀ Robert Greene’s latest book, The 50th Law: 10 Lessons in Fearlessness, which is the result of an unlikely collaboration with hip…

  • Working With Children – Fear & False Accusations

    This news report comes as no surprise. While in the past, adults would have helped children in distress or rebuked those misbehaving, there was now “a feeling that it is best not to become involved”, it said. Report author Prof Frank Furedi, of Kent University, said: “From Girl Guiders to football coaches, from Christmas-time Santas…

  • Why We Scream

    The Telegraph looks at Why We Scream: We all have a core set of five facial muscles that control our ability to produce standard expressions which convey anger, happiness, surprise, fear, sadness and disgust. But there are up to 19 muscles present in the face, and many people do not possess all of them. The…

  • 10 Ways We Get Things Wrong

    Psychology Today has an interesting article on fear, probability, and how we get things wrong. It’s not a very scannable article, so here’s an executive summary: We Fear Snakes, Not Cars – Risk and emotion are inseparable We Fear Spectacular, Unlikely Events – Fear skews risk analysis in predictable ways We Fear Cancer But Not…

  • Another Example of Middle-East Ignorance

    Dunkin’ Donuts removes ‘terror scarf’ ad – The US chain Dunkin’ Donuts has pulled an advert following complaints that the scarf worn by a celebrity chef offered symbolic support for Islamic extremism. She was wearing a black-and-white checked scarf around her neck that resembled a traditional Arab keffiyeh. This fashion choice incensed at least one…

  • Unsubscribe from Human Rights Abuse

    Unsubscribe is an Amnesty International campaign asking you to ‘unsubscribe’ from the human rights abuses undertaken around the world in your name. Illegal detention and torture are just two of the acts that are common place in the so-called ‘War on Terror’, and guilty or not, people deserve better treatment than what they currently get…

  • Overestimating Threats Against Children

    Bruce Schneier recently wrote about the MySpace ‘safeguards’ being put in place to protect minors. His very succinct closing comments are a must-read. …there isn’t really any problem with child predators — just a tiny handful of highly publicized stories — on MySpace. It’s just security theatre against a movie-plot threat. But we humans have…

  • The Fear Hierarchy

    Jan Pettit’s list of fears, ranked from childhood through parenthood. I’m currently somewhere between 13 and 17: 13. Fear of selling out Deserting dreams. Embracing capitalism. 14. Fear of the dark (continued) Parking lots at night. Deserted streets at night. Apartments at night. Houses at night. Bedrooms at night. 15. Fear of rejection (continued) By…

  • Tragedies ‘Warping Government Policy’

    Good to see someone in power and in the public eye stating this for the record. Government policy is often badly formed because it is drawn up in response to tragedies and problems, the Government’s new head of risk management has said (Sam Coates writes). Rick Haythornthwaite, head of the Risk and Regulation Advisory Council,…