Thursday, November 30, 2023

The Nixon tapes remind us what a vile creature Henry Kissinger is.

After I published my book calling for his indictment, many of Kissinger's apologists said that, rough though his methods might have been, they were at least directed at defeating Communism. I never quite saw how the genocide in East Timor, say, had any effect in eroding the Berlin Wall. But I also pointed out that Kissinger did many favors for the heirs of Stalin and Mao: telling President Gerald Ford not to invite Alexander Solzhenitsyn to the White House, for example, and making lavish excuses for the massacre in Tiananmen Square. He is that rare and foul beast, a man whose record shows sympathy for communism and fascism. It comes from a natural hatred of the democratic process, which he has done so much to subvert and undermine at home and abroad, and an instinctive affection for totalitarians of all stripes. True, full membership in this bestiary probably necessitates that you say something at least vicariously approving about the Final Solution. What's striking about the Nixon tapes is that they show Kissinger managing this ugly feat without anyone even asking him. May my seasonal call be heeded: Let this character at last be treated like the reeking piece of ordure that he is.
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2010/12/the-nixon-tapes-remind-us-what-a-vile-creature-henry-kissinger-is.html

_- Steve

Saturday, November 25, 2023

Personality – Helen Fisher, PhD

https://helenfisher.com/personality/

_- Steve

Dating types

https://www.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/chasing-life/episodes/8b5b4ccc-4c23-11ee-92af-239a1afdd024

People who were very high scoring on the traits in the dopamine system -- risk taking, novelty seeking, curious, creative, spontaneous, energetic, mentally flexible people -- go for people like themselves. They want that energy, curiosity, creativity. So that's one. I call these people, explorers. People were very high on the serotonin system, they tend to be traditional, conventional. Follow the rules. Respect authority. Detail oriented. Tend to be religious. Religiosity is in the serotonin system. These people also go for people like themselves. Traditional conventional people who follow rules, respect authority, detail oriented, want people like themselves.

'High testosterone people, I call them directors, not a great term. They go for negotiators. The high estrogen. People who are very high on the testosterone -- this can be women as well as men -- analytical, logical, direct, decisive, tough minded, skeptical. Good at what scientists call rule based systems, from engineering to math to mechanics to music. These people tend to go for their opposite, the high estrogen. I call these negotiators. Negotiators tend to be verbally skilled people skills, very contextual, holistic, synthetic, long term thinkers. They're very imaginative. They're very intuitive, They're trusting. So the bottom line is we all express all four of these systems.

— Helen Fisher is a biological anthropologist and the chief science adviser to Match.com.


_- Steve

Thursday, November 23, 2023

THE ATLANTIC: Trump Crosses a Crucial Line


Trump Crosses a Crucial Line
But Americans can still choose a better path.

Read in The Atlantic: https://apple.news/AcRFhjM3IQH6f1Dptw8W7Wg


Shared from Apple News


_- Steve

25 Popular Films That Can Be Identified With Single Quote



25 Popular Films That Can Be Identified With Single Quote
https://wealthofgeeks.com/popular-films-that-can-be-identified-with-single-quote/

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https://flip.it/LhLhJo

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_- Steve