Dissident’s Arrest Hints at Olympic Crackdown by Jim Yardley, NYTimes.

The doomed conversation began like this:

AndreaHarner.com: I'm having trouble with an incoming wire transfer from Austria.

AndreaHarner.com: Aren't you the bank?

More and more I see how growing up in Japan has handicapped me when dealing with the rest of the incompetent world.

Loved this article and the research question asked. The judges will surely squirm, at the very least, when the full article is published next month in the Tulane Law Review!

For those of you curious about what I've been learning at school, this is a cursory but good summary of psychopathy.

* via Scientific American Mind.

Jonah had it a few days ago and surprise now I have it.

People who describe themselves as being politically liberal can better suppress a habitual response when faced with situations in which that response is incorrect, according to research that used a simple cognitive test to compare liberal and conservative thinkers. Tasks that require such “conflict monitoring” also triggered more activity in the liberals’ anterior cingulate cortex, a brain region geared to detect and respond to conflicting information.

The study’s lead author, psychologist David Amodio of New York University, emphasizes that the findings do not mean that political views are predetermined. “There are a lot of steps be­tween conflict monitoring and political ideology, and we don’t know what those steps are,” he says. Although the neurocognitive process his group measured is so basic that it is most likely in place in early childhood, he notes that “the whole brain is very malleable.” Social relation­ships and other environmental factors also shape one’s political leanings.

* via Scientific American Mind January/February 08

* via PsyBlog.

While in the Bay Area over the holidays, Annie Maxwell so awesomely drove up from Santa Barbara to hang out with us! However, she not so awesomely bet against our fish parenting skills. Over dinner she bet that one of our three fish would be dead upon our return to NYC. It was a $10 bet and we were very serious about it. Who ended up winning the bet? The answer lays within this little piece of mail I received about 10 days after the bet.

LOLOLOLOL.

The short story of Clark Gable's stepson.

Trailer:

Dip the Brita pitcher gently...GENTLY!! all the while muttering soothing sayings like, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, fishies..."

Once CAPTURED!, gaze at them through the embossed Brita logo and ponder if they know what's happening:

Do not forget to bring at least a third of their tank water. Be prepared for your hubby to complain about how heavy the water is and for you to grab it out of his hands and carry it yourself and to wake up sore the next morning.

LOCK THEM IN in case of nasty fall which would be their certain death:

Embody a loving and optimistic attitude as you embark on their transport:

The scene at his 421 Broome St. apartment at 6 pm last night.

For all the latest, check out BuzzFeed.

* Thanks again for the gems, CP!

* Thanks Chelsea!

I may have to take a field trip to my high school to learn something!

* Thanks to my MnL for the link!

Introducing cuteness! Flocke the dog and Felix the rabbit:

* Thanks to Kristoffer Kaspersen for the photos!

Andrea Spratt's bunny Nigel/Nigelina/Nigelingers in stripes:

These two things:

1) While driving in Berkeley last month we watched a woman drive towards us with her dog in the passenger seat, lean over, kiss her pooch and continue driving without missing a beat.

2) Just a few minutes ago while walking back from the beach in Santa Monica to the car, I saw an older lady walking her dog and when her dog stopped walking for a few seconds she looked around then bent down and kissed her pup. There was no one but me when she looked around so I can only guess she sensed that I would understand. She was right.

Purpose of trip is to check out Scientology's Celebrity Centre. JK JK!!

We're going to Tom Cruise's.

Back to NYC on Sunday.
Toodles!

Ruined lives. Lost fortunes. Federal crimes. Scientology poses as a religion but really is a ruthless global scam -- and aiming for the mainstream.

I just started perusing this story and this autobiography (both available online in their entirety and for free!) sent to Paulette Cooper in solidarity (see below) and they already promise to be like the Jim Jones memoir I devoured: Seductive Poison.

Incredible story.

The book the Scientologists tried to stop: The Scandal of Scientology.

From this article are some snippets - the first of which is my favorite idea in a long time and crossing my fingers it's true!!

Of the bizarre beliefs Morton ascribes to some Scientologists about Cruise's third wife, Katie Holmes, whom the actor married in a whirlwind romance, the author says, incredibly: "Some Sea Org fanatics even wondered if the actress had been impregnated with Hubbard's frozen sperm.

Morton recounts allegations that "auditing" focuses on the subject's sex life. He quotes Hubbard's son, Ronald De Wolf, who fell out with his father, giving a Playboy interview: "You have complete control of someone if you have every detail of his sex life and fantasy life on record. In Scientology the focus is on sex. Sex, sex, sex. "The first thing we wanted to know about someone we were auditing was his sexual deviations. All you've got to do is find a person's kinks, whatever they might be. "Their dreams and their fantasies. Then you can fit a ring through their noses and take them anywhere. You promise to fulfill their fantasies or you threaten to expose them."

* Thanks to Chelsea for the link!

WOW. It's plain to see how the Church of Scientology has become so powerful - congrats, guys! It's brainwashed their followers into being suspicious of and antagonistic towards any non-believers. Their identities seem to be rooted in singling out dissenters who could only be such SPs (Suppressive Person - thanks, L. Ron) because they must be hiding some deep dark secret! Plus, they relentlessly spew rhetoric of how they are about positivity when all the while they are acting negatively - brilliant! Here's a depressing thought for you: Think of alllllll the money the Church of Scientology has and how it's not being spent on things like education and health care.

Definition of Enturbulate.

Wow. I first read this BBC article and watched the accompanying video in which John Sweeney, the BBC reporter investigating the Church of Scientology, loses out. Then I watched the following video and now feel immense sympathy for his wholly understandable freak-out. The steadfast refusal of Scientologists to engage in debate or even a two-way conversation is infuriating even just to watch - I can't imagine taking part in it. Their attempts to replace the authority of the field of psychiatry with their own are laughable but in fact they are pernicious. Enjoy this frightful video:

As you may know, BuzzFeed asks bloggers if they've written about trends that have been covered by BuzzFeed. Some comic relief amidst the realization that Scientologists are taking over:

YAY NICK!!!!! YOU MUST WATCH THIS VIDEO.

You have to see this movie. Preferably with a male companion. Saw it last night and it's pretty great. Not sure why my crotch feels vulnerable but...well you'll see. Congrats to Mitchell, who is a friend of friends, for a fantastic job! And thanks to Susan for the invite - was certainly a memorable date!

I am delighted my friend Eric was so right on when he suggested I read this book. It is written by an investigative journalist and delivers a thoughtful glimpse into our criminal court system by shadowing one judge and highlighting the stories of a handful of people that come into contact with this judge and his courtroom. I read it straight through on our flight to California for the holidays and finished it on the flight back. If this book interests you I am certain you will also enjoy another book written from a similar investigative and sociological perspective: Our Guys.

Kenyatta ruled as a chicken:

This is a very good article on the struggles of raising rich kids and it begins like this: "America’s burgeoning money culture is producing a record number of heirs—but handing down values is harder than handing down wealth."

Quotes:

Recently, I phoned Andrew Solomon, heir to a substantial pharmaceutical fortune and author of the beautiful depression memoir The Noonday Demon, and asked if he’d discuss the psychological effects of inherited wealth. In the most gracious way, he declined. I pointed out that in his book, he was willing to talk about a depression so profound he attempted to contract HIV in order to have a reason to kill himself; yet he was too shy, on the phone, to talk about his inheritance. Why was that?

“I just met this morning with a very sharp 48-year-old,” says Charles Collier, author of Wealth in Families and senior philanthropic adviser at Harvard University. “And he said to me, ‘I don’t want my children to be entitled, but I want to have a jet. I came from nothing. Haven’t I earned my jet?’” (Family advisers to the megarich say you’d be amazed how often this comes up, this question about private jets. Anxious business executives raise their hands in almost every seminar about it, seeking expiation.) And perhaps this fellow has earned his jet. But his children haven’t. The problem with money, as he doubtless discovered, is that it sets up its own paradox: Hard work may yield it, but growing up with it often discourages hard work.

Have you ever considered that gyaru girls are normal and we are weird????!!!

For more on Gyaru Girls including videos click here

I loved every minute of last semester (minus paper-writing and test-taking stress) and looking forward to my second semester which will consist of these classes:

Among the several special events Oxford had planned for us (as part of the Silicon Valley Comes to Oxford event) was a tour of the world-famous Bodleian Library which was indeed awe-inspiring!

* Tracy, CA is where to be for Xmas!!!
** Thanks for the photo, JLa!! Beautiful models must have made your job pretty easy. LOLOLOLOLOL!