I came here just to say that. I had a college classmate who just as Joey Essex... and he has brilliant. Truly one of the smartest people I have met in life. To this day, people from college still doubt that his grades were legit - they just can't believe that they are legit. Because for them, it is impossible for a…

Just a note: I have found too this "materialistic" streak in some scientists. Materialism understood more as extreme pragmatism rather than superficiality. Some of them had a very evident disdain for everything that does not render immediate and usable results: social sciences, humanities, the arts, etc. Not everyone…

You are pretty much describing the Champions League. Look, don't waste your time with the Bundesliga, it is a snoozefest. Italy's Serie A was great in the 90's - it is not what it used to be, but it is worth a look. La liga is so boring right now - just follow the big games. The EPL is the shit. It is impossible to…

Was this all free for the groom and bride? Yes? Then I am all over it. Weddings are so ridiculously expensive and stressful that I wouldn't even mind getting married in a TV set if I could avoid all these wedding expenses nonsense. I know it is not oh so romantic, but I was never the kind of person that has a "perfect…

I think the issue is, however, that we are all terrible at preventing these conditions form happening. Not just obesity, it is smoking, not going to the doctor on time, not taking care of yourself after surgery, self-medicating, not taking care of your dental health and a very loooooong etcetera. It is definitely…

So true. Actually, there was an article here a while a go about men thinking more than women about romance with opposite sex friends.

Yup, the impression that I get with that line of thinking is that some people tend to freak out when this "passionate love" phase is starting to fade. To them, it is a sign that their relationship is not working anymore. So, they end it. They don't wait around and see it change to companionate love. They date someone…

My ex-boyfriend's mom was really into astrology and she made my chart once. She had a couple of special computer programs to do the math and all that. It was okay-ish - I don't believe in astrology at all, so I thought that it was just the same generalities that you read in a random magazine. Plus, she knew me well so…

+1

Totally. In general, I think trade skills are so underrated.

Of course it isn't. You pay it through your taxes. If Mexico can afford public day care and pre-school for all working parents, I don't see why the US can't do the same thing

I agree with you about shooting in the country vs. the city, but there is also a fine line that is easy to cross. Exhibit A: Anne V in Guanxi with the Chinese man. It reminded me of that ANTM episode, where they were shooting in a Brazilian favela: sexy American models, wearing couture, in an impoverished neighborhood…

I agree with you to some extent. It is pretty ridiculous to think that they just grabbed the first man in a loincloth they could find and make him stand there through gestures and grunts. That idea alone is pretty insulting and I can see why you think this is hypocritical. He probably belongs to the ethnicity he is…

Nope. I like you, you are cool. I am just like this. It is a totally unnecessary day. What are we supposed to do on Valentine's day? Go have a fancy dinner? (My husband and I are quite fond of food so we eat out a lot) Go on a little trip? (He works for an online travel agency - we could use his discount any time we…

In fairness to you, it was a pretty ridiculous thing to say. Lena wasn't talking to my mother (Mrs. Who is Kim Kardashian?/Angelina Jolie has been married before?!), she was talking to Alec Baldwin. I am pretty positive that he knows who Riri is.

Context matters here though. She was talking to Alec Baldwin. He probably knows who Rihanna is, but Lena probably thought that, Alec being an "old", he might have needed some clarification.

There is definitely a racial element in here, no doubt. Fassbender, Penn and Gibson have never received this kind of backlash and people do seem to be more forgiving (and forgetful) when it comes to their past transgressions. However, I think that a lot of the attention they are getting is due to a) their age b) their…

Precisely. I think silence would be even worse in the long run. People don't really hate Rihanna. They aren't blaming her either. I think everyone wants her to do better, to be safer, to find someone who loves her and respects her. What rubs people the wrong way is that attitude that you mention. This whole: "this is…

That's the thing though - knowing a lot of Orthodox Jews, Reform Jews aren't really Jewish. It just like all those Catholics that still think that Lutherans, Presbyterians, etc. are not real Christians either. For them, they are just not the same religion. That's why I think that the issue is more complicated than…

Well, the Hitler Youth and the BDM were kind of a mixture between the Boy/Girl Scouts, a sports club, and a charitable organization. They weren't really ideological Nazis or Nazi reservists (until the very end, when older boys were forced to fight; if they refused, they were hanged on the spot). It was just a…