No, You’re Wrong. Actually . . .

I catalog scams and urban legends. Misconceptions about illegal drugs and health-related issues. Basically any subject where I might overhear someone say something naive or ignorant and can jump in with an: “Actually, that’s a common misconception. The truth is . . .” I swear that isn’t the motivation, but there is a switch that flips in my brain when I’m faced with misinformation that I know better about. I just can’t help being a know-it-all.

These situations come up weekly, on average – depending on how often I put myself in social situations. A couple in the last week frustrated me more than usual. The first came at work. Someone mentioned Halloween, and one of my (young) co-workers mentioned how sad it is that people put razor blades and poison into Halloween candy that they distribute to children. Chances are, unless you have an affinity for urban legends, you believe this poisonification of Halloween to be true as well.

Being Bright in a Dim World

In the fourth or fifth grade, a classmate brought it to the teacher’s attention that the product of 9×1 through 9×10 results in a number with digits that add up to 9. The teacher was so amazed that she spent several minutes explaining the phenomenon to us, praising the student who discovered it. I don’t recall exactly when I noticed the pattern myself, but I believe it was the first time I saw a times table that went up to 9. This was the first time I realized, “hey, I might be smarter than my teacher.”

I was a very well-behaved young boy, accepting teacher authority without question. My (first) run-in with illogical feminism was in 5th grade, when the teacher insisted that girls and boys are 100% equal – including equal performance in athletics. We were “forced” to integrate our lunchtime games, something we had been doing since preschool without being told. In the midst of this foray into gender equality, the teacher set up several special rules that only applied to the girls to give them an advantage.

Rationalization in Action: Spending Outside the Budget

Part of my initial budgeting assumed I would steer clear of expensive toys, but I want a new computer. The initial plan was to get a cheap machine that would fit my base needs, but it makes so much more sense to spend more and get more.

As a one-time heavy drinker, I am well-acquainted with the concept of rationalization. Let’s take a look into the justification for buying something I cannot afford:

1) I’ll be using it to make money, therefore it will pay for itself!
2) Although I already have a functional laptop, the office-like setup of a desktop/monitor/desk/chair would enhance my productivity and keep me focused.
3) I’m tired of ruining my back using my laptop on my bed. If I’m going to be using a computer all the time, a more ergonomic approach would be smart.

Mid-Month Expense Report

Goal: spend less than $1600
Total spent to date: $1350

$821 – rent, utilities, gas, food
$76 – withdrawn in cash ($24 remaining)
$191 – Vitamin Shoppe: half on meal replacements, half on multi-month supplement supplies
$91 – hair and prescription drugs
$98 – renewal to The Economist
$85 – Fall donation to The Cause

Subprime Bail-outs?

Hell no. At least, that’s my instinctual response. This should be handled by economics, not emotion. While analyzing issues like this, I can easily picture myself as a curmudgeonly old conservative bemoaning the decline of personal responsibility while harboring a deep-seated hatred towards those who turned me into a liberal patsy during my youthful days. Here’s a host of quotes from The Economist, Sept. 8th-14th 2007:

“So it is easy to see why the call for more regulation is tempting. But it is also easy to descend into caricature, portraying borrowers as victims of villainous banks, brokers, rating agencies and hedge funds. By one estimate, half of all subprime borrowers lied about their income. Many chose to ignore the risk that house prices might fall. Heaping all the blame on Wall Street and its clients ignores the role of broader forces.” (p.15)

“Over 2m Americans – many of them poor and black – face sharply higher mortgage payments over the next year or so, as the low introductory rates on their loans reset. A lot of these people could lose their homes. If the economy slows and overall house prices fall by the 15% of more that some Wall Street seers are now predicting, the problem could spread far beyond the weakest borrowers.”

Let’s All Go to the Army!

9/11/07, 18:00 hours. Cold-called by Irvine-based U.S. Army recruiter. His dossier on me came from the university. Set up a meeting with him Thursday, 12:00 hours. Realized later the “coincidence” of being called on 9/11. It bothers me, but I’ll let it slide – you have to use the tools you have to fight a global war on terror.

He asked if I had graduated. I said yes, despite it not being official yet. First military cold-call since high school… are they going after college graduates, or did it just take them 8 years to get around to my name? I don’t intend to sign up, but I’m not wasting time. I don’t know anything about Army career options. I don’t know what incentives they’re offering. A handful of Generals have quit lately – maybe I can be one if I ace the entrance exam? The recruiter has information I want, and it’s his job to give it to me.

A full debriefing will follow, if I survive this mission…

Ralphs Shopping Trip – 9/11

Nothing beats walking through a grocery store while hungry with gaping holes in your mouth that prevent you from eating 99% of surrounding products. The tooth issues that led to this situation have kept me from eating certain foods over the last couple weeks, resulting in $20-30 in food spoilage. Not particularly happy about that, but I made it up with today’s shopping trip.

Ralphs is running a buy combination of 15 selected items, get $5 back deal. For some reason I received 3 of these $5 rebates, which makes up for past mistakes Ralphs has made in my search for savings.

Total spent: $43
Total saved: $91

Confirmation Bias: Mos Def is Ignorant

“Confirmation bias is a tendency to search for or interpret new information in a way that confirms one’s preconceptions and avoid information and interpretations which contradict prior beliefs.” Since I like Mos Def as an artist and have never had a problem with him before, it cannot be claimed that confirmation bias is behind my claims of his ignorance. He was a panelist on Real Time with Bill Maher recently and let his conspiratorial “refusal to believe” run wild. I didn’t realize it was 9/11 until I started writing this, but it is fitting given his claims. Among them:

-The moon landing was faked
-Bin Ladin does not exist (he is a construction of the Bush Administration)
-As such, Bin Ladin/Al Qaeda played no part in 9/11
-It follows that Bush/his administration were directly responsible
-OJ Simpson is innocent
-US is a world power because a rebellious black man forced Napolean’s hand, leading to the Louisiana Purchase
-Without this sale, we would have never made it to the Pacific Coast
-In history, Islam was not spread through force.
-This is a “convenient ‘fact’”, and clear instance of historical revisionism

Douchebag of the Week: Kevin Trudeau

This shouldn’t piss me off – I could just Google “list of scam artists”, “list of quacks”, or “list of douchebags” and hundreds of Trudeau-like characters would pop up from throughout history. I could get them all out of my system at once, then forget about it. It’s more fun to find out about these guys via my natural travels through life. Here’s the Wiki article on Trudeau, and an article about him on Salon.

Trudeau positions himself as a consumer advocate, protecting us from what “They” don’t want us to know. Those fat cats in Washington, the FDA, Big Pharm lobbyists, the Doctors’ Cabal, etc. All those bad people trying to make money off our health, or lack thereof. As quick as I am to throw around this accusation – he’s more of a cult leader. He has very enthusiastic followers who clearly follow blindly since the “cures” he hawks are total bullshit.

August Expense Report; September Budget

Unavoidables
Rent & Utilities: $605
Cell Phone: $62
Credit Cards: $61 (+$971)
Food & Toiletries: $266
Gas: $104
Transportation, Other: $16