From an interview of Harvard economist Roland Fryer by the journalist Bari Weiss: BW: You were suspended [from Harvard for two years in 2019] by a woman who I had never heard of until recently. Her name is Claudine Gay. And she said this in a letter to the economics department at the time: “Professor Fryer exhibited a pattern of behavior that failed to meet the expectations of conduct within our community and was harmful to the well-being of its members. The totality of these behaviors is a clear violation of institutional norms and a betrayal of trust of the Harvard community.” So I guess I want to ask, do you believe in karma? RF: I hear it’s a motherfucker. Read more →
EppsNet Archive: Karma
Real Wealth is Life Without Assholes
Uh, don’t hate all rich people. They’re not all awful. Believe me, I know some evil poor people, too. We need some rich people: Who else is going to back our movies or buy our art? I’m rich! I don’t mean money-wise. I mean that I have figured out how to never be around assholes at any time in my personal and professional life. That’s rich. And not being around assholes should be the goal of every graduate here today. It’s OK to hate the poor, too, but only the poor of spirit, not wealth. A poor person to me can have a big bank balance but is stupid by choice – uncurious, judgmental, isolated and unavailable to change. I’m also sorry to report there’s no such thing as karma. So many of my talented great friends are dead and so many of the fools I’ve met and loathed are… Read more →
The Four Thoughts
Maintain an awareness of the preciousness of human life. Be aware of the reality that life ends; death comes for everyone. Recall that whatever you do, whether virtuous or not, has a result. Contemplate that as long as you are too focused on self-importance and too caught up in thinking about how you are good or bad, you will experience suffering. Obsessing about getting what you want and avoiding what you don’t want does not result in happiness. Read more →
It’s Not Just the Guns
Within a week or so, we’ve had Jovan Belcher, the mall shooting in Oregon and 26 people killed at a school in Connecticut. I’m hearing that maybe we should do something about guns. But we’ve always had guns. Since the country was founded July 4, 1776, Americans have had guns, and for most of that time, we’ve managed to live with each other without a mass murder a week. It can’t be just the guns. One of the most appalling things to me about modern American society is the way increasingly graphic violence is peddled as entertainment. Turn on the TV: mass murder is entertainment. Grotesque, violent death is “great television.” Serial killers in movies are the heroes. They can’t be killed off because they’ve got to come back and kill more people in the next sequel. I know John Wayne used to kill people in movies, but when the… Read more →
Twitter: 2010-10-07
RT @MrsRupertPupkin: My brother once ate the last bowl of Cookie Crisp, but now he's crippled from the neck down! #Karma # If you don't know where you are, a map won't help. # RT @MrsRupertPupkin: Found a 1999 "To Do" list. Can cross off "Study for Bio quiz." Still need to "Respect my body." # Read more →