Brian Gongol
Vintage ads from times we can't really recognize
Like the days when cocaine was sold over the counter, a Subaru was a babe magnet, or when men dressed like the Bee Gees. Whenever anyone complains about "today's society", they're probably not thinking about how much better things are now than they were when doctors advertised cigarettes, phones didn't travel with you, and male chauvenism was the norm. Life is getting better all the time. By definition, that means we should always be working on improvements -- but it also means we shouldn't paint the past as being rosier than it really was. It's unwise to romanticize the past as though it was some pristine Eden.
An analysis of the "Tea Party" movement in the Midwest
To the extent that "Tea Party" enthusiasts favor limited government, balanced budgets, and personal responsibility, then they're very much in keeping with the mainstream of Midwestern values. But to the extent that they're just anti-tax (one backronym for the movement is "Taxed Enough Already") without also acknowledging the need to control spending -- including precious entitlement costs like Social Security and Medicare -- then they're no more in favor of solving the real problems America faces than the people who want to raise taxes and increase spending even more. The truth of the matter is that Americans are going to have to pay more in taxes overall -- and accept less in government spending -- for some time to come. One of the biggest problems with the "tea party" movement is that it has neither a clear definition of beliefs, nor an organized and accountable leadership structure. A large group of angry people with no coherent philosophy nor responsible leadership is just a mob. A real movement requires accountability and structure, not the persistent insistence that "we don't allow others...to either define or lecture us."
A new romance typically costs two good friendships
Everything has a price, and it turns out that love's cost is taken out of the reserves of a person's close friends
How fairy tales really end
Why buy the cereal when all you want to eat is the marshmallows?
Order boxes of cereal marshmallows and satisfy childhood fantasies. Or just buy some meringue cookies and get the same effect.
