People who haven’t been in psychotherapy often ask: ‘What does a psychotherapist do? What happens in psychotherapy? The answer to this question is that we help people identify what’s bothering them about other people in their lives, and help them … Continue reading
Category: Daily Dose of Reason
How to Keep Your Kids From Growing Up Brats
The best way to raise financially responsible children is to teach them cause and effect. This means giving them logical consequences and explanations for your decisions. Give them choices when you can. When possible, let them in on your economic … Continue reading
Gingrich on Health Care
Increasingly, it looks like either Newt Gingrich or Mitt Romney will be the Republican alternative to the horrendous President Obama. Anyone who’s not a liberal already understands what’s wrong with Romney. In the first of a series, I’ll examine Gingrich’s … Continue reading
The “Electable” Romney: Not So Much
Where I live, in a tiny town on the Atlantic coast of tiny Delaware, I’m surrounded by the most liberal of Democrats. It’s like a mini-San Francisco of the east here. This gives me some good insight into what liberals are thinking … Continue reading
Is Capitalism Just a Fantasy?
In an article entitled “Capitalism is Peaceful, Socialism is Force,” Dr. Hurd argued in favor of the capitalism side. A socialist/liberal responded to the article as follows: ‘Both systems are fantasies! Capitalism ignores human nature and reality just as much … Continue reading
Are People Doing the Best They Can?
I recently encountered a psychologist who said, in essence, “People are doing the best they can; and they’re getting something out of what they’re doing.” He maintained, and he’s right, that psychologists and therapists especially should keep this in mind. … Continue reading
It’s the Spending, Stupid
Politicians like Mitt Romney and Barack Obama insist that there should be middle class tax cuts. Obama goes further and insists that these tax cuts be paid for by “the rich” (those making over $250,000 a year, his definition). The … Continue reading
The Power You Don’t Know You Have
If you want to have more success, stop caring about what others think. And stop feeling that you’re obliged to do anything for another, aside from a responsibility you freely took on. These two errors undercut people more than any … Continue reading
President Newt or President Mitt?
Gingrich or Romney? Which is better, from a pro-freedom, limited government and individual rights point-of-view? The question relies upon a false premise. The false premise is that either one of these men even claims to be in favor of limited … Continue reading
Thinking in Absolutes: Healthier Than You Realize (Part 3 of 3)
Back to the case of Henry Judd Gray. Let’s assume that Mencken’s assessment of Gray was correct, that he failed to rationally distinguish ‘sin from sin.’ What would then be the rational way out of his psychological predicament? It would … Continue reading
Thinking in Absolutes: Healthier Than You Realize (Part 2 of 3)
Mencken writes: ‘What is the chief mark of such a good man? That he cannot differentiate rationally between sin and sin—that a gnat gags him as badly as a camel. So with poor Gray. His initial peccadillo shocked him so … Continue reading
Thinking in Absolutes: Healthier Than You Realize (Part 1 of 3)
According to the principles of cognitive therapy, black-and-white thinking is a major cause of emotional problems such as depression and anxiety. Also known as all-or-nothing thinking, many cognitive therapists define it as seeing things in black-or-white categories. If a situation … Continue reading