Dear Dr. Hurd: I have been pondering this (Thomas) Aquinas quote from your site that seems uncharacteristic of your philosophy and I am curious as to its meaning: “Love takes up where knowledge leaves off.” I interpret this to mean: … Continue reading
Category: Daily Dose of Reason
Faulty Thinking and Addiction
Dear Dr. Hurd, I am an adjunct instructor and just finished teaching a short course “Perfectionism in addictive behaviors.” After reading your recent blog post “You can’t be too perfect” I am wondering if you would agree that maladaptive perfection … Continue reading
Bin Laden’s Gone, But We Still Have Obama
“Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader.” So says President Obama. You could have fooled me. Obama cites evidence that bin Laden killed Muslims as proof that he was not a Muslim leader. Now wait a minute. Imagine if a … Continue reading
The Psychology of Pity
In response to my last column, several people wrote in and asked: “Is pity an emotion of contempt?” My reply is that yes, pity is an emotion filled with contempt. Pity is not genuine empathy or compassion. Pity is based … Continue reading
Suffering is Not the Goal
Do traumas, tragedies, and difficulties make you stronger? I say: NO. It’s not difficulty that makes people stronger. What makes you strong are the habits of rationality and serenity which make difficulty bearable in the first place. You’re better because … Continue reading
Obama’s Attitude to America: “Too Bad”
Obama says there is no “silver bullet” or quick fix solution for bringing down gas prices. This may be true — but does this mean there’s no solution? First of all, it isn’t the government’s job to bring down (or … Continue reading
Be Happy … But Not Too Happy!?!
Most people assume mental health is a matter of either medicine, or moral weakness. The medicine side assumes that medical treatment will eradicate mental illness symptoms, and that’s pretty much all there is to it. The moral weakness side assumes … Continue reading
Robber Barons and Busybodies
C.S. Lewis said: “It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies.” He’s right. “Robber barons” was the term for the successful businessmen of his time. There is no theft in success, however. This wrong … Continue reading
ObamaCare North
From a DrHurd.com reader who lives in Canada, where the government pays for and controls all medical care: Dr. Hurd: If you think that socialized medicine, your doctor, hospital, pharmacy, etc. is better in Canada — think twice! Just one … Continue reading
The Greatest Human Error
Intellectually, people almost always agree with me when I claim, “You cannot control anybody else’s actions.” Yet, on the emotional level there is almost always resistance — in a few cases, even hostility. It’s always a red flag when a … Continue reading
The “Adult Conversation” Between Politicians and Voters
Politicians: Let’s have health care for all. Voters: Yes. But not ObamaCare. We don’t want government care. We want guaranteed health care. Medical care like we have now, only free. And more competent, more compassionate, less bureaucratic than now. Will … Continue reading
It’s the People’s Fault
By now it’s plain to nearly everyone that Republicans are getting nowhere in massively cutting the budget and limiting the scope of the federal government. It’s tempting to blame the politicians themselves. “Those politicians!” it could be said. “They won’t … Continue reading