Transit Troubles

Several years ago, the London Transit Authority had a problem. Buses were going right past passengers who were waiting at designated places to be picked ...

The Unconsciously Incompetent

To be unconsciously incompetent is far from blissful ignorance. In fact, when I think about areas of my life where I don't know and don't know ...

Doing the Wrong Things

We try too hard to do the wrong things. No matter how much effort or ingenuity you put into the wrong mode, you still fail.

Don't Fear the Light

Four members of a family in Haiti cowered at home during the February 1998 solar eclipse and were found dead the next day by what officials said was accidental ...

Alien Insurance?

If you think you might be abducted by aliens someday, you can always take out an insurance policy.

No joke. For $156 a year, a London company (called Goodfellow ...

Poor Substitutes for God

When people do succeed in breaking free from belief in God, they simply create another religious belief to replace it. We always assimilate religion or ...

The Puzzle of Bad Living

The puzzle is why so many people live so badly. Not so wickedly but so inanely. Not so cruelly but so stupidly. There's little to admire and less ...

Uncommon Sense

Common sense isn't as common as it used to be.

"Fool Me Twice, Shame on Me"

Learning from experience is a faculty almost never practiced.

Humor: A Real Spectacle

True story:

In Tampa, Florida, Antonio Valdez Jr. was charged with driving without wearing his glasses.

A few weeks later, on his way to court to face ...