It's ok RoR. I'm sure that some day your very own damsel will come along.

Stef's profound insight into the matter of universal teacher corruption is that he, personally, doesn't think that any of his teacher's met his rigorous ethical standards, as in, they didn't show him enough curiosity, empathy, or interest in "seeking truth for truth's sake," which really just means agreeing with him completely and showering him with praise.

That's a stunning rebuke to the entire profession. I'm sure my father will be crushed when he hears about it.

I do remember reading where he wrote about his childhood as a student. He said that he was one of those kids who was always disheveled and dirty, because his mother was not mentally well and didn't take care of him (neglect and abuse). He said that there was not a single teacher who ever took the time to ask what was wrong, or take the time to find out what was going on in his home life. This made him very angry at and distrustful of teachers.

I did feel badly for him when I read that, and it was a reminder to be aware of what is going on in the lives of the kids at school.

It also reminded me that his grudge against teachers (because of his perception of mistreatment in his childhood), is still being acted out today. He is turning all of his followers against teachers! It is perhaps much like he turns his followers against their parents as a reaction to his perception of childhood abuse suffered at the hands of his mother.

Surely, the stories he told about the behavior of his brother and mother during his childhood were terrible, but even if they were 100% true, it's a logical fallacy to argue from the particular to the general. It's far too small a sample size to draw any meaningful conclusions.

The member who is attempting to defend the fact that there are SOME decent teachers in the world is berated beyond belief when it is realized that he hopes to become an economics professor. What a shame.

There was recently a new member at FDR who was welcomed with open arms when she proudly announced that she was a music education major. Are they going to gradually break the news to her that she should not become a music teacher, and should choose a new plan for her life? She is currently enrolled in one of the top music education schools in the U.S., and seems very happy, proud and excited about it, but I suppose she can support herself entirely by teaching private lessons......but there are no benefits, there is no job security, no retirement plan, she will never have her own classroom of students, or large concerts, ummmm........well...maybe she will come up with a new plan.

This alienation of teachers is just another on the growing list of those who are alienated by FDR members.

I don't understand how Stefan is still getting enough income from those people. He could be eating into his savings, or Christina is the major breadwinner, or there are some who pay several thousand dollars a year

This type of alienation of outsiders is typical of cults and cult-like organizations, such as FDR. This guy is assuring for all time his own irrelevance by behaving the way he does. It would be even sadder if his ideas were actually groundbreaking or truly useful, but fortunately, he's a second hander, repackaging and selling as his own the ideas of other, better thinkers. What is genuinely his own work has proven to be little more than the angry, paranoid rants of a deeply troubled, insecure and narcissistic man. Even his so-called rational philosophy of ethics is the product of a very sloppy mind, poorly structured, rife with butchered metaphors, myriad acronyms, and therefore nearly unintelligible, yet fiercely defended and loudly promoted as some miraculous achievement from the mind of a great man, a gift even.

I've said it before, but I think the biggest loss is the potential of those people who have glommed onto him and become his sycophantic Greek chorus, repeating back to him every praise he sings of himself. But who knows, they may have just found another guru to kowtow to.

That seems common, so many people just want someone to believe in, to get behind and follow, because they don't believe in themselves, second guess their own thoughts, feelings and desires, and therefore cannot lead their own lives for themselves. Stef is right (though not original) in observing that this phenomenon arises almost directly from the way these people are treated as children, by their parents, teachers and older siblings.

If you guys haven't read Arthur Silber's series on tribalism, I highly recommend it. He writes at a blog called Once Upon A Time... at http://powerofnarrative.blogspot.com/

And please do kick him down some PayPal action, it's a far better investment than FDR ever was, and it goes to a much more deserving man, who really, really needs it right now.

I think you're ridiculously deluded on that score. And NonE, I've listened, researched, read, watched films, read more, debated, and concluded that the less informed you are, the less technical understanding you have, the poorer your understanding of physics, chemistry, material sciences and engineering and the more credulous you are regarding the power and capability and reach of the clandestine services of the U.S. Federal government, the more likely you are to believe the preposterous conspiracy theories of the "Truthers."

Whether or not what you like to call the "official story" is in fact true, there has not been a single alternative theory proposed by the "Truthers" that isn't absurd on its face, let alone any more probable than the conclusions drawn by the 9/11 Commission.

Stop poking this bear, NonE. It's beyond a dead horse. Its sun-bleached bones are scattered across the desert floor, having been picked clean by vultures and further scoured by bugs. Whipping what's left of it will produce absolutely NO results.

If you like to believe in an omnipotent and all powerful state, you have A LOT of company. I tend to think they're just regular people, actually, mostly sub-par people, who can't succeed in the private sector, and they're powerless to prevent an effective conspiracy by a well organized and determined group of 19 Saudi terrorists.

What causes ME to wonder, is why YOU feel obligated to push this matter even when you KNOW that it really FUCKING PISSES ME OFF!

Danny has a point. It is a great line.

Dylan, don't you know that the surest sign of a conspiracy is a lack of good evidence to support its existence?! Duh!

(Keep in mind that you're talking to a guy with a reptoid in his avatar)

Danny, why DO you have that guy on your avatar. Is he a buddy of yours from school? Is he one of your corrupt teachers?