Toolboxnj

I was told to treat people I meet like a client. That means listening to them and giving them undivided attention. That goes for family, friends and strangers. People love it when they have quality face time with you. That's half the battle because you still need to execute and engage people. The more often you do it, the better you get. I am the definition of introverted, yet amazingly I find it easier and easier to open up with others in business settings. I was very anxious about approaching individuals at my clients so I asked my manager for more opportunity to do it. After a few months I'm having conversations with the director of finance about his children, the stock market, cars, etc. It's amazing that (almost) everyone loves to talk about pretty much anything The next part is social settings for me.

Women are much more perceptive (on average) than men, but that's based on the evolution of man. Men are better map readers (on average) as well. Women did the gathering and men did the hunting. It's interesting.

I believe it can be an accurate measure of potential, but it doesn't make a person. I had one done by a psychiatrist can I think it accurately measured my potential and where I believe I stand in life (which is above average, but not genius). My IQ test had verbal and mechanical. I did extremely well on the verbal and just average on the mechanical, but it looks like I scored way too far apart to be accurate (145-97). But then on the GMAT I scored in the 90 percentile on the verbal and a 50 percentile on the math. So, perhaps there is a connection there. I had problems with the logic tests on the LSAT, but did well on the reading comprehension and logical reasoning. In life, I'm a much better reader and writer than puzzle solver.

I'd have to agree with you here. FDR set the table for the last 70 years of statism and anti-LF government policy.

If Huckabee was the GOP nominee I would vote for the Democratic nominee. If Bloomy jumped into the race, eh, that would be a difficult choice. Even though I disagree with him on most issues, I would rather have a business man in the White House than not. On Gingrich, it's not a violent passion for God that drives him. He's just as bad in that area as most politicians that need to pander to some people to get money, support and votes.

I completely agree. Huckabee is the most dangerous candidate (on either side) for two reasons. First, there is a chance he will actually get the nomination. Second, for all those reasons above. The problem is the race is wide open. Anyone can win it. Let's see how Huck does in Iowa and South Carolina.

I would have been for Gingrich, despite his passionate defense of religion and faith. However without Gingrich in the race I'll probably end up supporting McCain or Romney in the primary. Whether I will vote for the Republican candidate in the general election is a different story. President Hillary Clinton wouldn't be the worst thing in the world after eight years of Bush and it would probably regenerate the "libertarian" wing in the GOP.

Yes, this is my biggest issue with Ron Paul. It seems like he rationalizes Islamic terrorism. Also, I dislike when individuals cite or point to the Constitution when they defend limited government. Rather, there should be a philosophical defense of liberty, freedom and justice, not this "well, it's in the Constitution so we would do X". Provide the moral reason why the Founders, in principle, supported freedom.

Sorry, but I can't get all that excited about the UAE. Just because there are state of the art hotels and tourist attractions, it doesn't mean the people are free.

Ugh, McCain

Yea, I was really impressed with the article, particularly with the NYT. It was probably written for the Greenspan book which is #1 on my to-read list this month.

I'm more afraid at the intensity of his following, individuals that not only believe he will win the GOP candidacy but that he's the only GOP candidate that can defeat whomever the Dems draft for the job.

There has been a strong groundswell on the Internet haunts on this guy, but he isn't going anywhere thank godness.

My tax professor sent us this on the subject. The major problem is valuation and actually realizing the tax. Under IRS Code Section 61, accessions to wealth are taxable. So, are accessions to wealth in video game worlds comparable to real life? I don't know, but it's something that the courts may have to decide on in the future. It'll be interesting at least.

Yea, was a let down. It was the watered-down interview I was fearing. O'Reilly used the usual conservative message board tactics with the bringing up Mao, Stalin, etc.

That sounds excellent. Thank you for the heads up. Too bad because 7 minutes on O'Reilly isn't enough.

I blame the Rutgers Administration for blowing the situation out of proportion. The University prides itself on being the "most diverse" in the country (Newark campus) and is using the firestorm for political reasons. The university president (McCormick) must go.

I'd add to the thread, but I've been covering the situation at Rutgers fairly closely in my OO.net blog.

I would like to second that. Also, by looking at the critical reviews of 300 we can get a taste of what the vapid masses will think of AS. It will probably get panned in the popular press for the same reasons 300 did.

Adding to the poster above, as an MBA candidate I constantly work in groups for projects and papers. I used to hate it because, coming from a liberal arts background, I did everything on my own. But the profession I'm entering is extremely "team" or "group" oriented. The first challenge is getting over the "team myth" that most managers hold; "team" and "group" are often used interchangeably but they are totally different concepts. "Teamwork" is more mutual and dependent while "groupwork" is much more independent. Teams and groups require different levels of communication, intimacy, cooperation, etc, so it's important to figure out which end of the spectrum your collaboration is. Also leadership is very important. I typically do not take the reins in a team setting, but I like "cleaning up" messes and controversies. So it's important to understand your leadership and personality types before assuming a role. Also, are you more of a leader or a manager? There are major differences there and groups/teams always need one of each to be productive.

I must add this since I winced a bit http://www.thestar.com/article/190493

Not yet..

I saw the movie tonight and I rushed on here because I knew it would be a topic of discussion. 300 finally takes a stand: good against evil, reason verses faith, freedom destroying suffering and man against God - and that is what its critics hate. 300's critics provide a grand illustration of the cultural decent of America, where the hero is admonished, the sinner is forgiven and the age of moral relativism has taken hold. This, my friends, is what this movie calls out: the cultural degradation of our times. One can cite the historical inaccuracies of the movie, but this is not a documentary or even supposed to be historical in nature. It uses the backdrop of the Battle of Thermopylae to make that stand that I listed above. It's unambiguous, like Victor Davis Hanson says on his blog about the movie. It's everything the post-modern world hates: the victory of the righteous and worthy - black and white. So I'm willing to suspend my criticism of the movie's technology, the violence, the elevation of the Spartans and the degradation of the Persians for the simple fact that 300 takes that stand.

I've only been to a club on two occasions in the last few years, and once I asked my girlfriend for permission and the other time I didn't. The time I asked her was more of a quick after-lunch thing with a friend of mine, but the time I didn't ask was a little more intense. It's complicated, but I was morally weak and wasn't assertive enough to protest; either way, I was morally shamed and didn't enjoy the night one bit. I'll never do that again. As with any form of entertainment, you have to view it in context. Is a strip-club visit on it's own a moral or immoral thing? I don't think so. It's the human action and context that makes visiting the strip club moral or not. Everything in contextual, and therefore visiting a club must be viewed as such.

Sure, I celebrate the pagan holiday of Christmas I typically only exchange with one or two friends, my parents, my sister and girlfriend. But since I'm only a grad student, I usually can't afford extravagant things, but it's the thought that counts. I bought my sister 15 used DVDs because she's a movie collector... only cost about $60 which was a good deal (why buy three new ones for $60 when you can get 15?). My mother usually buys a gift from the three of us (mother, sister and me) for my father, so I usually tag along on that. Same way for my mother.