Just read your post and it reminded my of something I think about a lot: the fact that we give our selves too much credit as an advanced civilization. Just because we've made amazing progress in areas like science and technology and we have all kinds of fancy new shit that our grandparents never had people fail to realize how we're failing to evolve culturally/spiritually as we advance technologically. In fact ala Idiocracy it appears we're regressing. We spend all this time worrying about getting these kids ready for standardized tests we forget to actually teach them the intrinsic benefit of working hard to get smart and understand the world, not to mention a basic respect for life. Instead we force them through educational hoops in the form of a new educational initiative every year, that they correctly view as bullshit, and then that is what the rest of their life becomes. Bullshit. A series of hoops they need to bullshit their way through with as little effort as possible. Why? because we don't stress as a culture that hard work and intelligence are something of INTRINSIC value, regardless of whether or not it gets you rich. I'm no communist but when you just wave the carrot of get good grades and get money in front of kids it drives kids to look for shortcuts to money in the form of a rap deal, NBA contract or turning a trick behind a temporary classroom. If you surveyed our kids about whether or not they'd rather have a 70 IQ and make 500 G's or have a 150 IQ and make 60 grand they'd all go the Forrest Gump route. People need to wake up and realize we're more lazy, selfish, and cruel than ever and figure out how we can re-prioritize our society without becoming a bunch of hippies that abandon the good parts of our technological advances ie. internet porn, the microwave, and showers. Until that happens we will be dumb people whose lives have no meaning, so far as they can tell, which leads to crazy irrational decisions like shooting your wife at her church. Sorry for the length, you had a good post that got the wheels turning. I'll get at you soon.