It may be a little naive for me to say this, but I feel like most of those who advocate the legalization of drugs grew up in well-off and predominantly white communities that have never seen the true problems of drug use.  If one takes a trip out to the Sunnyslope or Maryvale neighborhoods of Phoenix and asks people about the legalization of drugs, the locals will look at you like you are out of your mind.  This is because they realize the effects that drugs (even something as innocuous as marijuana) have on the well-being of their communities and families.  I feel like before someone just makes a decision on this topic by crunching the numbers and reading the studies, they need to take a drive through south-central LA...

I think it is interesting to say that government cannot make someone change their own specific beliefs and cultures, but can change the culture as a whole.  Can it?  To a certain extent, yes.  But it does not happen instantly.  It takes generations for this change to take place, and government rarely stays committed to something for that long.

This guy is reppin' a legit beard. And he sounds like Garrison Keillor.  Now that that's out of the way... I agree Mr. Dennett that there are memes out there that represent a clear and present danger to secular and free societies (i.e. radical Islam).  These need to be stamped out utilizing every military, intelligence, and media asset in our arsenal. However, there are other memes which are simply the product of our capitalist society, such as pornography and violent video games.  While these may be morally wrong to many people, I do not believe they necessarily pose any threat to society as a whole.  Rather, it is simply something that people may see as distasteful and choose to avoid.

I had always heard that visual learning was more effective for most people than oral- or literature-based reading.  However, hearing the statistics about it really hammered it home.  Also, how easy it is to deceive (persuade?) through the use of charts and visuals will make me open my eyes a little bit more, and be more wary of graphs, charts, etc.

This is the kind of thing that makes me kinda sick about politics. The ambiguity of it all, and how the candidates try to pick the brains of their constituents dance these fine lines.  If a candidate would just stand up there and tell the American people what he thought was right and what was wrong, and why, it would be so refreshing.  The problem is, those kind of people don't get elected...

This is the problem in washington: people can't find the "middle ground" or much less compromise.  The constant push and pull between positive and negative liberties will have scary consequences for the future of our nation.

I think this goes to show how little we actually know about psychology and social science.  With such a vast wealth of numbers and quantitative data, the real intricacies of the answers to questions such as these continue to allude us.

I feel like these two points are contradictory.

This is one of the perfect examples of why the federal government charging people for not purchasing health insurance is a ridiculous idea.

As human beings, I think there is a certain amount of pride and dignity that goes along with owning something.  Yes, it is yours.  But it also represents something that you paid for with your hard earned cash.  I think that's something the free market will always have trouble accounting for; those vague, ambiguous, but incredibly powerful personal human values.

I think for this to succeed - as it has in the United States for almost 250 years - feelings pertaining to nationalism, pride, and loyalty must precede those related to religiously held beliefs.

Pushing the man is murder, plain and simple.  If the word "murder" was used, people may respond differently.

I think this article does an excellent job at delving into the question of rational versus emotional morality, and then attaching a practical importance to understanding the difference between the two, as well as where you stand on particular issues.  All in all, very well written and very fascinating.