Post-Apocalyptic Mindset in a Civilized World
Photograph; Appalachian Children. Tumblr.
By Paul L. Thomas, Ed.D. | Originally Published at the Becoming Radical. May 20, 2014
By Paul L. Thomas, Ed.D. | Originally Published at the Becoming Radical. May 20, 2014
The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.
Henry David Thoreau, Walden
Henry David Thoreau, Walden
Since October 1999, when I experienced several weeks of unrelenting panic attacks, I have been negotiating my lifelong struggle with anxiety—many of those years spent completely unaware of the problem and then coming to recognize and even understand a condition that to most people seems completely irrational (even silly).
Not to slip into being simplistic, one of the foundational ways in which I have come to understand better anxiety is that my body responds to the civilized world in ways that prehistory demanded.
In other words, when human existence depended on a constant state of vigilance, anxiety, that quality was passed on from human to human since those humans most vigilant—most aware of the world around them—lived long enough to procreate.
Now, although no mountain lion lies in wait to pounce upon me and make me its lunch, I live in a constant state as if that were true—hyperaware of both the world and every possibility about that world.
And that is the seemingly irrational part for those who do not experience incessant anxiety. Of course, I
Evidence that the Meritocracy is Made Up of Poor People
By Paul Buchheit | Common Dreams. May 19, 2014 Many wealthy Americans believe that dysfunctional behavior causes poverty. Their own success, they would insist, derives from good character and a strict work ethic. But they would be missing some of the facts. Ample evidence exists to show […]
MAY 20
High School Dropout Rate Depends on Mentorship, Study Finds
Photograph; Luis Mateo and Kasandra Vega, who both left high school without a degree, are involved in the culinary program of the United Teen Equality Center, in Lowell, Mass. | Evan Richman / For NBC NEWS rom the moment Luis E. Mateo started high school in Lowell, […]
MAY 19
How Charter Schools and Testing Regimes Have Helped Re-Segregate Our Schools
Photographic Credit; Chris Hondros/Getty By Sally Kohn | Originally Published at The Daily Beast. May 16, 2014 Sixty years ago tomorrow in Brown v. Board of Education, the United States Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in public education is unconstitutional, writing that “in the field of […]
The Origins of “Privilege”
Photograph courtesy Peggy McIntosh. By Joshua Rothman | Originally Published at The New Yorker. May 13, 2014 The idea of “privilege”—that some people benefit from unearned, and largely unacknowledged, advantages, even when those advantages aren’t discriminatory —has a pretty long history. In the nineteen-thirties, W. E. B. […]
MAY 18
School Closures: A New Version of Separate and Unequal
Photograph; Students walk through the Loop March 25, 2013, to protest plan to close 50 Chicago elementary schools. | Scott Olson/Getty Images By Jitu Brown And Debra Jones| Originally Published at The Root. May 18, 2014 Saturday marked the 60th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Brown v. […]
When Racism Slips Into Everyday Speech
Generic image | THINKSTOCK By The Root Staff | Originally Published at ,/em>The Root. May 15 2014 3:00 AMA recent NPR story revealed the disturbing and shockingly racist origins of the catchy jingle played from ice cream trucks around the country. What else are we hearing—or saying—that […]
Recall That Ice Cream Truck Song? We Have Unpleasant News For You
By Theodore R. Johnson, III | Originally Published at National Public Radio. May 11, 2014″N*gg*r Love A Watermelon Ha! Ha! Ha!” merits the distinction of the most racist song title in America. Released in March 1916 by Columbia Records, it was written by actor Harry C. Browne […]
