thinktoomuch.net

From wiktionary:

hyperbole (Noun, plural hyperboles)

(uncountable) Extreme exaggeration or overstatement; especially as a literary or rhetorical device.
(uncountable) Deliberate exaggeration.
(countable) An instance or example of this technique.
(countable, obsolete) A hyperbola.

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On 31 December Cobus van Wyngaard tweeted:
What rituals will you be taking part in (privately or in community) to mark the transition period from 2009 to 2010?
I didn’t have much of interest with which to respond, I don’t feel I’ve got much in the line of rituals. Though, I did have some champagne with friends, [...]

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Back in February, we sought an answer to the question Any interest in a “Book Club” of sorts? The answer at the time was “yes!”
By decree, we decided on Bones, Rocks and Stars by Chris Turney. I propose we start with this book on 13 July. Hopefully I’m not busy referring to myself [...]

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This brilliant TED talk by Jonathan Haidt talks about five human moral foundations. Pointing out how these foundations are emphasized differently by conservatives, he invites liberals to take the blue pill, to step outside of their “moral matrix”, and learn to understand the bigger picture of human morality from an anthropological perspective. And it also [...]

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I work in a very international office, there are many nationalities present. Taking just countries in the European area, I can think of people who are: Spanish, French, Dutch, Swiss, Italian, German, British, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Polish, Russian, Israeli, Greek… I quite like the diversity!
Greeting today, a Spanish guy said “I’ll hopefully see you Monday!” [...]

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Europe typically seems quite open-minded and accepting of diverse cultures. There are so many reasons why this may be, from the second world war, to the philosophers they’ve had, to the worldly experience of being colonialists (and possibly learning the problems with it and suffering reverse colonisation). But I’m no historian, so I will refrain [...]

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Within certain contexts, I’m quite a fan of anarchy. I believe relationships should be driven out of values and mutual respect, and hence not need rules. The point at which humanity moved away from anarchy, required a government, was when our social groups became too big to be supported by social relationships. (Ponder, Dunbar’s number?)
Depending [...]

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Comments on the internet is certainly no substitute for one-on-one communication. H J and I have made amends, apologising to one another for flaring up in the comment thread. In looking back during the aftermath, a couple of things become clearer. Yay for hindsight!
It seems to me that the most grief in such exchanges is [...]

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There’s a traditional piece of advice: don’t do business with friends and family.
Why is that? Might that not be an indication that there’s something wrong with the way we do business or build relationships? Could it be because our approach to business is too cut-throat and ugly? Should we not aim to improve our business [...]

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You likely know by now I’m supposedly a “bad communicator”, because I keep on using words in ways that you, the reader, are not used to. (Or as you might say, “incorrectly”. Whatever.) For example, especially when dealing with atheistic material, I love using Biblical language. This is likely to make you hopping mad. Cool! [...]

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