Re the Mar. 28 issue:
“Check out this article. It ties in with what you’ve been saying about the government’s position on the COVID vaccines. (These people are, irredeemably evil!)” – G
“A bummer about killer bees in your owl houses. One idea that might help is putting glasses of beer for the killer bees to drink. That’s worked for me in the past with stinging not-sweet bees.” – AD
Re the Mar. 28 issue:
“The jiu jitsu video was great! It reminded me of the time when Rhonda Rousey was an MMA champion at 135 pounds. I asked you if you could take her. I expected you to say, ‘Oh yeah, I’d kill her.’ Instead, you gave a resounding, ‘NO, she’d kick my ass in 22 seconds. She would weigh in at 135, but by fight time she’d be 155. I wouldn’t stand a chance.’ The video: case in point.” – AS
“Just read your article about Yayoi Kusama and thought you would like to know of the Kusama Exhibit at PAMM. S and I have been fans since stumbling on her work at the Tate Modern many years ago. We have seen her here, and in Cleveland, Washington, Boston, and are planning to go to Miami at the end of April. Below is a picture from the NY Botanical Gardens Palm Dome exhibit 2021.” – KK
Hunt, Gather, Parent
By Michaeleen Doucleff
352 pages
Published March 2, 2021
K heard Doucleff speaking about this book and thought it might make a nice gift for the parents of our grandchildren. But she wanted to read it first to make sure it wouldn’t be suggesting things she wasn’t comfortable endorsing.
As the title suggests, the author takes an anthropological approach to discovering what sort of parenting practices produce which sort of responses in children. I’m a sucker for that kind of thinking – and so, I’m reading it now.
I was a tad disappointed with how it opens: Doucleff, an NPR science reporter, announces that she has just “hit rock bottom as a mom.” The problem? Her three-year-old daughter Rosy, though “whip smart” and “wildly courageous,” has frequent tantrums in which she slaps, bites, and overturns furniture.
Doucleff assumes that this is normal behavior for a child of her age. But then she remembers her time researching stories for NPR in Mexico, and how the Mayan children all seemed to be extremely well behaved and helpful around the house.
“What was going on there?” Doucleff wanted to know. Did the Mayan moms know something she didn’t know? Could they be doing something that all the parenting books she had read had not covered?
“This sounds like an idea for a new book,” she must have thought. And so she set about to write that book by traveling to rural villages in Mexico, Canada, and Tanzania, observing the child-rearing practices there, and then trying out those that look like they work on her daughter.
In Mexico, she discovers that Mayan parents – mothers and grandmothers, mostly – put their kids to working around the house as soon as they can pick up a spoon. The caregivers keep watch, but provide little in the way of correction or praise. Helping out isn’t considered a chore, but an opportunity to be a contributing member of the family. (They call it acomedido.) According to Doucleff, the kids eventually develop useful household skills. More importantly, “they pitch in naturally, because they feel like part of the family enterprise.”
The research continues in a freezing Arctic village. Inuit parents view kids as “illogical, newbie citizens trying to figure out the proper behavior,” says Doucleff. So when their children misbehave, they don’t take it personally. They certainly don’t shout, she says, since that would just teach kids to shout, too. Instead, they remain placid. They either go silent and simply observe the behavior, or walk away.
Okay, fine. This is not scientific research per se. Nor is it even proper anthropology. But it’s interesting. And if, as I continue to read on, Doucleff continues to draw conclusions about parenting that I agree with, I will readily recommend her book to our kids.
Watch an interview with Michaeleen Doucleff here.
From PT:
“In the March 17 issue, you said you were a fan of Sam Brintin. Were you serious?”
From RO:
“In your July 22, 2022 post, you talked about the idea of ‘cultural appropriation’ – how normal, and constructive, it is for people to try things they see people from other cultures doing. I was recently reminded of that post when I saw a couple of videos on YouTube that talked about this same idea. I think you might enjoy watching them.
From PJ:
“Your bit about the sentencing of the Canadian rapist in the March 10 issue [LINK]was disturbing. It reminded me of another story I read about a father being jailed because he refused to call his own child by the pre-teen’s preferred pronouns! What the F**k?”
From SL:
“Your blog continues to be an enjoyable and educational read… I loved your piece on your editor in the March 21 issue.[LINK] I feel the same way about my editor.”
From PT:
“It must feel good to know that you have an audience that includes people as old as I am (I’m your age), but as young as the 14-year-old kid that wrote to you in the Mar. 9 issue.”
My Response: It does indeed. I have no idea how young people find my stuff, but I’m so flattered and so happy and so humbled when it happens.
From JM, re my recap of my Oscar picks in the Mar. 14 issue:
“I must admit you know a shitload more about either movies or the way the Academy votes than I do. Well done!”
My Response: Sometimes right. Sometimes wrong. Never uncertain. Because I was going to write about the Oscars, I had to watch the broadcast in its entirety. I had never done that before. Because I had to watch it in its entirety, I was sipping tequilas throughout. Because I was sipping tequilas, I could not resist touting my track record. Had I done poorly, my recap would have never made it into the issue!
From BF:
“Don’t stop the COVID pieces. People need to know the truth about the campaign of disinformation that took place for the last three years. You need to get on the ‘insurrection’ narrative next.”
From TS:
“I agree with your comments about statins. (Most of us natural health wackos are against them.) Here’s a vid from an open-minded MD on statin issues. He cites the research as well.”
Why I keep doing what I do…
“I’m 14 years old and I’m curious to learn about ways I can earn money. I play soccer and am very dedicated to it. My goal is to become a professional. So along with getting good grades in school, I have two practices and a gym workout of some sort every day. Which doesn’t leave too much time for a regular job. My parents work very hard, and if I could earn any money at all, it would be to pay for my soccer, because it’s very expensive. Could you please give me some pointers on where to start and how to be successful in terms of money? I would be very grateful if I could learn from your perspective. Thank you so much for your time!” – MZ
My Response: You have four things working for you: (1) You recognize that building wealth is not easy. (2) And that the time to start building it is now. (3) You are a hard worker. (4) You are only 14.
The last is the strongest thing in your favor. Because if you begin now, you have decades ahead of you to earn money without taking unnecessary risks. To get you started, I’m going to send you a copy of Automatic Wealth for Grads, which I wrote specifically to give young people like you guidance on moving forward with your ambitions. I’m also going to send you a copy of The Pledge, which will give you a blueprint for successfully accomplishing all your objectives.
Please keep me updated on your progress.
“I’ve been following you since 2010. I moved to the US from Canada where nobody talks about the ‘market’ let alone have it play a daily part of life like in the US. Your newsletter(s) were my first guidebook to investing…. I also enjoyed what you wrote about living a richer life. Spending time with your wife, traveling, food, wine, etc. Those essays were fun and extremely practical!” – DB
Oops!
AS’s comment in the Readers Write section of Tuesday’s issue should have read:
“‘Unchained Melody’ was covered by so many different bands and singers. It was written by an incarcerated man, which, to me, gives it even more passion. I’ve listened to it hundreds of times, and it was never done better than by The Righteous Brothers. It still gives me goosebumps.”
Re the Feb. 28 issue:
“The population growth charts in your Feb. 28 issue were staggering. And the man fired for not essentially cheating on his wife, what!? LOL…. Always interesting/insightful topics.” – HG
“‘Unchained Melody’ was covered by so many different bands and singers. It was written by an incarcerated man, which, to me, gives it even more passion. I’ve listened to it hundreds of times, and it was never done better than by the Chambers Brothers. It still gives me goosebumps.” – AS
Re the Mar. 3 issue:
“Loved Bob Ross as a kid. (Grew up near his homebase of Muncie, IN.) Still love him as an adult.
“As an aside, have you ever seen a Bob Ross original come up at auction? I’ve read a couple of pieces that partially explain the lack of sales, despite his prolificacy. Here’s one.” – SL
“Your piece on the lab leak conspiracy theory was spot on. Here’s a good summary by Jesse Watters of what went down.” – PW
Re my recent COVID posts:
“Maybe you could bring up the info in this tweet as another side effect of the COVID vaccine.” – RF (my brother-in-law)
My Response: Awesome! I loved the comments from the people responding to the tweet!
Responses to my posts about statin drugs keep coming in. Friend and neighbor JS said this after reading my last little essay on why I don’t trust statin drugs:
“My doctors are Chicken Shits. Why didn’t they yell at me and tell me that I was the cause of my high cholesterol count!
“I ate garbage sugar, processed foods, grains that I couldn’t even digest properly, and loved every damn minute! My doctor could have told me the truth. That I had to change my diet. Instead, he prescribed a statin pill.
Months later, JS was diagnosed as a pre-diabetic. Again, his doctor could have told him to exercise and change his diet. Instead, he recommended another statin.
“Boy, was that good news! I could continue to eat junk, get fat, and hang out on the couch, without worrying about my cardiovascular health. All I had to do was drop a pill once a day. Thank God for modern medicine!”
Since then, JS had done a lot of research. Here’s what he says now:
“Statin therapy. Is total – and I mean total – Bullshit! Doctors that recommend it should be charged with attempted murder. You think I am kidding? How about these simple facts…
“The real number of people statins save from heart attacks is 1%, not 33% as the advertising states. How do they claim 33%? Just by, using statistics. You may want to search the term Relative Risk Reduction or RRR to understand the deception that it creates.
“If you don’t believe me, ask your doctor. I did that several times, and he finally told me the truth and confirmed the 1% absolute result of a statin and then commented, ‘But 1% of a million people is a lot!’ In my book, a lot is a vacant piece of property. Tell that to the other 990,000 that got nothing in return!”
Re my Feb. 17 article on “Mentoring the Second Generation,” JV – one of the “kids” – wrote in with this:
“Hi Mr. Ford. I’m writing to give you updates on where I’m at.
“I am already seeing the results of immersing myself in copywriting.
“I am passionate about copywriting. I think copywriting paired with ads is my dream career and I want to thank you for opening up that door for me.
“I also got myself a job in Publix, and I do Uber as well. I know you support hard work. I don’t know what Publix will teach me about business, but I know that is a great example of creating loyal customers.
“In the meantime, I will be looking for a job in sales and will be crafting copy.
“Thank you again Mr. Ford. I hope you have a great week.”
From SL, re theoretical physicist Sean Carroll’s video – “Talking About Time” – in the Feb. 25 issue:
“As soon as your notes come to my inbox, I drop everything and read them immediately. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and insights. I’m a former physicist who has had a career in risk management at global banks. And with recent developments in quantum information and quantum computing, I’ve become excited about physics again…. For an interesting read without equations, I recommend The One by Heinrich Päs. It covers the history of science, philosophy, and theology from Plato and Pythagoras up to the present. Even if parts seem way out there, stick with it. You won’t regret it.”
My Response: Thank you! I will check it out! By the way, there’s another video from Sean Carroll in today’s issue. See “Interesting…” above.
From AD, re “4th of July in Chad” in the Feb. 21 issue:
“I love the pic of the tricycle race… what fun!”
