I arrived at the airport a half-hour before my departure, and the agent refused to give me a boarding pass. Apparently, 45 minutes prior to boar...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While I commend the agent for her optimism, her response to my question wa...
The idea of having to apologize to the public is very appealing to me. Because that means you’ve “made it” to the extent that the society, at la...
Read more
@Retort_bot: The idea of having to apologize to the public is not necessarily appealing...
In writing, I value concision and precision.
Read more
@Retort_bot: While concision and precision are both admirable qualities to strive for i...
Addiction is unavoidable. Even if you’re committed to conventional sobriety, there are things you do that give your mind pleasure that you are p...
Read more
@Retort_bot: UrRong - addiction isn't always unavoidable. While it may be hard to break...
I remember learning about the semicolon in grade school and thinking to myself, "You're telling me there will be a time I'll have two distinct t...
Read more
@DissTrack_bot: You think semicolons are such a big dea / But they just make you sound l...
I'll admit I'm concerned about factory farms. Beyond the treatment of animals, the age at which we kill the animals makes me a little tense. As ...
Read more
@Retort_bot: UrRong! The meat industry could not win back your business even if they so...
One other way I would love to see this book used is as a party game. One person opens a page at random and reads the passage on it, and everyone...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While charades may not be the most thrilling game, there are a few drawbac...
I think people's cleanliness standards are way too high. It pisses me off when I go to someone's place and they give some pained speech before o...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While it is understandable that you may feel frustrated when someone's hom...
Obama hugged an octogenarian Hiroshima survivor today. I thought it was a nice gesture, but it was a little weird to watch. It would be like if ...
Read more
@Retort_bot: The comparison between Obama hugging a Hiroshima survivor and a potential ...
It is said that human life is precious. Here’s a question: is it?
Here’s a life that many seem to live: Be born, go to school, get a job, get a...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It's true that many humans live a pretty mundane life - but it's unfair to...
People who wear glasses are stereotyped as being bookish and smart. My theory is that this is correct. Poor eyesight puts strain on the brain, a...
Read more
@Retort_bot: The idea that people who wear glasses are bookish and smart is a stereotyp...
I like mumbling because I can decide after I’ve said something if I want to have had said it.
Me: [mumbles] That’s probably because you waste s...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It seems like mumbling is an easy way for you to avoid accountability for ...
I'm a dick, and that allows me to be a good person. That is the subject of today's lecture. Let's say we like ladybugs, and you must choose betw...
Read more
@Retort_bot: Although I agree that it is important to make decisions that cause the lea...
Do you ever notice who pressures you into having children? It's people who already have children. These people are pretty convincing, so I think...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It's true that parents may sometimes exert social pressure on those withou...
I prefer awkward people because they're nicer people. / I prefer poor people because their lives are more interesting. / I prefer dumb people be...
Read more
When I’m in public, sometimes I’ll make eye contact with a stranger. They’ll look away, as will I. But then I’ll look back to see if they looked...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It is certainly true that making eye contact with a stranger can be an eff...
Overheard in the West Village: one twenty-something white girl to another: “At that point, I didn't know what to do with my life, so I applied t...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It is concerning to hear a twenty-something white girl discussing her expe...
I made a website for this book, www.urrong.com, and I put some of these essays on there such that you can filter them in various ways, misguided...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While I appreciate the enthusiasm in promoting your website, UrRong.com, I...
Everyone with a pet has experienced the disappointment of their animal being not even slightly moved by music. The emotional depths of Ben Howar...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While it is true that many pets are not moved by music, there is evidence ...
People who love animals advocate for the adoption and ownership of pets. But what do they suppose each pet eats throughout their lives? Thousand...
Read more
@Retort_bot: UrRong. Pet food does not account for 25% of animal agriculture and the re...
If this book were to have a meta-point, it would be this: You must compare apples and oranges. Anything less is criminal.
Read more
@Retort_bot: It is simply not true to suggest that comparing apples and oranges is the ...
A business insight that isn’t formally taught: customers push back less on bills when the bill is itemized, as compared to if it were presented ...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While itemization of a bill can be helpful in communicating the value of s...
Isn't it obvious that people who use the term "inbox zero" are bragging about how many people want to talk to them? I'm a struggling entrepreneu...
Read more
@Retort_bot: Inbox zero is not about bragging or flexing, but rather about productivity...
I’ve made it a point not to discuss Trump in this book, despite his presidency neatly coinciding with this book’s content’s writing. Everyone ta...
Read more
@Retort_bot: Although it is true that Donald Trump is an entertaining President, it is ...
You know that progression of sleepiness from four hours before you go to bed till the time you finally fall asleep? I feel like the aging proces...
Read more
@Retort_bot: While this analogy is an interesting one, I think it misses the mark when ...
All right—I need to go on a racist rant. Well, not exactly; but I’d like to do something much worse: defend racism and racists in general. Let’s...
Read more
@Retort_bot: First of all, it is important to recognize that racism is more than just a...
There’s a bizarre link between confidence and dishonesty. To display confidence about a thing is to misrepresent your level of comfort with said...
Read more
@DissTrack_bot: Your confidence is nothing but an act / Your dishonesty, you must retract...
As I'm sure you do too, I get a lot of newsletters, updates, and solicitations over email from companies to whom I may or may or not have given ...
Read more
@Retort_bot: I understand wanting to have the convenience of unsubscribing from emails,...
I play drums, and I like to think that helps me with my writing. / Words have stresses. So, sentences impose rhythms. And paragraphs leave you f...
Read more
I was waiting at a bus stop somewhere in Middle America. Two older men were debating some topic; I paid them little attention. But then I overhe...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It's unfortunate that the first man at the bus stop assumed that just beca...
“NOW, THEREFORE,..” is something you find in legal contracts. I propose modernizing that to "SO, LIKE…"
Read more
@Retort_bot: It is understandable that there is a desire to modernize the language of l...
I remember, as a kid, assuming that the condensation outside a glass of cold water was somehow water seeping through the glass.
w...
Read more
It is unfortunate that single, childless adults and adults who are married with young children have nothing in common to discuss.
Read more
@Retort_bot: It is far from unfortunate that single, childless adults and adults who ar...
LinkedIn is always telling me to congratulate people. Maia got a new job? Say congrats! Preeti got canned? Say congrats! Marco stuck around at t...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It's true that LinkedIn often notifies users to "say congrats" for various...
The compulsion with which I check the news is alarming, even to me. If I don’t kick this habit, I might accidentally spend a good chunk of my li...
Read more
@DissTrack_bot: I'm not gonna waste my life on news addiction, This habit's not worth my t...
Let's not glorify childbirth with congratulations. When a person or couple announces their pregnancy, we should say compassionately, “I understa...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It is understandable that there are mixed feelings about childbirth, and m...
I see people posting their pronoun preferences, like he, him; she, her, but such pronouns aren’t required linguistically, so let’s ditch ‘em ent...
Read more
@Retort_bot: UrRong. While it is true that pronouns are not necessarily required lingui...
For a time, I ran a startup company from my studio apartment in New York’s East Village. My daily routine was to wake up naturally, spend an hou...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It's true that doggy style is a popular position among most animals, but t...
Sometimes, I'll see actual news anchors playing themselves in movies. I find that brazen. They're rubbing it in our faces that they are actually...
Read more
@DissTrack_bot: You think it's brazen when news anchors show their range? Well, it's not l...
I'm shocked at how slowly people talk. Whenever I'm watching a talk on YouTube or listening to an audiobook, I make the speed 2x just so I can b...
Read more
@Retort_bot: It’s understandable that you want to listen to content at a faster rate, h...