MENTAL DEPRESSION IN THE STONE AGE

THE GAZETTE (2007) 4/2

EVELD (3D)

Now I don't want you to think that in the good old days, people had it great when it came to depression. The Stone Age means the earliest life in the hunting and gathering societies. Life was short and brutish. You died around your mid 30's. your GI tract had to be incredible to eat the stuff that you did. At old age, you are left behind. If you are really mentally ill, you are out on your own to fend for yourself. If mild to middle depression, you are thought to have spiritual powers.

So what is so great about the Stone Ages in terms of mental health. For those that survived. Generally if you have 6 or 7 children about half that make it to 10 years old. At 11, you are procreating and hunting and gathering edibles.

In those days, you were more likely to have fish oil (Omega 3-fatty acids) exercise,sleep, light exposure, social connectedness with others, and you were so busy you didn't have time to ruminate and think over and over.

BUSINESS WEEK (2007) 4/9

COOPER (23) The economy is fragile because of weak capital spending. That is a nice word for

overcapacity or under consumption. If wages stagnate and folks are working a number of part time jobs, they can no longer afford middle class stuff. So the economy goes down. What offsets this if the economy continues to spiral downward means that a family buys cheap and used goods.

We will probably get another tax cut but that only helps the real rich, they can not spend enough to offset the loss of the middle class. So you have further trouble but a society can go on. Henry Ford

was the one that made sure his workers could afford to buy a new Ford. He knew that it was good for business. It is called FORDISM.

(24) Consumer debt is at an all time high.

COY AND EWING (28-33) Where are all the good workers? The authors say we need them but in one paragraph, the capital sector of the economy needs more workers at low pay. So you don't get them. They come from other countries, but it gets to the point where you have to pay more. We aren't there yet.

HOF (48-52) Is GOOGLE getting too big? Probably, however no one is saying that they are doing anything illegal (disclaimer: I have Google ads) So GOOGLE keeps growing. However,

they are still not as large as Microsoft in the mid 90's.

SMITH (76) More factories are going to Mexico, however, the wages there are going lower than ever before.

KUNTZ(102)  BOOMSDAY  by BUCKLEY, Yes there is a way out of the SOCIAL SECURITY MESS. In this fiction, Voluntary transitioning is a way to get folks 65 and older to commit suicide. Relatives receive bonuses and a ton of other treasures if oldsters just off themselves. Do it for the kids! The Boomers are the un greatest generation so they should give back by giving their lives. Think  SOYLENT GREEN.

NEWSWEEK (2007) 4/9

LEVY (26) There is a new way to communicate. Really!This means that you tell your fellow followers that what you are thinking and doing at the moment. It is called TWITTER

and you can also tell the world. Edwards has used it in his campaign. You can give a loved one

a moment by moment account of what is happening during a very special time. Try TWITTER.COM/

SETOODETH (50-51) GEICO has double its share of the market since they have been constantly advertising. The most memorable ad is about cavemen. Most remember it.

SMITH (83-84) Will Smith is the 4 Billion dollar man. He outsells every other actor. He is also black.

TIME (2007) 4/9

Larry "Bud" Mel man died. He was David Letterman's roving reporter years ago.

KLUGGER (52-100) TIME MAGAZINE lists a number of things that you can do

to reduce global warming. I  was interested in one. It is called coal co-generation. It is used in China. Excess heat is transmitted to nearby factories.

FOX(112-113) Okay! For the  last 25 years starting with the Reagan Revolution, we have financed the country through debt. The last 5 years under the Bush Doctrine have been the worst.

The last Depression really lasted from 1929 to1954.Today, we have a 2.7 trillion debt. HOWEVER, THAT DOES NOT COUNT SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE that

are broke and go from paycheck to paycheck. The large boomer generation is coming in the next 3 to 5 years.

THE NEW REPUBLIC (2007) 4/2

SCHEIBER (27-32) Whatever happened to the dismal science? Economics is changing.

FREAKONOMICS changed things. More young economists are looking into smaller projects that can have big consequences. The way to a PhD in econ is  to pick the project that has fairly easy ways to collect data. However, the projects have become so absurd and reductionist that

this area of endeavors  may fuse out. One recent published article was how much more money will Hispanic men will pay a prostitute so that they do not have to use a condom?

LEARS (44) Money changes everything. Through 2 new books on CARNEIGE and MELLON.

After reading about their lives, it can drive one to a very very water down version of Karl Marx.

Leninism is hopefully dead, but Marxism  philosophy as applied to interpreting capitalism

is alive. Capital can so overwhelm Labor that a downward spiral explodes.

PERETZ (64) Senator Charles Schumer has a new book WINNING BACK THE MIDDLE CLASS. It is based on being HALF FULL. We have all these huge problems, so why can't we aim to cut them by 50%? He also worries what Democrats can stand for rather than

Republican lite. Perhaps that is the winner, but it could be also THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS THE  PARTY OF THE BIG TENT. Come to us if you are for or against abortion and everything else. We will try a middle way. If you don't like that there is the Republican party.