Archive of posts tagged Political Debate

Presidential election outcomes directly influence suicide rates, study finds

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Presidential election outcomes directly influence suicide rates, study finds. I ran across this article and found it simply fascinating. And perhaps even more interesting – it is those states who supported the national loser where suicide rates decline the least. The authors of the study attribute this to social cohesion – but is this still …

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Reshaping 2012: Will the election really be different?

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Everyone remembers the 2008 election. But although the election of President Barack Obama was undoubtedly a historic moment in U.S. history, the primary campaign may be just as memorable. For the first time in recent memory, the primary campaign, at least for the Democratic nomination, lasted nearly to the conventions. While I found the contest …

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Hot summer without a cause

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2010 is looking to overtake 2005 as the hottest year ever recorded on the planet. But the heat isn’t the only thing unusual this summer – for example, the torrential downpour that hit the Midwest last week is also causing dams to collapse, airports to close, and residents to seek alternative housing, as their own …

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More on motivated reasoning

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Can a debate about the relative merits of one cell phone over another lead to true learning and understanding? When can motivated reasoning and the workings of cognitive dissonance be overcome with issues people are committed to? Is limiting the goals to minor concessions and information a way to overcome natural biases and can these be used to better political discussion?