A cynic’s-eye view of society.

1. People will zealously embrace the “free market” system–as long as they are doing well in it.  As soon as one is not doing well, that person (or business) will suddenly claim to be victim of “anticompetitive” forces and demand protectionist policies.

Corollary: People think the system works just fine, until it’s their ox being gored.

2. Many individuals will be appalled by news stories of privacy breaches caused by intrusive governments, corporations, and others.  Yet many of those same people will not think twice about handing over their personal information to enter into a sweepstakes or to receive a ten percent discount in a store.

Corollary: Self-interest goes out the door when there is a chance of saving/gaining a few bucks.

3. Businesses that have “tip jars” on their counters seem to be the ones with the rudest employees.

Corollary: People will unwittingly defeat the very mechanisms that benefit them.

4. If you don’t get out of his way, that hothead in the rusty, ‘86 Pontiac will run your ass over on the way to his job at the mini-mart.

Corollary: People who are the most hurried tend to be the ones whose time is the least valuable.

5. The day you forget to bring your iPod on the plane is the day you’ll have some fussy, ADD kid sitting directly behind you.  There might even be two of them.

Corollary: Failure to pack the proper gear is guaranteed to give rise to a problem easily solved by said gear.

6. If you can’t laugh at yourself, someone else will do it for you.

Corollary: Be of good cheer–don’t take yourself too seriously.  After all, we probably won’t take you seriously, either.

7. Undisciplined children are the products of undisciplined parents.

Corollary: There is no ‘brat” gene, only brat enablers.

[We'll add more of these as they come to mind.  Stay tuned.]