By necessity, we are direct and swift in speech and movement. This is the true dynamic that underlies our apocryphal rudeness. Also true: we do not make eye contact. Neither do we encourage it. Consider the number of humans a New Yorker will pass on a given day – on the subway, in a train or bus terminal, in an office or simply walking down the street. To facilitate speed and minimize drama, it’s productive to keep one’s eyes focused ahead.

I’ve read so many stories online about how tragedy brings people together, how hard times encourage bravery and sacrifice, how a crisis can turn ordinary folks into heroes. But what about the opposite, when something horrible happens and it strips us bare, exposing weaknesses we didn’t even know we had. What about when tragedy makes people worse?

There is neither encouragement nor room in Bible religion for feeble desires listless efforts lazy attitudes all must be strenuous urgent ardent. Flamed desires impassioned unwearied insistence delight heaven. God would have His children incorrigibly in earnest and persistently bold in their efforts. Heaven is too busy to listen to half-hearted prayers or to respond to pop-calls. Our whole being must be in our praying.

The Kony campaign us an example of how powerful 'slacktivisim' can be, and demonstrates that, with enough worldwide awareness and social pressure, movements like this one have the power to make politicians move. It also makes the ignorant less so. No-one knew who Kony was before the campaign. The atrocities were happening, and it wasn't even a blip on the social consciousness radar. It's encouraging that there's a way to spread information like this so quickly.

“I think the military would benefit by a change in civilian leadership, but I think it's important that we are cautious in how we effect that change. I think ... (Rumsfeld) should be encouraged to retire. I think he has done a number of good things for the military, particularly prior to Iraq, and we have to recognize the whole career of the person and acknowledge what he has done that is good and allow him to have a graceful retirement.”

“This requires a mentality that encourages learning rather than a fear of making a mistake. Try something new and different, but know we're not going to kill each other if things don't work out. I was a swimmer in college and I swam fast when I imagined a shark was after me. I swam just as fast when I imagined I was in the Olympics. It's a question of what you want to focus on -- fear or opportunity.”

“Tax time is a great time to take any refund you receive and invest in your future either by opening up an IRA account, or increasing the deferrals in your 401(k) plan. What's very encouraging today compared to a few years ago is that American workers are increasingly demonstrating a discipline for saving and investing their hard earned dollars, and are less likely than in the past to say they will run out and turn it in for a plasma TV for example.”

“My family did not talk about college. No one went to college. I was the first one to go and the first one to graduate. It was something that was not talked about or thought of. I was kicked out at 16 and worked two jobs. I had a few teachers that were encouraging to me. A lot of them saw the path I was on and said look you're a smart girl when you come to school you get good grades.”

“John allows people to do their jobs by not micro-managing. Yet, at the same time, he stays on top of everything. He allows and encourages people to be creative. There's a great deal of dialogue and discourse that takes place among the coaching staff about the way things should be. Some people have a tendency in the way they manage to mute that. John does a good job of allowing healthy confrontation, because it brings out better ideas and decisions.”

“Our support team was awesome. I think we might have had the biggest support team, since a lot of the teams had just one person. They were responsible for having stuff ready for us to make quick transitions during the race, and they were on top of things the whole time. They were really encouraging. During the last leg of the race, they found us on the road and drove behind us cheering us on out the windows.”