Being frustrated is disagreeable, but the real disasters of life begin when you get what you want."

—Irving Kristol (1920—), U.S. author

We want to be a saint, but we also want to feel every sensation experienced by sinners; we want to be innocent and pure, but we also want to be experienced and taste all of life; we want to serve the poor and have a simple lifestyle, but we also want all the comforts of the rich; we want to have the depth afforded by solitude, but we also do not want to miss anything; we want to pray, but we also ...

In the movie Click, Michael Newman (played by Adam Sandler) is given a true "universal" remote control that has the power to influence real life. He can mute peoples' voices, fast-forward through annoying conversations, and even rewind through past experiences.

In this scene, Michael is talking to Morty (played by Christopher Walken)—an employee of Bed, Bath, and Beyond who originally gave him ...

In the 19th century, Marie d'Agoult left her children to follow after the most famous pianist of her day, Hungarian composer and virtuoso Franz Liszt. After the ardor of her infatuation cooled and the reality of missing her children set in, Marie is said to have made this observation: "When one has smashed everything around oneself, one has also smashed oneself."

The movie Comeback Season is about Walter Pearce (Ray Liotta), a married man who has a one-time adulterous encounter with his assistant at work. When he confesses his indiscretion to his wife, she kicks him out of the house. Walter then enlists the help of Skylar Eckerman (Shaun Sipos), the local high school football star, to win her back. In this scene, Skylar asks Walter to explain the slippery ...

Back in 1999, the National Gambling Impact Study Commission reported that between 0.6 and 0.9 percent of Americans were compulsive gamblers—individuals with a pathological addiction to gambling. In 2006, the National Center for Responsible Gambling estimated that the problem affected about 1.1 percent of Americans and Canadians.

Other studies reveal higher percentages in "mature markets"—areas ...

In 2006, AARP magazine listed the number of injuries stemming from everyday activities in the United States during the previous year.

Brushing your teeth and gargling: 3,925
Reading: 11,243
Barbecuing: 15,952
Stapling paper: 15,974
Bowling: 17,916
Riding a stationary bike: 43,117
Bicycling: 534,883
Driving: 2,788,000

As of 2006, the stock market boasts 150 mutual funds that designate themselves as "socially responsible." This means that investments are only made in companies that meet the ethical standards of fund managers.

But back in 2002, a new investment vehicle quietly surfaced: the Vice Fund. The prospectus of the Vice Fund claims that it favors "products or services often considered socially irresponsible." ...

In the fall of 2002, Rick Garmon's daughter, Katie, became a victim of date rape. She was 18-years-old at the time and a freshman in college. Too humiliated to speak about what had happened—even with her family—Katie switched schools and attempted to move on with her life.

However, the scars of that traumatic event began to fester. Over the next 14 months, she withdrew from her family and ...

Around 1970, Walter Mischel launched a classic experiment. He left a succession of 4-year-olds in a room with a bell and a marshmallow. If they rang the bell, he would come back and they could eat the marshmallow. If, however, they didn't ring the bell and waited for him to come back on his own, they could then have two marshmallows.

In videos of the experiment, you can see the children squirming, ...