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Folks, because of the recent sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic church, the Pope has been in the news a lot lately.  Many have asked questions like: “Does the Pope hold responsibility for the actions of these priests?  Is the sin of omission tantamount to a sin of commission?  Is the fact that the Vatican was granted a status as a sovereign state by the man who created fascism problematic?  Does the installment of a figurehead which has been granted moral authority, a top placement in a spiritual hierarchy, and immunity from prosecution as the head of a sovereign state troubling to anyone?”

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It’s been a little while since I’ve jotted down my thoughts to you folks.  I spent a number of days at the International Psychology Conference, where I gave a lecture entitled, “Regaining Things In Your Life That You Stupidly Lost.”  You see, when we’re young and we haven’t been burdened with all of society’s limitations of what we can achieve, we tend to reach far and, in many ways, accomplish quite a bit.  Over time, people continue to tell you what you can’t do.  If you’re older, you can’t be as active.  If you’re married, you can’t have great sex.  If you have kids, you can’t have fun like you used to.  Rather than challenge any of these assumptions, people for some reason agree with these rules.

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Well, Vancouver (and other parts of the world not so gorgeous, save Texas), the Olympics are over.  I was pretty busy during these Olympics, volunteering as the Official Uncertified Psychologist of the games.  And now, of course, there’s additional work for me, because there’s a significant wave of depression that’s hit folks that have been preparing months or even years for this event.  BOOM, they woke up on Monday and realized there’s no more for them to do.  No more glory, no more spotlight.  One day they’re a volunteer uncertified psychologist, and the next day no one’s saying, “Hey, who is that guy?  Is he supposed to be here?”  Yes, he was, and now, apparently, you don’t need him any more.

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I’ve been working on this book about relationships lately that I know you’re all eagerly anticipating.  As they say, you can’t rush genius so you’ll have to go on waiting for a bit.  I was originally going to call it, “Just Stop Having Stupid Relationships.”  But now I think I’m going with the title: “When It Comes To Relationships, You’ve Been An Idiot.”  I think either title expresses my point.

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A week ago, I read an article that put me in a foul mood.  It was about a bill that Ugandans were considering that would execute homosexuals.  Yes, you heard that right.  People were going to kill other people for liking their best friends a little too much.

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