Random Reaction

This particular question and answer got me thinking about a concept I had come up with a while back: How would you respond to people who say the most interesting or worthwhile aspect of human beings is behavior that natural selection would not promote? I'm thinking of behavior like adopting children who aren't family members, voluntary celibacy, or people deciding to spend their whole life praying. Adopting children that are not your own or a close relative's is an interesting question. Why do not just humans, but other species, do what on the face of it is the wrong thing to do from a selfish gene point of view? Cuckoos play upon this and actually engineer it so that other species raise [baby cuckoos]. This is a mistake on the part of the foster parents, which have been "forced" to adopt the cuckoos. So that’s sort of a wild analogy to adopting children, in this case ones who are not your own species. By the way, I would hate this to be taken as a...

Is it just me, or are fewer and fewer businesses (or employees) thanking their customers? I am not talking about official correspondence, or voicemail systems which almost always seems to say "we appreciate your business," but person to person interactions. After I make a transaction with a person, I reflexively say thank you, but rarely does the businessperson to whom I just gave my hard-earned cash say thank you in return. I have noticed this at the drugstore, grocery store, and drycleaners. It could be the area where I live (the Northeast) - I lived in the South for a while, and don't remember having this perception. Or it could be lack of training of employees. They are usually pleasant, perhaps saying "have a nice day." But it seems like these people should be expressing their appreciation for my business. I shouldn't be the one saying thank you to the grocery store check out girl - she should be thanking me! My cantakerous rant for the day.