The I'm-OK-You're-a-Dick Award…

…goes to the Hudson Institute's Ronald W. Dworkin*, for this comment in support of his book Artificial Happiness:

I'm not judging people who take Artificial Happiness. In fact, I feel sorry for them.

Recorded by BookTV, 06/20/06.

From that great Sands showroom in the sky, Frank Sinatra has the rebuttal:

Basically, I'm for anything that gets you through the night—be it prayer, tranquilizers or a bottle of Jack Daniels.

* Dworkin, who is a different guy than NYU law professor Ronald M. Dworkin, also placed in the I-Alone-Am-Escaped-from-Plato's-Cave cup and received an honorable mention in the So-You'd-Better-Listen-To-Me crown derby.

Comments

[Jon H]

"Dworkin also placed in the I-Alone-Am-Escaped-from-Plato's-Cave cup and received an honorable mention in the So-You'd-Better-Listen-To-Me crown derby."

He even looks insufferably smug in that Hudson page photo.

[lefinq]

I'm not judging people who take Pepto-Bismol. In fact, I feel sorry for them.

[Lindsay Lohan]

I'm not judging people who take food. In fact, I feel sorry for them.

[Marcvs]

Artificial Happiness? Does that include alcohol? Workaholics? Cigarettes? Or is it just his artificial construction of antidepressents as the root of all of evils, eventhough they have allowed people to live more fullfilling non-suicide-filled lives than before? I love reading these horror stories about antidepressents from authors that obviously have no experience with clinical depression, manic-depression, or any of the other myriad mental disorders that are endempic in the U.S.

Scratch that, I don't *love* to read these stories. I hate to read them, because it makes me realize how misunderstood mental disorders are misunderstood in our society.

Please note, Dworkin is an anesthesiologist, not a psychiatrist or even a psychologist.

[Marcvs]

"endemic" not "endempic"...

[crimethink]

Artificial Happiness? Is that the stuff that makes it feel like 72 degrees in your head, all the time?

[Matthew Brown]

"Artificial Happiness" - nice meaningless phrase he's thought up there. If there's such a thing, it's certainly not to be found in antidepression drugs, which I've never seen make anyone happy, artificially or otherwise.

Prescribed correctly and with oversight as to the consequences, for people who really need them, they take the weight of clinical depression off their shoulders a little and let people being to change their lives in positive ways which may cause happiness, not the drugs themselves.

Prescribed incorrectly, the wrong drug, the wrong dose, the wrong person, they can indeed make people a bit numb 'n' dumb, but I don't think that's happiness.

[isildur]

I'm not judging people who have hearing aids.

Seriously, you can take my Zoloft, cold-dead-hands, etc.

Because it's a terrible societal problem that must be solved, that I'm a functional human being now, able to interact with others without crippling anxiety. In a good and just world, people like me would be forced to live in caves.

[jp]

For a minute there, I thought you were talking about the Ronald Dworkin -- i.e., Posner's Lex Luthor. Then Marcvs's comment clued me in.

And I totally agree with the above comments.

[Larry A]

I'm not judging people who get Artificially Happy by feeling sorry for other people. In fact, I feel sorry for them.

[Warren]

I'm not judging egomaniacal blowhards. In fact I'm one of them.

[P Brooks]

"Artificial Happiness;" do they really have that? I'm going to throw the ol' black hoody on and head down to my favorite back alley and see if I can score some.

ps- I'm not judging people who like to breastfeed (or even people who just like to... ahem- "practice"). And I definitely do not feel sorry for them.

[Jesus]

Judge not, lest ye be judged.

Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Yea verily, they are pitiable. Pitiable!

[Billy the Kid]

Take the ribbon from your hair, shake it loose and let it fall,
Layin' soft upon my skin, like the shadows on the wall.

Come and lay down by my side till the early morning light
All I'm takin is your time, help me make it through the night.
I dont care what's right or wrong, I don't try to understand.
Let the devil take tomorrow, Lord, tonight I need a friend.

Yesterday is dead and gone, and tomorrow's out of sight.
And it's sad to be alone, help me make it through the night.

[Rich Ard]

I'm not judging people who take Artificial Happiness. In fact, I feel sorry for them.

I'll keep that in mind when I'm at the doc tomorrow to refill the ole' lithium prescription. Sometimes we feel sorry for us too, Mr. Dworkin.

[spur]

I watched that dude's presentation on C-SPAN and had to take a xanax or three afterwards...

[kevrob]

BtK:

Namecheck to Kris Kristofferson, and to Sammy Smith!

Kevin

[loopy]

I saw the Cspan show. Actually, I thought Dworkin made a distinction between people suffering from clinical depression and those with only everyday unhappiness---drugs for the former, but maybe not for the latter. Did I miss something?