Smart Guys, Bad Girls, Atheists, and “Isms”

It’s not as exciting as graduating from college (which I won’t do until next year), but this is my 100th blog article!

To celebrate the occasion, I decided to revisit some old blog articles that I think are good.

When I first started writing my blog, I wasn’t sure what to put in it or what style to use. Did I want it to be chatty? Funny? Sexy? Informative? Thoughtful?

I decided to make it all of them. That’s why it’s never been as consistent as some other blogs that are always about the same thing, such as school, fashion, politics, news, TV, or religion. And I never wanted it to be just about my life, which is interesting to me but is probably not that interesting to anyone else.

Here are the Rinth Ramblings that I like best:

Are Men Smarter Than Women?

Partly humorous and partly serious, this talks about the differences between how women and men think. It also points out the flaw in believing that either sex is “superior” to the other.

Why Atheists Love Breasts

This was my first blog article that got a lot of attention. Like the one about women and men, it was funny but it also talks about some serious issues. And yes, I picked the title to see if it would get a lot of people to read the article. It did.

Bad Girls Go Everywhere

This talks about the challenges of growing up with the stereotype of the “good girl,” who is pretty, obedient, and at least pretends to be stupid. It was inspired by an interview with Rachel Simmons, director of the Girls Leadership Institute and author of The Curse of the Good Girl.

The Mother of All Isms: “Label-Ism”

This talks about how labeling people can blind us to who they really are and what they’re really like. It was inspired by a speech at our school’s convocation about inequality and the importance of accepting others.

Don’t Outlaw Diet Coke

This article won an award as one of the “Top 100 Neuroscience Blogs.” I wrote it after midnight on a Friday night when I drank too much Diet Coke. It explains why Diet Coke is so yummy.

Libertarianism Isn’t Free

This explains what I think is wrong with the political viewpoint of libertarianism. This article also got a lot of attention, but more important, I’m very proud of it. People don’t have to agree with it, of course, but it makes some serious arguments.

Seven Questions for Anne Fadiman

I wrote several articles about Anne Fadiman and her wonderful book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. This article gives seven questions that I wanted to ask her when she spoke on campus.

Five Things That I’ve Learned

This explains some of the most important things I’ve learned about life. I can’t say that I always follow my own advice, but I try.

How to Help Haitian Earthquake Victims

I wrote two blogs about how to help survivors the the terrible earthquake in Haiti. There’s nothing special about these articles except that they might have helped encourage people to donate. But that’s pretty important.

Danger Ahead on “Gossip Girl”?

This one is about my favorite TV show, so it’s not profound or important. But in this article I had a chance to tell people about TeenDramaWhore.com, a Web site that my friend Shari Weiss uses to provide news about the best TV dramas, including of course “Gossip Girl.”

My Secret for Good Grades

None of what I say in this article is very surprising, but some people told me it helped them. So that’s a big plus!

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Copyright 2010 by Rinth de Shadley.