1. Everyone does what they think is best all the time.

   Explanation: everyone goes through the 'I should have done x instead of y' at times, but the fact remains that you thought x was the best action at the time you took it. Having thought about it, I've come to the conclusion that this is true all the time. The passengers and crew on United Airlines flight 93 on 9/11/01 evaluated the situation and decided that it's the best course of action was to attack the hijackers (even though they would probably cause the plane to crash, and themselves to die), because they knew that their aircraft was probably going to be used to attack Washington, D.C.

   Marilyn Vos Savant in her column in Parade (16 June 2002) concurred with me, writing "Fanaticism is characterized by the refusal (not inability) to think rationally.  The same dark deeds that once were justified by 'the Devil made me do it' are now justified with the excuse 'my God made me do it.'"

   Corollary:  if a person is acting on instructions perceived to be from a higher being,  there's no way to dissuade them from acting.

   Example:  if a man believes that God told them to destroy all squirrels because they're worshipers of Satan, there's no way to convince him otherwise.

    

2. The older a person gets, the faster any particular time period will appear to pass.

   Explanation: I believe that a person judges time as compared to the total time of that person's memory. A child's memory has a short period of memory, an old person has a much longer memory of time, therefore the time will appear to speed by.

   Example: one year seems endless to a child (especially when they're anticipating an event like a birthday). A four year old will (at most) remember a year as 1/4 (25%) of their entire lifetime, while a twenty year old person will remember a year as 1/20 (5%) of their life and a fifty year old as 1/50 (2%).

   Therefore, as one ages, time appears to pass faster.

    

3. One of the reasons of the recent rise of crime is lack of responsibility.

   Explanation: if one commits a crime and 'gets away with it', they'll be more likely to commit another. If they were were required to take responsibility for their actions, once would often be enough and recidivism would decrease.

   Examples: smokers discarding butts, drivers running stop signs.  If the smokers were required to retrieve their discarded butts, and those drivers were certain to be ticketed, they would be unlikely to repeat their offences. 

   Corollary: firearms make it easier to avoid responsibility (drive-by shootings being a good example).  If other weapons (i.e. knives) were the only ones available, such crimes would decrease since it would be more unlikely that the perpetrators would escape responsibility.  Therefore easily available firearms contribute to increase in crime.

    

4. When you're looking for a job, no matter what position you're seeking, you're in sales.

   Explanation:  you have to sell yourself to your potential employer, that you are the best candidate to fill the job vacancy.  After you get the job you start doing what you were hired for, but until you're hired your job is to sell yourself.

   Corollary: when you're seeking a promotion, this rule is also true.

    

5. A friend is someone who, when they ask, "How are you?" really wants to know.

   Explanation: "How are you?" has become a common greeting, with "Fine, how are you?" the expected response.  Neither of the people involved really wants to know how the other is.  A friend really wants an accurate answer to the question because he or she is concerned about you, which is an indication of friendship.

    

6. The older one gets, the more conscious one becomes of death.

   Explanation: A young child has no understanding of the meaning of death.  Teen-agers look upon death as something which happens to the elderly, not to someone of their age, thus they think they can't die because they're too young (hence some engage in highly dangerous activities).  Middle-aged people have seen elderly relatives pass on, and especially after their parents die do they realize that they're the next in line.  The elderly have had siblings or friends of similar age to themselves die, and now have to accept that are closer to death than to birth.

    

7. It is better to spend the minimum on what is required, so more can be spent on what is desired.

   Explanation:  Why spend more than necessary on things you don't really want (like taxes and toilet paper); if you spend less on such, you have more to spend on what you really want.

   Corollary: this is true with time as well as with money.  The minimum time spent on commuting (although some is desirable to separate work from non-work), the more time to spend on things you want.

   Therefore it is best to retire as early as possible unless there's nothing else you'd rather be doing. 

	We all have a finite time here; why spend it doing what you don't want to do?  Spend the minimum time employed to acquire enough assets to enable you to retire, then spend your remaining time doing what you want.
	Local, national and world events may change many things in your life (increased taxes may increase your expenses, potential terrorism may change your perspective), so enjoy while you can.
	There is a better chance of becoming infirm as you age, so enjoy life while you still can (you can't hear birdcalls if you've become deaf, see the Grand Canyon if macular degeneration has taken your vision, nor walk the Appalachian Trail if your joints are crippled by arthritis).
	If you have a defined benefit pension plan, it's designed to provide the same amount of money regardless of at what age you retire.  If you delay, you may die before drawing enough to reach the break-even point.
	Social Security pays reduced benefits earlier than the full retirement age (which used to be 65 but is now gradually increasing to 67, depending on your date of birth), but if you start drawing benefits earlier you'll be ahead until you've reached around 80.  If you begin to draw benefits early you'll receive less each month, but you'll be ahead for many years.