Headline May 24, 2016/ ''' LAUGHING TEARS *WITH* EDUCATED STUDENTS ? '''

''' LAUGHING TEARS *WITH* 

EDUCATED STUDENTS ? '''

STUDENT CHRISTINE LEE JIA XIN, a Malaysian student who withdrew A$4.6 million [RM 13.8 million] after she was mistakenly granted unlimited account by an Australian bank-

And went on a shopping spree,....claimed she thought her parents deposited the funds for her use. This is the information she provided when the bank contacted her.

Student Lee is said to have spent millions on branded handbags, jewellery, clothes as well as rent on a luxurious apartment over 11 months between 2014 - 2015 using an unlimited overdraft account accidentally given to her by Westpac Bank.

The error was discovered by the bank when she transferred A$1.15 million to her PayPal account in 14 transactions in a single day on April 7 last year. !WOW! and  !E-WOW! wish her the very best.  

LET ME GIVE IT TO YOU ALL STRAIGHT : In Pakistan, in all the developing world, even in the developed world, on the issue of income equality, or class inequality, the views of-

The Highly Educated are now similar to those of groups with much lower levels of education, who have a real material stake in reducing inequalities. 

Even higher income advanced degree holders have become more redistributionist, if less so than the others. This is from Neil Gross a professor of Sociology at Colby College.

I, foolish as I am, thought that we used humour to deal with the horror of human existence. Many famous comedians have experienced trauma and depression.  Personally, I turn to comedy when I am unhappy.

Granted, I'm almost always miserable and always looking to laugh, so that doesn't tell us much.

I'm not alone in thinking that pain and humour are connected. Soren Kierkegaard wrote : '' The more one suffers, the more, I believe, has one a sense for the comic''. 

Or as Charlie Chaplin put it, '' Laughter is the tonic, the relief, the surcease from pain''. Mark Twain felt the same way: ''The secret source of humour itself is not joy but sorrow. There is no humour in heaven.''

Our collective Google searches can't tell us whether pain and sorrow drive professional comedians, but the database does give some clue about the rest of us. There are many potential humour-related searches you can make   -''Daily Show clips''  ,  ''Louis C.K. stand-up'', ''Knicks highlights''.

There are more than  100 million searches every year in the United States that include the word  ''jokes''. Americans make more searches for  ''jokes'' than they do for  '''sweaters'', or vitamins. But let me first get back to real life.

In America, the General Social Survey shows that in recent decades, as class inequality has increased, Americans who hold advanced degrees have grown more supportive of government efforts to reduce income differences-

Whether through changes to taxes or strengthening the welfare system.

What explains the consolidation of the highly educated into a liberal block? the growing number of women with advanced degrees is part of it, as well -educated women tend to be especially left-leaning.

Equally important is the Republican Party's move to the right since the 1980s, alongside the perception that conservatives are anti-intellectual, hostile to science and at war with the university.

This phenomenon is mostly a boon for the Democratic Party. While only 10 per cent of the US adults hold advanced degrees, the number is expected to rise. the group is active politically and is influential.

The challenge for the Democrats moving forward will be to develop appeals to voters that resonate not just with this important constituency, but also with other crucial groups in the Democratic coalition.

The Democrats may find they need to give up a little of their wonkiness if they want resounding victories. It is not in their long-term interest to be too much what Pat Buchanan once referred to as ''the party of the PhDs''.

And by the way,  Google searches can also gives us new clues on the content of jokes that relate to darkness and void of human existence? Sometimes, but not that often.

About  53%  of searches Americans make for jokes are for light and corny jokes    -searches like fun ''jokes'' , ''kids jokes''  or  ''dad jokes'', or

''student jokes'' ?

With Most Respectful dedication to Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, the outstanding leader, the great Prime Minister, the master architect of Malaysia's Crowns and Progress.

See You, Your Excellency, and your peoples,  on !WOW! -the World Students Society and  !E-WOW! the Ecosystem 2011 

''' Strengthening The World '''

Good Night and God Bless

SAM Daily Times - the Voice of the Voiceless