My aunt used to play it like a game, pitting people against each other and then sitting back to watch the fireworks. I myself an am extreme introvert and can't really tolerate being around people for more than 90 minutes without getting physically ill. What has worked for me is being well-mannered polite and pleasant almost all the time so that when I give my short, concise answers, it is not interpreted as rudeness. I focus on the satisfaction of the work I do, the adequecy of my pay, and the other small things I enjoy about my job. I make it a point to excercise daily. In the past I had jobs where stuff like that was intolerable and there was an added component of bullying. I nuked that job with only a vague 'Going back to school' plan. I was unemployed for several months and looked like I might have to move back into my car. But I didn't and have never regretted it. If it is that bad, like a shitty bf or gf, dump the muthafucker already. Or at least start working on your exit plan.

You ask if pop music and the people who are writing it are doing a good thing? I think so. Pop music is abhorrent to me. I actually get nauseous listening to it. My wife on the other hand loves it. Before we got married I asked her why she liked it so much. She works in a Pediatric ER. She said, "Well, in my job and the horrible things we see, I have learned to cope with what I have to by doing four things: debrief with the other nurses, cry if I have to and not hold back, imagine that all my patients survive and go home to kind and loving parents, and listen to Top 40. It does not tax my brain any further after a 12 hour shift and is usually upbeat and tells a love story." So from my single anecdotal perspective, yes, some people need the escapism and bubblegum. Makes sense to me.

I am loathe to be this pessimistic, but I am a little over 10 years off from the golden age of 50 when no one will hire me. With the shuck and jive that keeps getting played with Social Security, 401ks, and Medicare, more and more I am beginning to consider my retirement is going to be of the eating catfood or hot lead variety. If I even make it to retirement. The plan by our overlords seems to be that retirement is over for most people.

It's to be expected there will be cheating. Even in normal brick and mortar school s there were always cheaters. Hell, even the tour de france got turned into a dopers ball. So yes, this is a bummer and all the naysayers of these free opensource online classes now just have more ammo. But as someone who's life has not allowed them the path to Stanford/Upenn/University of Toronto, etc, I am putting in the work and bothering to actually learn and extremely grateful for the opportunity. So bummer, sure, but shame on the cheaters.