(excerpted from the revised and expanded edition of
Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia)



"Don't eat any food that's incapable of rotting," says Michael Pollan in his book "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto." In other words, highly processed foods with a long shelf life don't contribute to your optimum vitality.

I'd like to expand this rule to make it an all-purpose guideline for life. Try out this hypothesis: If you're involved with any person or situation that never decays, or if there is some part of you that never decays, that's highly suspicious and may be a problem.

Like growth, rot is a natural phenomenon. Indeed, every advancement requires or brings the disintegration of whatever it replaces. You can't grow if you don't rot. The "perfection" of stasis can be hazardous to your health.

What's ripe to rot in your world?