The Unscratchable Itch

Culture

The Unscratchable Itch

Human nature’s affinity for complaint just won’t go away.

Without complaint, journalists would have no work—and, come to think of it, daily conversation would be much impoverished, if not stopped altogether. We are enjoined to count our blessings, of course, but as La Rochefoucauld pointed out more than three centuries ago, it is easier to give good advice than to take it.