We had a story the other day about how rage rooms - places where people can p[ay to smash stuff in order to get out their frustrations - have become popular, prompting one MN reader to write:
Funny…made me remember … decades ago i managed retail stores, and the salespeople sometimes got frustrated with jerky customers. I had a large refrigerator sized box in my office that was cut down to waist height and I would regularly stop at garage sales and pick up old plates. If things were really bad I’d invite you in my office to throw a few plates into the box with force for some serious break-age and vent-age.
Guess I was ahead of my time?
Guess so.
From another reader:
I think the guy who decided to threaten the UBER driver in FL recently (before being fatally shot by the same UBER driver in standing his ground) might have benefited from a rage room.
Maybe. On the other hand, it is amazing what passes for “civilized society” these days.
MNB reader Kevin T. Duffy wrote:
That’s awesome. They should name the rooms for people who have a history of destroying hotel rooms. Suggestions include the Keith Moon Room (more of a suite), The Joe Walsh Room, The Small Faces Room, The 1998 US Olympic Hockey Team Room…
And, from another, a different perspective:
I took a social psychology class in college where we learned that venting out your anger like this is not healthy. Sure, it feels good in the moment, but it is essentially “practicing” aggression, making you more likely to be aggressive in the future. Plus, it is teaching adults and children alike that being violent is okay. It is much better to cope by calming yourself down (meditating, for example). That lesson has really stuck with me, and I think of it every time I hear about people that need to “get out their anger” like this. So hopefully someone will take that lesson to heart!
Aside from all that, what are they going to do about the risk of people getting hurt? They could accidentally hit themselves with the weapon, or more likely get cut by the shrapnel. Just seems like a bad idea all around.
Regarding yesterday’s mention of the death of Phil Straniero, MNB reader Brian Hart wrote:
I was so sorry to hear of Phil’s passing and had the privilege of working with Phil for over 20 years at Kellogg’s. Then after his retirement from Kellogg’s, I would typically teach one of his WMU classes each semester as RFID was becoming news worthy and then not so news worthy in the CPG industry. For what ever reason, Phil took me under his wing in my early sales career and then my later HQ career, serving as a trusted mentor. There is no doubt Phil made a significant impact on me and my career. One thing I remember about Phil is his always keeping me up to date on his boys, where they were, what they were doing how their respective families were growing. He was very proud of them and it showed!
Phil studied Aerospace in college but somehow ended up at Kellogg’s. He had a unique way with math and justifying his calculations. We would fondly refer to it a “Phil Math”. No one understood, but we all believed it.
P.S. Based on my once a semester outings to teach Phil’s class I can see why you would love your summer adjunctivity at Portland State. I always felt so invigorated and hopeful for our future each time I was able to lead a class!
MNB reader Frank Fay wrote:
Nice thoughts on Phil, I awoke to this on LinkedIn this morning and was surprised saddened by his passing. Phil was a great co-worker at Kellogg; always gave a straight answer and was also a generous mentor to me as he helped me to learn the ropes of the classroom and to sharing at the college level. His friends and colleagues will miss him, as will his students of life!
Funny…made me remember … decades ago i managed retail stores, and the salespeople sometimes got frustrated with jerky customers. I had a large refrigerator sized box in my office that was cut down to waist height and I would regularly stop at garage sales and pick up old plates. If things were really bad I’d invite you in my office to throw a few plates into the box with force for some serious break-age and vent-age.
Guess I was ahead of my time?
Guess so.
From another reader:
I think the guy who decided to threaten the UBER driver in FL recently (before being fatally shot by the same UBER driver in standing his ground) might have benefited from a rage room.
Maybe. On the other hand, it is amazing what passes for “civilized society” these days.
MNB reader Kevin T. Duffy wrote:
That’s awesome. They should name the rooms for people who have a history of destroying hotel rooms. Suggestions include the Keith Moon Room (more of a suite), The Joe Walsh Room, The Small Faces Room, The 1998 US Olympic Hockey Team Room…
And, from another, a different perspective:
I took a social psychology class in college where we learned that venting out your anger like this is not healthy. Sure, it feels good in the moment, but it is essentially “practicing” aggression, making you more likely to be aggressive in the future. Plus, it is teaching adults and children alike that being violent is okay. It is much better to cope by calming yourself down (meditating, for example). That lesson has really stuck with me, and I think of it every time I hear about people that need to “get out their anger” like this. So hopefully someone will take that lesson to heart!
Aside from all that, what are they going to do about the risk of people getting hurt? They could accidentally hit themselves with the weapon, or more likely get cut by the shrapnel. Just seems like a bad idea all around.
Regarding yesterday’s mention of the death of Phil Straniero, MNB reader Brian Hart wrote:
I was so sorry to hear of Phil’s passing and had the privilege of working with Phil for over 20 years at Kellogg’s. Then after his retirement from Kellogg’s, I would typically teach one of his WMU classes each semester as RFID was becoming news worthy and then not so news worthy in the CPG industry. For what ever reason, Phil took me under his wing in my early sales career and then my later HQ career, serving as a trusted mentor. There is no doubt Phil made a significant impact on me and my career. One thing I remember about Phil is his always keeping me up to date on his boys, where they were, what they were doing how their respective families were growing. He was very proud of them and it showed!
Phil studied Aerospace in college but somehow ended up at Kellogg’s. He had a unique way with math and justifying his calculations. We would fondly refer to it a “Phil Math”. No one understood, but we all believed it.
P.S. Based on my once a semester outings to teach Phil’s class I can see why you would love your summer adjunctivity at Portland State. I always felt so invigorated and hopeful for our future each time I was able to lead a class!
MNB reader Frank Fay wrote:
Nice thoughts on Phil, I awoke to this on LinkedIn this morning and was surprised saddened by his passing. Phil was a great co-worker at Kellogg; always gave a straight answer and was also a generous mentor to me as he helped me to learn the ropes of the classroom and to sharing at the college level. His friends and colleagues will miss him, as will his students of life!
- KC's View:
