There Are No Absolutes

It’s all right to laugh at other people’s problems. Duesseldorf, Germany, psychoanalyst Claudia Sies says schadenfreude (joy over someone else’s misfortune) is actually healthy, since it “relieves stress because it can lead to a hearty laugh that helps people relax.” Targets of the laughter, she says, should just laugh along with them. (Reuters) ...On the other hand, when she presented her theory to the Deutsche Freudian Society, they laughed her out of the room.