Yes, especially after reading Anathem.

Then I realize that my refrigerator is full of delicious things, and that my friends mostly live in Western society.

Desire is the cause of all suffering, but there's also bacon.

Attachment is the root of all suffering. The subtlety is that one may want but clinging onto that desire and not letting go creates pain.

Joy can't exist without suffering.

But you do not have to experience a feeling to fully enjoy its opposite.

Define "fully"

I can't.

Source? I keep seeing this thrown around, and I really don't see how it follows. Do you really think people can't just be happy, that they need suffering in their lives, or knowledge of someone suffering? Perhaps we're operating under different definitions of 'suffering', but I'd be really interested to hear a good case study on this.

Do you think it would be possible to replicate the relevant aspects of the math from Anathem? How much money would it take? I bet there would be a decent number of people in the world who would want to commit for a year or two. And I'd like to imagine that there would be some useful research that would come out of it...

That was my plan if my startup failed. Fortunately(?), it didn't.

I say drive for an hour or two, find some place with streaming water and some trees or just a huge green field, and take a day there.

A feature of meditation is that it is portable--you can do it virtually anywhere, anytime. Awareness and equanimity are the only ingredients required.

Just for a year.

All the time!