Delighting in other's pain

There's a fantastic word that I use as often as possible:  shadenfreude.  It's German and means "delighting in the misfortune of others".  Now I don't sit around and live this word...but every now and again, the feeling does pop up (like when multi-hundred million dollar businesses laugh you off and dismiss you as childlike, then 18 months later their executives are applying for analyst positions at your company).  Yes, admit it, you'd relish in that for at least a moment.  Well...that's shadenfreude! 

Today, uber business blogger Paul Kedrosky has coined a new phrase Schadentraffic.  He defines this as:

...the vicarious thrill you get while in your office surfing various traffic webcams around the country and taking pleasure at all the poor bastards still sitting in their cars.

Yes!  Now that I'm an Iowan, I admit that I do feel Schadentraffic constantly...but I never had a word to express myself.  Problem solved.  Thanks Paul.

Comments

[Dave O.]

What's going on here? This is the 3rd reference to shadenfreude that I've seen this morning- and it's not even 10am?

Scott Adams riffed about shadenfreude (or at least something similar) on his blog. You'll have to read Adamss own words, I won't do it justice:

http://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2007/02/feeling_good.html

Best,
Dave