Observer,

". I still believe that skeptics miss the real joy of life, being afraid to nail down reality."

Curious why you believe that? Why should being a Skeptic have any effect on enjoying life.? I enjoy every day because I not little things that make laugh, and odd things that find fascinating, which I send to various friends around the world.

If I point out negative things in history, I believe that we would study how ordinary people survived those things, rather of wasting time on the rich and powerful that benefited from it. It would be far more meaningful and useful to ordinary students.