descartes forgot something

I have often berated myself for being so emotional, for sometimes acting irrationally, for being unable to make certain decisions free of emotion, for even experiencing emotion without always knowing the cause. Of course, much of that probably comes from those damn female hormones doing their monthly dance. However, to a certain extent, this emotional aspect of myself is part of what makes me human. A normal human able to do good and make good decisions... Reason is not everything. We do not need to experience emotion to be conscious, and we need to be conscious/selfaware to experience emotion. Yet, without emotion, consciousness is worthless. Yes, I think therefore I am. But it is not enough just to be.

Damasio (1994) studied a man who, due to a brain injury, could no longer experience emotion. He never became angry, was never sad (even about his own brain damage), he never enjoyed anything very much, even music. Far from being purely rational, he made amazingly stupid decisions, losing job, wife, savings. Though he knew and could rationally consider the consequences of any action, he could not decide which would be better because it did not matter to him one way or the other. He could just as easily make a decision that would win him approval as one that would get him into trouble.
Anderson et al. (1999) studied two adults who suffered from prefontalcortex injury as babies (thats the part of your brain linked to emotional experience); they never learned moral behavior, frequently made bad decisions, and did things like lying, stealing, etc. without showing any regret; despite having a normal IQ, they had no friends and could not keep a job.

Conclusion:
*while extreme emotions impair decision making, some emotion is necessary for making decisions.
* people who do not anticipate the unpleasantness of likely outcomes tend to make bad decisions.
* inevitably, emotions are inseparable from the idea of good and evil.
* i should no longer feel ridiculous for being emotional.