samski_the_duck

Or…
…moving on...

I think I'm finally free of that fucking infection. I'm still coughing a bit but it's diminishing by the day. At last I can get on with things and not keep wallowing in a fit of depression and self-loathing. I have been working on another fundraising project for Ataxia UK, which seems to have gained some momentum lately. :)

Also, there's this game, which I'm powering through!

Or…
…general crapiness.

Bah, another fucking chest infection.

I'm now on antibiotics so should feel marginally better soon. In relation to my last blog entry, I'm definitely not faking it.

Or…
…numbering the right's days .

“Money never made a man happy yet, nor will it. The more a man has, the more he wants. Instead of filling a vacuum, it makes one.” - Benjamin Franklin

At the moment the government is being frugal. Not to me, at least not yet. They’ve been conducting a big shake-up of the benefits system. Good news, yes? Well, not really, no. The bid to remove the undeserving may seem like a worthy ideal, until you consider that Britain has the lowest rate in Europe (disability is higher, but still less than most of those). Then you need to consider many of those deprived may genuinely need it. We were warned about this at the Ataxia UK conference and I know one (there are probably more) friend who has lost his benefits since. Are we honestly expected to stay in 24/7 and survive on bread and water? That’s what it feels like.

Another thing on the Conservative agenda is blatantly the dismantling of the NHS. They’ve never liked it as it has allowed the poorer people access to healthcare that would normally be beyond their reach. These moves have been doggedly opposed by 38degrees.

Then the prospect of web-surveillance has again been proposed. For fuck's sake.
Why do they keep trying to do this? Why?



It was with great satisfaction, I saw from the results the huge Tory losses in the election. Cameron has vowed to continue to deny reality. More good news; the BNP have lost all their contested seats. Hopefully we won't have to put up with Cameron for much longer, if the French elections are anything to go by.



I listened to Whoops!: Why Everyone Owes Everyone and No One Can Pay
by John Lanchester.

I must admit that finance isn't a topic that usually read into; economics is a branch in a completely different direction to my typical field of interest, science. In fact I didn't understand how economics could 'progress' in the same way as science and technology does. I guess I was curious as to further understand the whys and wherefores of the banking collapse.

This isn't an attempt to dodge responsibility (for example there are references to NINJA loans, which stands for No Income, No Job or Assets - that's a recipe for disaster right there).However it details the precarious nature of banking and the necessity of risk as in circular transactions.

But there's derivatives, futures, options, hedging, leverage and all those other complex interactions that I sort of understand, now. It doesn't hold my interest for long.

6/10

What is 2+2? what would you like it to be?

Or…
…evolution of the future.

"Perhaps we are only an afterthought, a kind of cosmic accident, just one bauble on the Christmas tree of evolution." – Stephen Jay Gould



Evolution again. Doubly amusing because the theory of evolution is itself evolving. The continuing research is plugging gaps in specifics that weren't understood so well before. Much like software, it updates according to small inadequacies whilst retaining the original notion of change. An example is 'Contemporary evolution', the idea of rapid change. It happens, but surely can't be the norm? Then there are the repeating blind alleys, as with all research: Does evolution have a direction? No:



Contrast with Creationism, which has made no progress and resorts to abysmal tactics such as the 'Gish gallop', which involves using so many crap arguments in a debate the opponent simply doesn't have time to correct them all. Indeed THERE ARE MUCH BETTER THINGS WE COULD DO WITH OUR LIVES!


Trolling is a art :D

“Science is the key to our future, and if you don’t believe in science, then you’re holding everybody back. And it’s fine if you as an adult want to run around pretending or claiming that you don’t believe in evolution, but if we educate a generation of people who don’t believe in science, that’s a recipe for disaster. We talk about the Internet. That comes from science. Weather forecasting. That comes from science. The main idea in all of biology is evolution. To not teach it to our young people is wrong.” ― Bill Nye

Dawkins has called for evolution to be taught to children. I agree, even the argument that it's too complicated doesn't wash; 'Gravity is a theory too complex for children so let's teach them the world is flat!' What? Also, the greatest guarantee of having stupid children is by teaching them stupid things. Here's a prize winning evolution book for children. See? It's not difficult!

Here's what they make of it:

Or…
…do you see what I see?



"A picture is worth a thousand words." - Napoleon Bonaparte

'Not necessarily, it depends on which words and which pictures'. My response is a bit predictable, a cross-over from the 2nd last entry. Quality isn't always begat by quantity but that does not mean it is not undesirable: China's top 1% of children... etc. YouTube seems to offer something similar. Worldwide about 60 hours of material is uploaded every minute. That means is impossible to watch even the 0.03% highest quality uploads back to back! That's crowd sourcing on a less-than planetary scale. What's it going to be like when we are a galaxy-full of genetically enhanced geniuses? That's the problem with sci-fi, a race of omnipotent beings would never become bored.

Anyway, I recently saw that film Life in a day, which is composed of various YouTube entries from around the world on the same day. It's really interesting to see how other cultures live, but also saddening in parts.

With that in mind, I consider how YouTube has developed over years and the differing ways it is used from amusing animal clips to political movements ( demonstrations against Acta) There's also comedy/philosophy as demonstrated by Tim Minchin : poor Whippy! ;)

As well as scientific information (such as Evolution of the moon), YouTube is an important tool in the use of blasphemy/free speech (same thing :P) for example movies about Noah's Ark here, here and here. It may seem like a large fish to shoot in a small barrel but people do still believe it.

On a similar topic, I love watching Humanism talks. Here's a few:
- Science in Hollywood
- psychology of the suicide bombers
- The ancient world
- The American reason rally 2012
I'd quite like to go to a humanist meeting. There's one in Cardiff soon. Hmmm...

Where is this going?

---
This is the final appeal for sponsorship for my brother's marathon for Ataxia. The run is on Sunday and we're going to London to support him, leaving tomorrow. My care provider took Phil over his target with their donation but any further donations at justgiving would be greatly appreciated. :)

Or…
…just when I thought I wouldn't need them again.



Behold, Google's project Glass. I saw in New Scientist they were aiming to make them a reality by the end of 2012. The augmented reality glasses are controlled by voice and head-shakes, so I probably won't be able to use them. :( They look pretty weird too, probably aiming for some sort of neo-retro fashion :D

They may not be around long either. The next level has already begun.
These were on Torchwood only 2 seasons ago!

Or…
…overdue Internet altruism.



I read Cognitive Surplus by Clay Shirky.

It's a fair attempt to explain why in this connected age why we use our cognitive surplus (free mental power and time) in the way we do. In past it was wasted and not spread so widely. Television 'mopped up' excess but with the invention of the Internet, the consumer became a producer of sorts, and our surplus was used in a more constructive and altruistic way. Think of lolcats through to political movements, fanfic, and even this blog. I am an amateur; I write primarily for the love of it.

I agree with some of Shirky's ideas, they fit with my views of progress, but as I said in another entry the quality of the TV programme is more important. Drawing a farting cat is not more cognitive than your average episode of Horizon; ace, AI! Plus there is information fatigue to consider!

7/10

On a similar subject I've been looking through some of the photo groups on facebook. I particularly like I fucking love science. It's like a new geeky home, full of brainy quotes, observations and complex humour. Then theirs No hope for the human race, which is full of 'luls'. Also:



Heh.

Or…
…heart and mind.

Just had my heart scan results back.
Um... Anyone want donate theirs?

Na, kidding. It's pretty good. :)

I was a bit nervous as it’s been a few years since my last scan. It was fairly good news, I hadn’t deteriorated at all. Looking back at my previous heart entries, three years ago, I had just been switched to a new medication after being rushed to hospital. No major problems since so it’s doing well.

I saw two Horizon episodes, recently, which were related: The truth about exercise and The truth about fat. A big contributor to my heart’s condition is that I cannot do much in the way of exercise (cue probable health freakery after Ataxia!) There was an interesting thing about NEAT movements, the calories we burn doing everyday ordinary little things: Sitting in a hair all day can kill apparently. Boo. :(

Or…
…alcoholics go meetings, drunks go to parties.


The party, Jon at 30, Tina and me working our way through some drinks.


Mr and Mrs Lampshire, The wedding party, Bexy and me being posh.

Once again, my wall makes it look like the only things I do are drink and cuddle pretty girls :D

There were a couple of celebrations this month; My friend Jon’s 30th birthday party in Eccles, Manchester was first. My PA drove me up and we had a great time there. The other was the wedding reception of Pauline (Bex’s mum) and Geoff. I know I said I don’t believe in marriage but if someone else does, I’ll join in the celebrations, especially if there’s alcohol!

A few other things: I went to see Billy Connelly performing live. Although he was doing several nights’ shows he was sold out (wheelchair spaces too), I only got a ticket by incredible luck. It was great, of course! I am thinking about getting a new car; I am now having trouble lifting myself into a normal passenger seat, even with assistance, so I travelled up to High Wicombe to see a car which I can travel in when sat in my wheelchair. I’m also considering a hoist in the car door. The latest facebook game is Edgeworld. Interest already waning...


You probably noticed in the pics, above, that I’ve had the chop. Here’s a last pic, taken the day before. :)

To-do List
Hair
Tidy
Sort phone
Update website
Get car hoist
Replace DVD writer
Writing definitions list
Sort magazine back issues
Repair and organise DVDs
Book writing

Or…
…not black and white, but shades of wrong.

"Free speech and Freethought go together. If one is hampered the other languishes. What is the use of thinking if I may not express my thought? We claim equal liberty for all. The priest shall say what he believes and so shall the sceptic. No law shall protect the one and disfranchise the other. If any man disapproves what I say, he need not hear me a second time. What more does he require? Let him listen to what he likes, and leave others to do the same. Let us have justice and fair play all round." – GW Foote.

Atheism and secularism are not merely modern fads, as many people claim. There were many people over the course of history that held sceptical views of religion, amongst other things. However fear of oppression and persecution limited their vocalism. David Hume, the 18th century Scottish philosopher was a famous example. Others include the ancient Greek intellectuals, the founding fathers of America, Darwin (who thought of himself as an agnostic), GW Foote (who was imprisoned for blasphemy in his publication the freethinker), Charles Chilton Moore (For similar reasons) and many more. Indeed, from the dawn of human history when one caveman pointed to ‘Big Ugg in the sky’ there was someone else who said ‘Naaa’, and often was killed for it.

It’s with this in mind that I feel troubled by government opposition to secularism, particularly as religion is so adept at stifling free speech. Pending publication of the UK census taken last year, there appears to be a large percentage of non-religious people (some surveys say more than 50%) and the Christians are barely Christian. Yet we still have to fight for acceptance, such as with the Secular Europe Campaign.



There we have it; Jesus probably never existed at all, it being a confusion of astrology (The three kings being the three stars on Orion’s belt, the death and resurrection meaning the 3 day Sun dip in the solstice etc). However its main target is Christianity, rather than religion in general, a point raised by jordan179 in an entry here; religious condemnation is often disproportionate between Christianity and Islam (as well as the other religions of the world). This goes against the tendency of Islamic fundamentalists to be more violent. Mostly. I can think of some reasons that might explain this:

- Christianity has the most global adherents.
- Most of the religious 'on our doorstep' are Christians, whereas most Islamic events we hear of by proxy.
- With the exception of the few of us brought up without religion, most of us 'were' Christian, so there’s the issue of personal rebellion. This also means many of us are more familiar with the absurdities of the Bible than the Koran.
- Christianity influences our government policy more than Islam, which is often seen as an undeserved influence.

That isn’t to say atheism is uncritical of Islam, or is particularly intimidated. There are plenty of things out there such as ‘Draw Mohammed Day’, writings of Sam Harris, the ‘Satanic Verses’ by Salman Rushdie (which earned him a fatwa) amongst others. Here is an article by PZ Myers on the laughable errors of an example of the Hadeeth (sayings of the prophet), and here is an American billboard campaign with specific targets. Also here’s Jesus and Mo!

Have some Billy:


“Religion can never reform mankind because religion is slavery.” - Robert Green Ingersoll

Here’s some further elaboration on my reasons, listed above:
- Few non-Muslims in the western world actually know what Mohammad is reported to have done. They can sometimes recite parts such as his marriage to a nine year old girl but they can’t name other specifics, as with Jesus’ story. The BBC did a 3 part documentary on his life, which some condemned (an immediate reason to watch ;) ). They did their best to put a positive spin on it, but logically it was a tale of someone with some form of extreme epilepsy. Islam’s claim to Jerusalem is rather tenuous; relying on an obvious dream of a winged horse! Informative.
- Christianity’s influence on British governmental policy stems from a number of bishops in the unelected House of Lords. Baroness Warsi, the first unelected Muslim minister, maybe the turning point in those influences. She recently launched a fucking stupid attack on Secularism. Doesn’t she understand secularism is the reason she is where she is now? In an Islamic country she wouldn’t be a solicitor, politician or of influence. She’d be an illiterate, burka-clad mother with a mutilated vagina.
- The other things mentioned in terms of Islamic influence are the Sharia courts, which have absolutely no influence over non-Muslims or government influence beyond protests as the rest of us do.
- I don’t live in Bradford, so I can’t really comment beyond what logic dictates: We need more integration to end this madness. No more religious symbolism, indoctrination and faith schooling; a four year old left to their own devices will befriend other children of any creed or colour. I saw Make Bradford British which attempted to deal with the multiculturism issue.
- Judging by some of the videos posted on the future of Europe, on Youtube, there seems to be a sense of panic that we will be ‘Islamised’ or something within 39 years...I don’t know where to start with that one... Ok, firstly, it’s scaremongering, and the only end to that can be violence. It is worrying that some still have the mindset of the Crusades; us and them, Christian against Muslim, the only way forward is through physical struggle... Haven’t we got past that? We live in a period of understanding, discussion and cognition. Europe is growing increasingly secular, with religious idolatry being cast off. It may be more difficult, at first but followers are renouncing Islam just as any other faith. Many of those who stay in the faith do so far less strictly. The alcohol and social rules are often more liberal, and recently there was a Muslim woman on Deal or no deal, a TV show based on the premise of gambling. Because Ramadan this year falls during the Olympic Games, Muslim athletes are choosing to postpone their fasting until after the games are over, in effect saying ‘this life takes precedence’.
- Because Islam is a religion and not a race, you can’t be racist against Muslims any more than you can be racist against members of the Lady Gaga fan club. This also brings into question the reason for resisting this ‘invasion’. Is it a white/non-white issue? We are all a patchwork of DNA from different sources, for example we in Britain have been invaded many times in our history; the Vikings, the Romans, the Normans. Their DNA is part of us (We even have some Neanderthal genes). Let’s not even dignify that ridiculous claim that Muslims will outbreed us with our negative population growth.
- In short, Islam as it stands now is far too rigid to survive in the dynamics of a secular west. There have been and will be many more futile exceptions but in the long run (Thousands, hundreds of thousands of years) a liberal and progressive society will be here.

Finally, happy ‘A’ week, all.

Or…
…the darkened room of mirrors.

I found this on the gorum and I thought I just had to blog it.See here for more info. Side note: that site is full of wonderfully geeky stuff! :)




If Satan plays miniature golf, this is his favorite hole. A ball struck at A, in any direction, will never find the hole at B — even if it bounces forever.

The idea arose in the 1950s, when Ernst Straus wondered whether a room lined with mirrors would always be illuminated completely by a single match.

Straus’ question went unanswered until 1995, when George Tokarsky found a 26-sided room with a “dark” spot; two years later D. Castro offered the 24-sided improvement above. If a candle is placed at A, and you’re standing at B, you won’t see its reflection anywhere around you — even though you’re surrounded by mirrors.

Or…
…power priorities of the future.

“The discovery of nuclear reactions need not bring about the destruction of mankind any more than the discovery of matches” - Albert Einstein.

As it’s been a year since the Fukushima disaster(s) I thought I would comment. Tens of thousands of people were killed by the double Earthquake-tsunami. Click did an episode about the technological response.

Yet the thing most talked about, and feared is the Nuclear power plant leak, even though it killed no-one, even though (to date) it has not caused any long term illness. Compare that to the countless mine collapses, explosions, oil leaks, hydroelectric dam collapses etc. Also the entirely tectonically stable Germany is discontinuing its nuclear power programme. They say replacements will be renewable, but we all know it’ll be coal, in the end, yes? The good news is that those appear to be the only two countries with a questionable nuclear future because of this.

The next generation “Fast breeder” reactors are on their way. They are much safer, designed to last centuries. I’m not really sure how not replacing old reactors is safer; the Fukushima plant was decades old! Anyway, here is a facebook reactor game.

On the subject of future energy production, nuclear really does seem to be the best choice, in the near-future at least. I’m now not so sure about the longer-term; after reading an article on disrupting Earth’s energy budget, is making me think ultra-efficient solar? I never really liked the idea of wind energy, which now seems to be more limited than ever. So until we start living offworld and building Dyson Spheres...

Or…
…another arsehole on our to-do list.



You may have seen this before as it’s gone viral. Basically it’s another stain on the consciences of the human race, which should be relatively easy to expunge as he has no state backing, or anything like that. I suspect the real reason we haven’t gone after him in earnest is because we don’t get to blow anything up. Donate here

I found this...yes, I am going to hell. :)

Or…
…nothing isn’t sacred.

Policing nudity encourages a perverse relationship to the body, self and sexuality. - Saskia Vogel.

Thursday was International Women’s day, which is held due to oppression throughout the world. In modern times this is often religious in nature, the epitome of which is the burka. It’s therefore appropriate that a group of freethinking women have produced the Nude Revolutionaries Calendar (NSFW) to show women cannot be controlled by their clothing. I think it’s a very brave thing to do and really can’t understand why the zealots think it’s a bad thing!

Or…
…so long and thanks for all the reads.

“The Answer to the Great Question Of.....Life, the Universe and Everything.....(is) Forty-two.” - Douglas Adams



I recently reread the Hitchhikers trilogy (5 books) by Douglas Adams. With different book covers.

I first Hitchhikers when I was 10 years old and the humour hasn’t faded since. It has a typically British style of humour that is insane, but also makes a lot of sense; the answer 42, the Bistromath, the improbability drive and various other things.

The trilogy focuses on Arthur Dent and his adventures across the Universe following the destruction of the Earth to make way for an interstellar bypass. It’s an unlikely setting but it works! So get out your guide, remember your towel and above all, DON’T PANIC!

9/10



I then had a go, listening to And another thing... by Eoin Colfer

I did start off with grave doubts; I really did hope and wish the audio book would retain some of the masterful eccentricity that defined Adams’ trilogy of five. However as the tale developed, it seemed more and more like blasphemy (heh)! Some of the best parts of the proper books were overused, such as Wowbagger (Having said that, there was no Marvin. :( ), although a number of side notes were amusing.

I hated all the religious crap. Adams characterised Thor BRIEFLY and in order to subtly mock the theistic concept; Colfer goes and makes it a central premise and juggles with it cack-handedly. There was also a 10-percent-brain-myth fail which kind of grated. Lastly, Arthur only seems to have a minor role.

In all, it’s not entirely unlike one of Adams’ books.

5/10

Is that smell considered pleasant where you come from?


And now for something completely different:
My brother Phil Merchant is running the London Marathon, this year, for Ataxia UK. Please send him a few quid at his justgiving page
Thank you kindly. :)

Or…
…this is how you game, Mr Gorman.



Duckie dressed in reference to Angry birds released on Chrome. Disappointing, it wasn’t as addictive as billed. Bubble witch saga is though. It’s one of the things that has been sapping my time, lately.



I’m still catching up with books II read last year! I finished The Player of Games by Ian M Banks, in December.

It’s obvious now that being such a master of EVERY game is impossible, with so many to choose from, there’d be no time to learn them all. However this aside, I really enjoyed reading this. I found myself agreeing with and even looking forward to many aspects of the Culture: organ regrowth and changing gender being obvious examples. ;)

The contrast between the Culture and the Empire of Azad in which this occurs is a reflection of our current societies methinks.

9/10

It’s the 29th...
Samuel hasn't even had one marriage proposal. :(
Where are my fans?

Or…
…happenings between those two birthdays.



I’m well overdue for a personal entry. I seem to have forgotten about a lot of them, which is one of the reasons why people keep diaries in the first place. Heh. Not me apparently, ideas are more noteworthy than events. Oh well, here are some of the events of my year if they’re not in entries already:


At the end of last March I stayed for a week at Littlecote house with Paul’s place. Ducks, daytrips and grandeur. I did feel sorry for the guy I was sharing a room with as I ‘snore like a trouper’. :S


Photos of the family round at Easter (None of us really believe the Easter bunny was crucified then, it’s just nice to take advantage of the holidays). Also me with the hippy hair and glasses (now gone). Lastly that’s Mum’s elephant experience; she likes them almost as much as I like ducks.


That’s another family thing we do most years. In July we have a BBQ/picnic in Savernake forest (mostly dependant on whether we arrive soon enough to bagsie a free BBQ pitch). Next photo is of me and my newest cousin Lexi!


I had to check back through my blog because I couldn’t believe I didn’t put this in an earlier entry! In august I went out for a day’s sailing with the Jubilee sailing trust. They have two tall ships that are wheelchair accessible, the only ones in the world! This one was Tenacious. There are longer trips out but I don’t think I could manage aboard and share a watch, so mine was only a daytrip.


In October there were two events at Paul’s Place; the Halloween party (I make an unnervingly good beetlejuice :S) and the annual dinner-dance fundraiser. We all suit up and prance around a bit at a nearby hotel. :)

There have been other things going on, of course, but without photos (at least to hand). There have been a few small group Ataxia meets that I’ve been to. Exeter, Cardiff, Birmingham etc. They’ve been events organised through various branches, including the online A.S.S. (now A.N.U.S.) one. Tina Thatcher is trying to start-up the Bristol one again. We met up Saturday, there were a few newbies. :)

I’ve also been to a load of stand-up comedies. Magner’s funhouse doesn’t seem to be operating in Bristol this year, which is a shame as it was good stuff and mega-cheap too! I’ll be at Jongleurs more then. Colston hall is another one; I saw Ed Byrne, Milton Jones and Stephen Merchant to name a few. My PA has free entry too. Bargin!

In other family news, Mum and Dad have both retired, meaning they have all the time to do everything they want. Constant redecoration so far... Mum is now on my direct payments payroll now. Suzie has also finally finished her dissertation; she’s a fully fledged doctor! Phil’s working on his and will be one too.

What else? Oh yes, the service of the title. At the time of beginning this entry I went over to Hemel Hempstead to get my chair serviced and buy one of those new Lithium-ion batteries (20 mile range). Servicing...fine. Battery...not so. I’d neglected to specify the type, and opened the box at home to find they’d put in a new old-type Nickel-Metal-Hydride one. I should have checked, and thus a £25 postage fee...NO. ONE. ELSE. TO. BLAME. :(



On the Littlecote trip I read Children of men by PD James.

I didn’t really like the film, which is based on this. It is a completely different take on the concept although that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better. In fact I think it’s worse as a lot of irrelevant back story is removed. Also James seems to be a little old lady with little understanding of male sexuality; it’ll take a lot more than universal sterility to put us off sex.

As in the film, there is no mention of science or technology. The book was written in the ‘90s so IVF was already in full swing; the setting for the book is in the 2020s, so there should have been some technological advances. Even without the pressures of no future generations, we in 2011 are discovering how to make sperm in vitro. The whole thing could have been set 50 years ago. The global affliction aspect has since been reused in Torchwood: Miracle day at least with a pseudoscientific explanation!

Ultimately it’s a book about a group of unlikable conspiracy theorists, hence the ‘revolutionary writing’ mislabel.

2/10

Or…
…first ducks in a new decade.

“I’m 31. I’m a grown-up . I’m an adult. I want to write a novel.” – Dave Gorman



Well, it was quieter than last year! I spent most of the day with the ‘rents, their house then out for something to eat at the ‘Hungry Horse’ near Trowbridge. No, I didn’t get drunk, just a glass of champagne (I kept a bottle from last year) and a couple of shots (probably watered down) when out. Am I getting old? Mum and Dad got me a Kindle, which is a bit ace. Beats the free version I could only use on my PC. I’m already reading through my first book now. I’ll have to nip back to read my large pile of unstarted paperbacks...



Achievement unlocked: Survive 31 years

Also, here’s Turing’s Duck Test.

Inspired by the anteater.

or…
…Smile, be happy?.

“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

When thinking about it, I have to conclude that I haven’t done badly in the genetic lottery of life. Most obvious in the negative column is Ataxia and there are a few other irritations, but I feel the positives outweigh these. At risk of sounding like I’m blowing my own trumpet, I am privileged in many ways, not least the location of my birth. Many of the world’s population don’t have access to healthcare or education as here, I value these greatly. Looking at Maslow’s pyramid I find my most pressing needs satisfied although I couldn’t call myself completely happy either.

The UK is beginning to measure happiness of its population, with other countries following suit (Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi invented the ‘Experience sampling method’ which makes the result more accurate and less subjective – Yes, that is his name). It has also been shown there is a limit to achievable happiness. As I’ve said before, I don’t think happiness is the ultimate goal of life.



Of course wealth plays a key role but it’s no guarantor. In Megacities there was often the reverse. Some individuals living in rich megacities such as Tokyo, were so socially isolated they felt the need to buy friendship. Happiness is a precarious quality. It is also oversimplified, although there is a truth here:

“Nobody really cares if you’re miserable, so you might as well be happy.” – Cynthia Nelms

Then there are the regrets. I’ve been trying to avoid the top one for a long time now. I want to live according to what I want, not what others expect of me.



I read The happiness hypothesis by Jonathan Haidt a little while ago.

The book is quite densely packed with ideas and references; the Teachings of Amenemope, an early Egyptian moral work stolen by the bible (they all steal from each other!), then there’s a bit about the philosophical death of Boethius. The Consolation of Philosophy is now on my reading list. I strongly disagree with the adaptation hypothesis; I do hope and expect to be happier once I’m rid of Ataxia! I am also unconvinced by something else highlighted; Naive realism. It’s the idea that you think that you alone see the world as it is and everyone who disagrees is affected by bias, is wrong. What? What about evidence? Some things aren’t subjective: Creationists, for example ARE biased, and are demonstrably, objectively wrong.

I have a problem with his accepting stance on religion, saying the ‘gnu’ atheist aversion is something that is unnecessary or needs to be moved past. There isn’t much criticism of it throughout, for example the vilification of sexuality caused by the mistranslation of ‘virgin’ or the part about reciprocity and Jesus’ other teachings (See Madman or something worse).

Buddhism has a benign reputation, undeserved in some cases and yes, I agree it is an overreaction to many things. If you meditate away your bad thoughts and experiences at the expense of your good ones, you may as well not be alive! It is the direct antithesis of my desire for experience of life’s undulations. Also: see here

7/10

P.S. Happy Darwin Day!

Or…
…oh how I hate thee, cold.

It’s cold. Saturday was bad, and the ‘rents and I were travelling back from Exeter then. A few other planned trips out have been put off for the time being. Every year we get surprised...