https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2022/01/will-britain-survive/621095/

D

https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2005/jan/16/society?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Yes, climatic deterioration probably helped destroy Norse Greenland. But the Vikings also damned themselves. ‘The Inuit survived,’ he points out. ‘The Vikings’ disappearance was not inevitable.’

And hereby hangs our tale. Throughout the 500-plus pages of this densely argued, yet riveting treatise, Diamond, a geographer at University of California in Los Angeles and a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, outlines the interrelated ecological reasons and economic causes for the disintegration, and survival, of societies throughout history.

Examples include the Mayans who stripped their land of trees (deforestation figures in just about all collapses, it transpires), triggering widespread soil erosion and starvation, and the Easter Islanders who destroyed their society in a fever of religious statue building and cannibalism. (‘The flesh of your mother sticks between my teeth,’ is still a popular island insul

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/jun/01/brexit-too-complicated-for-referendum-says-jared-diamond?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Brexit was too complex to be decided by referendum and should have been left in the hands of elected representatives, not voters, Jared Diamond has said.

Speaking at the Hay festival on Saturday about his latest book, Upheaval, an analysis of world crises, the US historian said both individuals and nations could solve crises by “having a model of someone or a country who had a similar problem and solved it successfully”.

Britain had “little experience” with national referendums before the 2016 vote, he said, having only held two: the 1975 vote to remain in the European common market, and the 2011 vote on the UK’s parliamentary voting system. However, he said, in 2016 Britain could have looked overseas for examples of best practice, including Wisconsin and California in the US, two states that regularly hold referendums, and Italy, which has held more than 70 national referendums since 1946. S

I thought of my blog friends when I read this quote from “The Path: A New Way to Think About Everything” by Michael Puett, Christine Gross-Loh –

“From roughly 600 to 200 BC, an explosion of philosophical and religious movements throughout Eurasia gave rise to a wide variety of visions for human flourishing. During this period, which has come to be called the Axial Age, many of the ideas that developed in Greece also emerged in China and vice versa. In fact, in China, as we will see, certain beliefs arose that were very similar to those common in the West today. But in China, such views lost the day, while other ideas emerged in opposition, arguing for a very different path to a good life.”

Start reading this book for free: https://amzn.eu/4OnMiJB

Mary had been reading a new book called,” The Path” by Michael Puett and Christine Gross-Loh.To her surprise, she saw it reviewed on her phone where she read the guardian news

.She had decided to get out of bed on the other side
When she awoke the next day, she remembered her vow.Unfortunately, she forgot she was inside a fleece sleeping bag with a zip on one side only.Should she get some scissors and cut her way out on the other side?Or was that a foolish idea since nobody but she would know she had failed her to keep her first new promise.
She heard a noise and them her friend Annie came in wearing a long satin nightgown and a green velvet trench coat.
How do you like this, she asked Mary?
Mary was very red yet silent
What is wrong, with you Mary?
I need to pee but I can’t get out of bed on the wrong side.
You have no choice, said Annie.You must not wet the bed or die from a burst bladder. Get out on the right side

But I feel a failure on my first day.
Maybe that is your lesson.Accept you can’t do it and get on with your day.
Mary ran to the bathroom.What a relief passing water can be to poor ladies who suffer afflictions in these regions.
Annie went down to the bijou yet complex kitchen and began to make some toast and boil some eggs.She gazed at the peach walls and melon cupboard doors unable to decide if she liked them.Maybe kingfisher blue might have been better.Too late now.Mary could not afford a new kitchen even if this one was really old.At least it was not orange as was common in the 70’s.
Mary came in with her golden hair standing up on end like candlesticks from the Synagogue.
I just got a shock, she said
I can see your hair is standing on end.Was it the electric socket?
No, there was a man looking into the window and I was naked in the bath.
Perhaps it was King David, Annie joked.Why don’t you have frosted glass?
Stan said it would frost itself in the winter.He was the least practical man in the world.
Maybe we could glue artificial frost onto it?
Who was the man, asked Annie her cheeks pinker than her perky pink lipstick by Licumb ; those lips which were so thick and sensual with a lovely curve.
Mary tore her eyes away from these lips.I didn’t have my glasses on, she said.Maybe it was a man from a hot air balloon?
Maybe someone fancies you at last,saidAnnie.
Do you think I’d go out with a man who does things like that?
No, you could stay in with him, Annie joked, as tears of mirth made her green eyeshadow and red mascara stream down her cheeks like rain after a nuclear explosion.No wonder men ran after her in the street.
You could succumb to his charms,Annie whispered.
I think I’d like a man more sensitive than that, Mary screeched.
Well, Mary, you are so lacking in knowledge the art of flirting you only notice men when they do something really wild or unusual
Like what, asked Emile who had just munched up a bowl of dried cat food and was full of energy.
Well, Stan kept pretending he loved reading Newton’s original writings which he bought from some unusual website thinking it would impress Mary. However as he failed O leve; maths 5 times he could not understand it.He sobbed and cried in the public library and Mary was moved by his grief.Later on, though, he became angry at her intellectual talent and took me as his mistress to get back at her.She never even noticed!
I don’t see how having a mistress is a revenge on poor woman who was given her genes by God, said Emile.
Don’t be daft, she buys her jeans from TK Maxx, Annie answered.
And so do all of us.

I can’t write any more right now!

https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/ambivalence-healthy-researchers-have-mixed-feelings

Whether we’re aware of it or not, most of us view ambivalence as a mindset to be avoided. Decades of research have shown that holding both negative and positive attitudes about something makes us uncomfortable and anxious. More often than not, ambivalence is regarded as a weakness that causes unnecessary conflict.

That’s why most people are motivated to resolve their ambivalent feelings and take a stand one way or another. This is especially true when it comes to emotionally charged issues like abortion and the death penalty — we have a natural tendency to steer away from counter arguments.

There are times,

https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/how-to/how-to-deal-with-people-who-hate-you/

It is important to understand that not everyone will like you. If everyone you encountered liked you, it would probably mean you were not being your true, genuine self; because there are things in all of our personalities that will not appeal to some people, a natural predilection toward dislike is inevitable. Just as you probably do not like everyone you know, it’s okay if some people don’t like you.

Furthermore, some people will seem to dislike you even though it’s not personal. Sometimes, we have to perform necessary roles in the world, and people dislike their relationships within those roles. As a result, it’s important to understand why people seem to dislike us, so we can fix what we can and cope with what we can’t.

The Language of Hate and Acceptance

It’s much healthier to use the word dislike as opposed to hate, because hate implies that people hate intentionally, and purposely go out of their way to harm you or make your life worse. While this may be true in rare cases, more often than not, these people simply don’t want you to be part of their lives. Therefore, dislike is a much more accurate term.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45564/the-world-is-too-much-with-us

The world is too much with us late and soon

Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—

Little we see in Nature that is ours;

We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!

This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;

The winds that will be howling at all hours,

And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;

For this, for everything, we are out of tune;

It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be

A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;

So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,

Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;

Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.

https://archive.nytimes.com/well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/06/14/sibling-rivalry-the-grown-up-version/

I have become interested in virtue and perception.It began when I read  a little Aristotle about virtue being a habit.That was quite recent.Before that for many years I believed virtuous acts would follow from being able to perceive well.But when we are fraught in our minds and eyes tighten up we perceive only what may be a danger to us.To perceive others well we need to be in a position to trust others and we need to feel secure.How is this possible?

From my studies I read that our ability to trust begins with a trusted caregiver in infancy,[See” atttachment and loss “by John Bowlby reference to come] We may be able to become more secure later by good fortune,friendship and love.If not,I seem to get the idea that if we are insecure and nervous we cannot truly perceive others and they may be in the same position.If we are very afraid then virtuous acts may be hard to accomplish. The reason is obvious… when. we are concerned with  mere survival as a person , in that state what we do to others  may be impossible for us to consider.We cannot truly see them and so we cannot act well towards them except by good luck.

Or if we are able to tolerate great anxiety,we may see better…. if not we are incapable…. Those whom we cannot see properly we cannot truly consider with feeling  and act on this feeling.We see them partly or mainly in terms of the fearful fantasies in our minds and cannot see them as  other and interesting.When we make a friend online we may feel safer but in fact we are more likely to misperceive them. When we are from a sad a or difficut background it may help greatly if we have some friends who might point out our errors if we trust enough to tell them.Or we may pretend to be hard and tough.Neither leads to virtue.If we trust God it may help but I believe we see God through the lens of our parents.. which is not always good…depending on the parents. When we live in fear,we cannot see what is there before us.We cannot let go.We cannot accept grace and love nor give it.We will try to live by will power.Ironically people who are fearful inside can develop a shell of toughness and pride and so are not seen as vulnerable  and/or lovable.

Tbey may seem frightening to others. This account may help to explain why politics is the way it is and also  we see that arguing is not persuasive when the other is not able to open up and see things more broadly.Arguing makes some of us tighten up and see less well.And it can be frightening too though some cultures find it more acceptable than others.

Here are some relevant blogs and articles

This author had a lot to say about perception… http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/obituary-marion-milner-1163951.html   http://susannanelson.wordpress.com/2014/03/02/happy-go-lucky/

http://glimpsejournal.wordpress.com/2014/05/11/the-real-bees-knees-stunning-micro-view-of-the-workers-behind-your-mothers-day-flowers/

Ok BB E Essex hubby

https://wfuogb.com/7334/opinion/literature-remains-the-highest-form-of-art/

The apprehension of the artist’s endeavor, the making fluid of something rigid, manifests in the reader as assiduous attention and detailed memory. This in no way diminishes the work done by musicians, painters, etc. Van Gogh, a tuning fork for eternity, defies this world, transcends almost everything known to man and cannot be escaped. But since the human mode is defined by its parameters, one of them being the limitation of speech, literature serves as an existentially referential and intimately human degree of expression. Maybe it is not so much literature’s innate

The fields that once held buttercups are gone

Giant furrows pattern that long land

Made by huge machines whose time has come

Precise as old account books , now forlorn.

As moving as are waves on desert sand

The fields that once held buttercups have gone

Nothing human-sized remains untorn

Nowhere for dear lovers hand in hand

Killed by huge machines whose time has come

But young folk do not court, they hurry on

Annihilating what we elders understand

The fields that once held buttercups have gone

All too rapidly our world’s undone

To the deserts of the heart we’re sent

Dragged by by huge machines whose time has come

Can no passion change the way nor lend

Creative means to pacify and mend?

The fields that once held buttercups have gone

Ground by huge machines,death times have come

1

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https://www.nytimes.com/guides/year-of-living-better/how-to-be-creative

Boldness Is a Virtue

As someone who followed up my venture in comic strips with writing thrillers, a nonfiction narrative, thousands of articles, dozens of songs and a children’s book, I can tell you that there is a moment in each of these creative flights where I become convinced that, “Yes, yes, I have something 

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/16/science/creativity-implicit-bias.html

D

For instance, he and his co-authors have found that in some cases religious belief can limit a person’s creativity, and that creativity can provide a feeling of liberation to people who carry secrets.

He has also explored

I saw my house uprooted like a tree

Great roots were severed, how I ached to see

And all was tossed without my love and care

Bits of earth fell from the roots. now bare.

Barbaric in its mad intensity

I wept the tears of grief for you, for me.

Our home attacked,destroyed and I lie here.

Putting out the flames with profuse tears

Lamenting for my love who died within

The collapsing of my world now with no sun

The house a symbol of our marriage true

Cannot stand without a me and you

So my vision passed and I am here

My memories are my only souvenir

What to you may be a worthless weed
Bears its little flowers to make its seeds
Thus it spreads itself as Love requires
Humble speedwell,hear of our desires.

In the pavements cracks were home to grass
The sidestep slabs were broken like thick glass
When deep frost came, rain made frozen pools
I trod in them as I tore up to school

The crackling ice, the mist dropped on the park
Our ginger cat, the trees, the dog that barked
A woman in the kitchen making tea
The oven by the fire, the big door key

Little signs spark tender memories
The future fiction, past a lost abyss

I was smiling at you as if you could see me

Made me feel happy at the time

I was smiling at you as if we were young again

So I thought I would drop you a line.

But it’s only a photograph, only a photograph.

I’m smiling the way you were smiling

But you couldn’t see me at the time.

Still a good sign I was smiling again

So I’m sending you you a few more lines

That isn’t a crime

They might even rhyme

https://www.chicagomag.com/arts-culture/february-2018/is-chicago-the-poetry-capital-of-america/

Banned Books, Censored Topics: Teaching About the Battle Over What Students Should Learn https://nyti.ms/3DNhwSO

When Freedom Meant the Freedom to Oppress Others https://nyti.ms/3PrfcEH

1Look, stranger, on this island now
The leaping light for your delight discovers,
Stand stable here
And silent be,
That through the channels of the ear
May wander like a river
The swaying sound of the sea.

https://www.best-poems.net/poem/look-stranger-by-w-h-auden.html

https://joinclubsoda.com/meditation-mindfulness-and-trauma/#:~:text=Mindfulness%20meditation%20can%20actually%20make,sensations%20%E2%80%93%20are%20not%20uncommon%20experiences.

Blood

Nietzche once famously said what you can write in a book I can write in 10 sentences. This is the essence of writing with blood. It’s about being concise, about saying what you need to say in as few words as possible

https://www.visitessex.com/things-to-do/the-chapel-of-st-peter-on-the-wall-p1268151

https://techwiser.com/how-do-i-get-my-chromebook-screen-back-to-normal/#5-Turn-off-High-contrast-Mode

Turn off High-contrast Mode

When the high-contrast mode is enabled on your Chromebook, the colors will appear weird or inverted. To bring normal colors back, you have to turn off the high-contrast mode.

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For that, use the Ctrl + Search + H keyboard shortcut. Or, go to Settings > Accessibility > Manage accessibility settings and disable Use high-contrast mode.

https://www.groovypost.com/howto/chromebook-keyboard-shortcuts-the-ultimate-guide/

When Moses felt ill he went back up the mountain and asked God for another tablet.

Many are called and a few are open
God’ s cosy people.
God may love but can we see?

Have you all swallowed your tablets, the nurse asked?
Mine is 10 inch, cried Joe the new patient in the Unit
Stop exaggerating, the nurse answered immoderately
You should say pills, said Bill educationally
That won’t change its size,will it, Joe said nastily?
I’ll have to break it into pieces.Nurse, get me a hammer!
Just a minute, what are you here for, she said nosily?
To know,serve, and love God, Joe whispered
Well, maybe you should be in the psychiatric unit
Is it easier knowing God in there, Joe murmured?
No.But they will give you some tablets so you will look out instead of in
My tablet is a Samsung, he told her confidently
But if I have to eat it, can I have some salt and pepper, he demanded sensibly?
Why, she wondered ,like Plato and Socrates once did?
To put on the chips, he informed her truthfully
They were made in Israel, she lied defiantly
Will they be hot? he said scientifically
They will when I have got my hands on that bloody tablet, she shrieked
Shut up he said rudely
Calm down.Moses didn’t have hysterics round for dinner, she hinted politely
Who did he have, asked the patient?
A wife and children as was usual
I’d prefer a hysterical blonde lady, he thought outloud
Why? she said despondently
She won’t eat my chips and I am hungry for food and then love
Would you like tea, bread and butter, she said sarcastically?
For you,I’d like anything, he said adoringly
My blog, she asked?
Is that like a God for the heathen?
Well, some may agree, she said tersely
And the others, he asked?
They stay neutral mostly
Like my cat, he enquired
Is he transgender, she said correctly
What’s this, the Oxford Entrance,he said being ironical
No, that’s the other way. she admitted
Lead me, lead me gentle Saviour, he replied as he fell asleeep

By Kate
L.Wittgenstein- Hell, wits of stone?
Bertrand Russell- Hairbands Rustle >Women tussle
A N Whitehead- Uninvited; And was blighted.
Principia Mathematica—Pin chips here where’s your laughter?@aaa alphabetically.Computer spam-kingKurt Godel–Clot burbles.Hurt hurdles;Flirt Girdles
David Hilbert- Raves of Hell -Flirt
Isaac Newton-Raise the Roofing.Fry Zack Croutons
Leibniz- Fried nits.Delight Fritz
Hooke’s Laws of Motion–Book calls for Emotion
Archimedes-Ark of freebies.Hark! He needs Ease
Edward Elgar -Led towards Hell Far
Queen Victoria- Keen to pore over me.
Benjamin Disraeli—- Send men to Australia. Clench them in Fizz, really
Bedlam disables you.
Clement Attlee-Repent after me.Lemons at sea.Pennants can Wee.
Winston Churchill—Won some Birch Bill.
Stephen Hawkings- see any parking? Raving hawk kills.

Stan inwas brushing his sturdy tomcat Emile by the front window when he saw the postman coming up the path.This was a surprise as it was eight o’clock in the evening,though it was still quite light.He opened the door.
Goodness me,they are making you work hard” he murmured sympathetically to the weary looking postman.
Well,if I don’t do what they want there are 2.5 million unemployed people out there all seeking work” he said in a deep, guttural voice.
I like your beard,cried Emile.And your moustache.
Do you like my new hat, asked the postman politely.
Yes,very much said the little cat.
Well,I have to wear it as I am a Conservative Jew.
I have never been quite sure what a Conservative Jew is,said Stan
And I have never been sure why the Church of England is international,replied the tired man wearily
Neither have I said Stan.It seems illogical.
He gave the postman some tea in a paper cup so he could drink it before he went any further.
Can I use your bathroom,he called to Stan who was admiring a few early daffodils.
Of course you can… it’s just at the top of the stairs.
When Arthur the postman came out he thanked Stan
Nowadays since all the public conveniences are no longer there it’s hard to find a lavatory and when you work a 12 hour day you do get to need a leak.
Yes,said Stan.I frequently have people using the loo…. or failing that you can go behind the hedge.
Just like me,thought Emile.I often go behind the hedge.I also take lady cats right to the back of the hedge for the purpose of lovemaking.
Have you ever made love under a hedge,Emile asked Arthur.
Or is it forbidden by your Mosaic Law?
Well,said Arthur,we can make love anywhere at all.But we have to be sure it is real love and not just us pretending to love someone in order to get something out of them.
That seems wise,said Stan.You have an ethical code,of course,
Yes,I also  did do a lot of studying till I lost my job as a University lecturer and had to work as a postman.But it does give me time to meditate.
And what is your advice to other humans,purred Emile.
Well,I’ll just offer you one thought,Don’t exploit others for self gratification and if you feel suicidal please tell someone or phone the Samaritans.
And if you do go ahead I advise you to burn your diaries,letters and other private writing…look at poor Sylvia Plath,How could she have been so stupid.Everything she ever wrote,even on the paper napkin at dinner was collected and published by her almost ex-husband.We seem to know more about her than anyone who ever lived.
You have a good point there,said Stan.
I work for the Samaritans one day a week and Emile sits by me and purrs to

to keep me happy.
You seem a good man,said Arthur.T he disappeared… leaving just a smile in the air like the Chesire Cat.
Oh,my sweet Lord,Stan murmured.Was that who I think?
Yes,said Emile.I saw the heavenly host behind him singing
Why did he call here?
We’ll just have to wait and see… but I shall cut up my diary tomorrow and delete my journal from the computer.I don’t want to cause scandal after I die.
No,said Emile,just cause scandal while you are alive by taking yet another mistress.
You little devil,Said Stan
And then Stan and Emile both chuckled as they went back into the house.And Stan resumed brushing Emile and mused over the visitation whilst forgetting he had not cooked the dinner for his hardworking wife Mary.Luckily Mary is very patient because she loves him.

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