My first Blyton for older children

The very first Enid Blyton book for older children I read was the ragamuffin mystery. I had run out of faraway tree, wishing chair and brer rabbit books by Blyton (for younger children). But I didn't really understand the ragamuffin mystery and kept taking long breaks from it. But I did eventually read it. I had no idea it was the last one in a series of six books.

Novels with crappy endings

Just finished this novel last night. Why are so many authors so keen on having a crappy ending where all the good guys die and the bad guys triumph?? It just completely puts me of reading any more books by that author. It spoils the whole story and I feel cheated. Don't think be buying any more of his books. I felt the same way after watching "Eden Lake".

It was great -- until the very end.

I won't mention the name of the book just in case anyone at any point wants to read it.

Went for a walk

Been for a walk, looking for this footpath as indicated on my mobile, and something flew down my throat! The Goddess of fate's punishment for not wearing a face mask (the corona virus is still around). And I never did find the footpath.

Absolute wealth or relative wealth

Jus' thinking. Which would people prefer:

a) To get paid £100,000 a year for a specific job whilst everyone else earned £50,000 a year.

b) To get paid £200,000 a year for a specific job whilst everyone else earned £400,000 a year.

I think people would tend to say "b", but in reality would feel happier with "a".

To be better off than others gives people satisfaction, but to earn less than everyone else is not good for one's self esteem. Of course, ideally, we ought to be solely interested in our absolute wealth.

Free Will

What the heck do people mean when they claim we don't have free will? That our consciousness doesn't actually do anything? Look, we are directly acquainted with our ability to move our bodies, say what we think, think what we will, etc. It's sheer lunacy to suppose we don't have free will in this sense. I know that many scientists say we don't, but many of them are the same people who assert animals are not conscious. People need to get real, stop believing the most transparent falsehoods just because someone in authority says it. Exercise a bit of common sense.

Or some might concede our consciousness is causal, but say this doesn't amount to free will. We do what we do because of what we are, and all that malarkey. This seems to me to amount to little more than I do what I do because of my essence. Well gosh, I'm a happless puppet of my essence...  Meaningless nonsense, a desperate attempt to rescue this "no free will" claim.

For those interested, on my other blog I have written a comprehensive essay on this whole issue. Possibly my best ever blog post, although unfortunately it hasn't garnered much interest, nor comprehension. Go here.

Back to 1965

Imagine you went back to 1965, met someone, and then brought them back to 2020. Would they be surprised at the progress of technology? Not as technologically advanced as they might have imagined, or vice versa? Would they be surprised at anything else?

I think I preferred 1965. The world was closer, more community spirit. Not so overcrowded. We are now more estranged from each other. But the modern world does have the net.