..a short tribute

This post is just a short tribute. The YouTuber known as Jeff C died recently. I didn't know him personally, but I've followed his work for a long time now. So much so that his voice has been a regular fixture in my life these last five or six years or so. I'm saddened and quite shocked by his sudden death. In fact, part of the reason I'm posting is to try and process it myself. Since I found out yesterday evening I haven't been able to stop thinking about it.

He was a great man. One of the great voices of our time.

I'm sharing the video below as it seemed quite fitting. I only came across it and watched it for the first time last night when I was downloading some of his other videos and livestreams to keep for posterity. He was a truly good man and he will be missed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WSfFAj9LhY&t=494s

Happy Brexmas.

A little Christmas day post. Brexmas.

Obviously yesterday the Brexit deal was announced. I have no real idea what the details are, but everyone seems fairly happy with it. So broadly it feels good. It was announced yesterday just as I was leaving the house. Coincidentally where I live it began snowing at almost the exact same time.

It wasn't a great snow, basically just a fancy, white rain. So it had no chance of laying, though as it fell it did create a brief sense of winter wonderland. As I got soaked heading into town I kept catching glimpses of Boris, alongside Union Jacks, on TV screens through windows as it was broadcast to the nation. Quite picturesque.

Postal Voting - UK Style

I received some post yesterday, courtesy of the Labour Party, offering me the opportunity to request a postal vote. Obviously it's unfair to cast aspersions. After all, postal voting is perfectly legal. However, these days I almost instinctively equate postal voting with fraud. So my first thought was, "Surprise, surprise, Labour pushing the Biden method."

The fact that they use the coronavirus as a further reason to vote by post making my head shake in disapproval even more.

I'd like to believe that every postal vote is rigorously vetted, but it stands to reason that the more postal votes there are the harder it is to do this. Simply for practical reasons.

The form I was sent only requires a date of birth and a signature. Even the phone number and email boxes are 'optional'. Again, I would hope each application is thoroughly checked, but it doesn't take a genius to see how easy it would be to exploit such a system if things are a little lax or overstretched.

For example, I live in a household with three other adults. So four letters popped through the door yesterday. It wouldn't be difficult for one person to fill in all four and send them back.

Another thing I dislike about postal votes is the way it makes it easier for people to be leaned on in regard who they're voting for. For example, a dominant member of a household or community could easily press others into voting a particular way.

The beauty with the poll booth is that you enter on your own. So no one can see how you vote. A housewife may pay lip service to the politics of her domineering husband at home, but can vote according to her own judgement in the secrecy of the poll booth. Safe in the knowledge that it'll remain private. However, when you're filling in a form at home that's not always the case.

Likewise it's easier to pressure and bamboozle elderly people. Particularly those that are in care homes or that are dependent upon carers.

In the post-Brexit referendum days we started seeing some discussions about an upper age limit on voting. The argument being that we don't allow children to vote as they're not mentally developed enough, therefore the same should likewise apply to older people whose faculties are failing.

When it comes to voting in person though this argument is completely redundant. If someone is mentally capable enough to deliberately get out of bed on polling day and then head to the polling station to vote then they're clearly capable enough to make their own judgement when it comes to politics. Someone not in possession of their faculties wouldn't be capable of this, nor is it likely that they'd think to do so anyway.

So there's no need for any upper limit, as those that are incapable naturally stop voting when they become incapable.

With postal voting though this becomes far more problematic. As a carer or family member can fill in the form and process the application on behalf of a person who is in serious mental decline. It therefore stands to reason that this helper will also be in a position to guide or overly influence the older person's vote as well.

Like nudging a wealthy widow into signing an updated will and testament.

With people in care homes barely allowed to step outside this year it's all too easy to imagine how they'll be pressured into voting by post from this position of 'safety' as well.

Marijuana is the smell of capitalism..

Just a quick post today. I want to make note of something that I thought I'd already mentioned on here, but I must not have. I guess I must have just tweeted about it or something.

As the title suggests it's that marijuana is the smell of capitalism.

Firstly, before I start, I should note that I'm not pro-marijuana. I don't really care what other people get up to in their personal life, but it's not my thing. So I'm generally against the use of recreational drugs. I'm more interested in the economic aspect.

What interests me in particular is that it shows how entrepreneurial normal people can be when a gap in the market presents itself.

As the gap in supplying marijuana can't be legally filled people with less to lose and more to gain step in to take the risk. You'll literally see scruffs from "lazy, jobless" council estates setting up entire marijuana farms in attics and garages. To then distribute it at a profit around the area.

It's essentially just slick and vibrant business. Albeit illegal business.

So whenever I smell that distinctive smell outside. A common aroma on English streets these days. I instantly think; "capitalism".

It shows, in an odd way, how industrious people can be when they have a market demand to fill. It also illustrates why it's harder for poorer people, indeed most people, to make headway in the legal markets. As legal markets tend to be already cornered by large business. 

It always makes me wonder what would happen if other things were made illegal.

If oranges were made illegal would we see illegal orchards popping up in backrooms and basements to fill the demand for fresh orange juice?

Now we live in age where much of normal human life is being deemed illegal will this black market capitalism also rise to fill these natural demands too? It'll be interesting to see what happens.

In fact, that's what reminded me of this today. I saw footage earlier of police trying to cut their way into a building to stop an illegal 'lock in' 😅

Perhaps they'll finally succeed in making all alcohol and pubs illegal. Then we'll have years of spending billions to stop the illegal trade. Then eventually someone will have the bright idea of legalising it all again and taxing it.

Wanna See a Polar Bear in an Orchard?

As we're now getting into winter I'm beginning to face the same conundrum I face every year; leave the heating off or kill the polar bears.

With my bedroom being in the attic of the house it can get a little cold, but flicking my little heater on feels like a guilty luxury. So I'm always quite mindful.

It got me thinking though. I always tend to see these things not so much through an environmental lens, but more through a work done lens. I tend to be more mindful of the fact that it requires human effort to produce these things I'm using. So the guilt partly stems from the sense that I'm being a selfish burden by being so profligate.

Someone somewhere is doing manual labour in a hi-vis, so I can be toasty while I sit at my laptop.

In fact, it reminds me of when I first became a vegetarian back when I was a teenager. What pushed me over the edge to becoming one was not so much the animal suffering but the fact that people had to work 40 hours a week in a slaughterhouse.

I remember thinking what a horrific job that must be. One that I could never ever do myself. So the logic followed. If I wouldn't do that job why should I expect someone else to do it on my behalf? Every time I ordered a burger I created a reason for someone to be stuck in that environment.

If I just ordered an apple pie instead I'd be creating a job in an orchard. Much more wholesome.

(This is supposed to be a polar bear in an

orchard - looks a little Christmassy though)

I'm not sure if I'm in a minority when I think like this. You don't often hear vegetarians make this human-focused argument for the cause. The focus tends to be on the animals, which I guess makes sense. I do think the appeal to work done would probably be a more effective argument when it comes to many of these things though. Especially the environmental arguments, where the logic is often contested and contorted.

This highlights another paradoxical problem we have as a society. We want to create jobs, because people obviously need employment to support themselves, but by doing so we're literally creating more work for people. Which aside from generally not being fun also leads to more resources being consumed. So it's like we're chasing two contradictory dreams.

A life of leisure ..but in full employment.

I wonder, will we ever see a politician who says; "Vote for me, I'll create fewer jobs" ?

I guess some parties have moved a tad in this direction with '4 day weeks', etc, but still, it's all a little muddled. It's a hard mental bind to escape from.

I remember once seeing the actress Liza Tarbuck on TV telling a story about how she had told a guy off for littering and his response was, "..but I'm creating a job for someone." Obviously that's a bit of an extreme example, but we do have this attitude where creating employment is so desired that making work for other people, even in the most menial and pointless sense, is often viewed as a net good.

Perhaps The Great Reset is already on the case to tackle this? What with UBI and so forth.

Come to think of it, we often talk about how we're heading into some sort of dystopian future. Which in many ways I don't doubt. However, if we return to the above mentioned slaughterhouses I think they can be taken as pretty good evidence that we're already in one.

I'm not one of these vegetarians that's totally against eating meat. I'm sure if I was starving in some African village I wouldn't quite have the same reservations about it. Plus it is quite normal out there in the animal kingdom, and a human hunting an animal through the jungle scrub isn't too dissimilar to a lion hunting its prey. So it's hardly something that can be considered unusual or unnatural.

When we moved into mechanised slaughter I think we crossed the line though. We had the intelligence to create all these wonderful advances. Yet used them to create relentless conveyor belts of doom, for already captive animals. It really is quite a cold and barbarous use of technology. An obvious indication that our morals lag behind our wit.

"We're heading into a dystopia!" people cry. Tell that to the cows.

Perhaps if we want to stop people being sheeple we should start with the actual sheep.

Middlesbrough - Christmas Ghost Town

I went into town today. It was like a ghost town, only with Christmas lights. It honestly blows my mind how people can be so blasé about such a long and severe economic shut down. When I think back to what it was like this time last year, with everything bustling with Christmas shoppers, it seems almost difficult to believe. It's like people have just upped sticks and left the place. Though of course they haven't ..they're all hidden away in their homes.

When I head onto Facebook I see plenty of people complaining about the various rules and contradictions. Especially with the "Tier 3" announcements today. Yet few seem to query the core idea that governments should intrude so far into their lives. The attitude seems to be;

"This government are terrible ! Why aren't they telling me what to do in the way I want them to."

There's this odd contradiction where people have surrendered all power over to the state, yet still expect to be in charge. I keep trying to point out that it doesn't work like that, and that when you give up your autonomy you don't get to call the shots anymore, but I'm beginning to sound like a stuck record.

I actually went to post something today and just thought "Why bother?". Is it really worth the hassle annoying these people yet again. Perhaps I should just try to chill out and enjoy Christmas as best I can. Accepting the fact that 90% of the population are happy to be treated like barnyard animals.

At least I have the Christmas decorations to myself.

Covid is over, if you want it..

I spent yesterday evening sat on Photoshop. It occurred to me that both Christmas and the anniversary of John Lennon's death are on the horizon. So that got me thinking of the famous "WAR IS OVER! IF YOU WANT IT" slogan.

I made a slight tweak to it (whilst endlessly listening to John Lennon and Beatles songs on autoplay).

Perhaps I should put it on a t-shirt. Maybe it's ambiguous enough that people on all sides of the argument can take some solace from it.

There was this one too.

(..see what I did there

hahahahhahah...I'm so clever and funny 😜😑)

years of liberty

I knocked up this little graphic this morning. Mainly to remind myself to get back to the fresh air and liberty ideas I was playing around with earlier in the year.

I can't type too much, as I have to scooch out soon. However, I was thinking that I need to start looking further into the future. Making longer term plans, and being more patient. Liberty is always on the back foot at the moment it seems. So a more far-seeing narrative would be useful. A sense of going somewhere.

Patience should not be an excuse for laziness though :)

Boris, Biden, Trump and Tories

I saw a brief little TV appearance earlier where Boris Johnson discussed his phone call with Joe Biden. In it Boris looked pretty pleased and upbeat. He gave the general impression of someone who was happy that Biden had won. Like he was looking forward to this new apparent relationship, almost with a sense of relief.

(Boris and Trump)

Obviously it's difficult to make judgements based solely on body language, and Britain is in a bit of a precarious position between the EU and the US. So a bit of Edmund Blackadder type diplomacy is probably wise - if Biden does end up in the White House we don't want to shoot ourselves in the foot from the get-go. However, I can't help but get the sense that it's genuine glee. Which, though disappointing, isn't particularly surprising, given the signals I've been picking up from the UK Tory media over the last few months.

A few days back I tweeted about how I was puzzled at first by this Conservative appraisal of Biden. On initial viewing it just seemed bizarre. Why are people on the right - who are supposedly anti-woke and worried about statues being pulled down and so forth - pleased to see the purveyors of this destruction rise to power? Trump surely should be their natural ally.

On witnessing the obvious glee for Biden it even made me question their sincerity at times.

"So Boris & Co were just pretending to be true Brexiteers all along! ..really they're just more of the same..

Watching Boris and Biden (and countless other politicians) using the exact same tagline, Build Back Better, only adding to this sense that we've been led down the garden path.

However, when you dig a little deeper you realise it may just be another indication that politics is much more messy in reality than it is in theory, and that people often choose their political bedfellows for a multitude of different reasons. It isn't simply left vs right.

A similar example that springs to mind is how working class people in the UK will often vote for people that are seemingly at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Corbyn and Farage

For instance, you often find people who like both Nigel Farage and Jeremy Corbyn, even though the two are polar opposites. One being far left the other being far to the right.

The reasons for this seeming contradiction are as follows though;

Firstly, both politicians have some policies that are attractive to these voters. With Corbyn the appeal is predominantly the socialism. With Farage it's more issues like immigration and patriotism. So each ticks some political boxes.

Then secondly there's a cultural dynamic. Both men are relatable. In fact, both could be seen as being 'men of the people' to some extent. Albeit it quite different ways. So there's a familiarity. A feeling that this person is "just like me". That their party is "on my side".

Tories and Biden

I would guess it's similar with some of the more affluent Conservative supporters in the country and Joe Biden.

Firstly there are some political overlaps. A dislike of protectionism being the most obvious one. Then on top of that, and I think this is the most overriding thing, there's the cultural dynamic. These people simply dislike Trump as a person, and view him as rude and uncouth. They just don't feel comfortable with the man. So on a personal level they much prefer Biden. He's more like them. It's not as disconcerting having Biden in the White House.

When I originally tweeted I described this attitude or preference as snobbery. I guess I instinctively see it as valuing style over substance. However, I think this is perhaps revealing my own bias too. Maybe I only see this as snobbery because I myself am working class, and I naturally view this desire for manners as some kind of wet nimbyism. When perhaps Trump's detractors may have a very good point. Maybe decorum is more important than I'm accounting for.

Plus there are no doubt myriad other things I'm simply unaware of. So I probably shouldn't be so judgemental either way. I do think there's a huge cultural dimension to these feelings for Trump though.

It's just hair..

Returning to Boris and Trump I think it's also possible that Boris may be feeling happy mainly due to the endless comparisons he's had to put up with. It must be pretty annoying being referred to as 'Britain's Trump' continually.

I actually don't think the two men are the slightest bit alike when it comes to their styles and personalities. People pick up on the floppy mops of blond hair, but it really is nothing more than that. It's literally just a coincidence. This visual caricature created by the hair must make it feel like they've both turned up in the same costume when they meet in person though. So it no doubt adds a layer of awkwardness that wouldn't otherwise be there.

It really can be quite annoying when you get mischaracterised by people. It may seem minor, but I'm sure it's irksome for Boris. Especially if in reality there's no chemistry between him and Trump. So he might be relieved to be out from under that shadow.

Finally..

Before I go I should probably note my thoughts on the actual Biden/Trump situation.

I have no clear idea what's going on, however my instinct is that Trump will remain president. I can't really flesh out the path that keeps him there, but I just think that the court room is his perfect battleground. He's spent his life dealing with legal cases. It's meat and drink for him. So I think he'll edge it.

This may be my bias of course, being such a huge Trump fan. Whatever happens though I don't think it's anywhere near as settled as many currently believe it is.

Lockdown 2 - All Hallows' Eve and Visions of Atlantis

As we're going into second lockdown I thought I better record my thoughts. I feel much less foreboding than I did when we entered the first one. There was a slight quiver earlier, but I'm largely stoic. My main worry is for America. This year I've almost felt American. It's odd that you can feel so attached to a place you've never been to. That's far off across a wide ocean. However, these things in many ways are bigger than just geography..

Obviously we have the US election on Tuesday. Is it a coincidence that Europe is locking down on the eve of this incredibly important event? Probably not, but I'm sick of getting into politics and conspiracy, so I'll pretend I haven't noticed that. I just pray that it's peaceful whatever happens. I'll no doubt be watching it all unfold with eagle eyes over the coming week. Heart in mouth and helpless to intervene. Who knows what will happen.

Also, on a lighter note, I should mention my last post. A bit of an odd one that. It's kind of a well meant parody of those future predictions we often see about how we'll all be living our lives in ten or twenty years time. A Tomorrow's World type glimpse. When I was writing some of the orange economy posts I was thinking that it would probably be helpful to offer some kind of illustration for the future I was trying to put forward. Cringey though that is. So hopefully it'll at least be useful in that regard.

I couldn't help but think of Francis Bacon when I was finishing it up though. Penning his New Atlantis 400 odd years ago. Sadly I'm not quite in his league, but it's a recurring human endeavour. Trying to offer up some utopian vision of the future. A better world.

Of course, that work in many ways ties in with America. The supposed setting. The new world across the water. The Rosicrucian and Masonic visions and dreams.

I've discussed the name Atlantis elsewhere. Suggesting that it simply means the known world. Or the mapped world. In times gone by works of cartography would be titled names such as Atlantis Majoris - simply meaning the major atlas i.e. the great map collection. We also have Atlas holding up the known world, and likewise the Atlantic Ocean. Which to European explorers, heading out into the unknown seas for the first time, will have originally just been the world ocean.

So viewed through this lens New Atlantis would literally translate as New World. Perhaps a literal new world, or perhaps a revisioning of the old.

If we take Plato's Atlantis, another powerful visionary tale, to also mean "known world" then the flooding of Atlantis would be another variant of the world flood myth. Though Plato's version doesn't portray it as such. His Atlantis being just one separate kingdom, at war with another, the Athenians. Plunged beneath the waves for their sins. Still though, we have a similar theme. The destruction of a world. A Great Reset.

As we await on the precipice of this election I can't help but see things clouded by these spectres and visions.

I believe in America.

With Europe locked down it looks like freedom across the waves more than ever.

A Day in the Life of Jack

It's the year 2033. Jack has just moved into his nice new home. Like most other people Jack doesn't pay rent or mortgage, and owns his new home outright. He had considered staying at home with his parents for perhaps another year or two, but as he was now making enough money to comfortably support himself he had decided to take up his allocation of Universal Basic Space. Selecting a nice little apartment near the centre of town.

Jack earned his money in several different ways. One day a week he would work as a carer, helping to care for elderly people at a local care home. On Mondays he rented shop space in town, where he displayed and sold his artwork. Some of which he also sold online. Jack also occasionally rented shop space to sell some of the food produce that he and his friend grew on their vertical allotment.

Just five years earlier it had been announced that all citizens would be entitled to a basic amount of allotment space. To accompany the basic living space they were entitled to. Some plots being in tall vertical farms, others simply on the ground, out in nature. However, as Jack and his friend were so enthusiastic about growing food they also rented out extra space on top of this to expand their endeavours.

The centre of the town Jack lived in was like a beautiful sky-rising village green. The old architecture and buildings seamlessly intertwined with trees and flowers. The glass towers, once unused office space, now over-spilling with green green-housery, bee-keeping and hanging gardens. As he walked through the public orchards to catch the public transport he could hear the birds singing in the trees, along with the tweeps and bleeps of other people's mobile phones and devices.

Jack was heading to his brother's house on the outskirts of town. His brother lived with his wife and two children. He was ten years older than Jack and like his younger brother worked doing several different things and projects. His favourite being his current research into organic self-repairing housing and pluming systems. Work that had already borne fruit in several ways.

The home he lived in was bigger than Jack's, with a large circular garden surrounding it. The tall trees blending harmoniously into the distant, crisply-coloured countryside. Like Jack he had originally been given a basic apartment too. However, having saved up for several years he and his partner could now afford this more homely place, and had sold their basic apartments back to the public purse to help fund their dream. Their old apartments now being the new nests and first steps on the ladder for other younger people.

Jack was always impressed by his brother's place, but for now he was more than happy with his own little bit of private space. Like his brother he too had been saving up. However, his main concern was simply making sure he had enough money in the bank for a rainy day, just in case his sources of income started taking a downturn. Fortunately though, as he had no rent or mortgage to pay, and just had his basic bills, it was quite easy to do this, and he took great joy in being self-sufficient. Both currently and going forward into the future. Squirrelling away money, along with some of the food he grew, like acorns. In preparation for times of less abundance. Or for far-off old age and infirmity.

As he waited briefly for his transport a light rain began to fall upon his face. Though the weather remained calm and summery. As he gazed round at his surroundings he noticed a red fox skip through a far off hedgerow. His phone rang warmly just as his transport arrived. He checked the screen then stepped on board. White clouds rolling past the sky-scraping gardens as he looked back towards the town centre he was leaving..

[...]

micro-capitalism and organic market places

I'm going into business. Well, not really, but sort of, in an imaginary sort of way. I've been thinking about the future - both my own, and the world's. At least in a very vague, general sense. So the two are entwined in my mind at the moment. For a start I need to get my arse in gear and get a job of some description, so that's one thing pushing me. At the same time though it is looking a bit grim out there, so the options for me and most other people that are lost in this wider economic landscape aren't especially appetising. So some fresh thinking is definitely needed.

Anyway, I'm always eager to set the world to rights on here and elsewhere, but I'm clearly not so quick off the mark in my own personal life (it's much easier to be a backseat driver). So I'm now wondering if perhaps I need to stop chirping and start doing something productive. (My annoying chirps got me blocked by Piers Morgan on Twitter last night lmao ..I shared the picture of him in St. Tropez again. The one with Raheem Sterling. Y'know ..this one..

The mid-corona pandemic one. That one. That one where he has no mask on.)

My amusement aside though I think I'm probably spending far too much time on Twitter and other platforms niggling people like this. Perhaps it might help get us all out of lock down a teeny bit quicker, but it's hardly a plan for the future. So I'm trying to think a bit more long term.

I was pondering my living space / creative space ideas again. Which I've mentioned many times on here before. It struck me that instead of just writing about them perhaps I should try to somehow put them into practice. Difficult though that would be. Can they be actualised in a business sense? And by someone like me?

The obvious and simple answer to that is no. lol. I'm very comfortable making myself busy typing up blogs and making music and such like, but proper business. Meeting people, wearing a suit, actually doing stuff out in the real world, that type of business. That's not something I could ever really be good at. Not by a long way. I just don't have it in me.

Perhaps it's because I'm too shy and awkward. Maybe I'm just too much of a layabout. Either way it's highly unlikely I'll ever actually step forward and do anything truly entrepreneurial. Plus I'm far too poor. If I had a £1million war chest that would be one thing, but with barely £100 in my current account I think I'm going to struggle becoming the UK's next business mogul.

Still, it is something to think about though. Even if it only ever remains an exercise in thought.

It also reminded me of another idea I was thinking about which in some ways relates to this creative space notion.

The Hat Shop Lady.

I was thinking about shops. Particularly with regard to our empty highstreets. Just as an observer you see so many little shops and businesses open up, only to drop out of business six months later (and that's before the whole corona-postponer). It always occurs to me that many of these businesses simply aren't profitable enough to justify an entire shop to themselves.

I remember seeing a hat store opening up and thinking; "Yeah, there's no way they're selling enough hats in a small town like this to make a profit". It was a beautiful little store, and the lady running it had obviously put a huge amount of effort in, no doubt with the help of loans and grants. But it was doomed to fail. How many hats are you going to sell in such a small catchment area? Especially when you're competing with major retailers.

Witnessing many of these stores pop up and then disappear made me wonder if there was perhaps a more flexible way of doing things. The lady had some nice hats, but she didn't need an entire store.

So the idea hit upon me. We need a place where people can hire shop space, but for much shorter and neater periods. Literally just hours at a time. Much like hiring a rehearsal room at a music studio for a morning or a few hours.

So our lady selling hats could perhaps hire a stall or section of space for brief periods of time. Say a Monday morning. Or a Thursday afternoon. She could book this for a one off time, or perhaps for an extended period. Every Monday morning for three months let's say.

Of course, what I'm describing here is essentially a market stall. Though in this case one that would be indoors, in a nice modern space. With all the benefits of current digital technology.

We tend to look down our noses at market places, but in times gone by they would've been incredibly organic things. Flexibly moving (and expanding and contracting) to meet the demands of the local economy. This flexibility is all but gone in our modern over-regulated world though ..at least offline anyway. In fact, this lack of flexibility is in part why highstreets and city centres can't compete with online retailers.

If you want to sell something on the high street your only option is to open an entire store. How many new businesses or fledgling entrepreneurs need an entire shop 24/7? Surely it's much more natural to start selling a few things at first, then to build up over time.

So, if we return to the hat lady...

If she had the option of simply booking some space she wouldn't have had to go the whole hog and set up an entire doomed-to-fail shop. She could have simply booked a Monday morning and tried selling her hats. If that went well and her business started growing she could perhaps then book a Tuesday too in the weeks following. Or maybe book double the space she booked last time to stock and showcase more of her hats.

And of course, the flexibility doesn't end there. If similar places were available in other towns and cities she could even expand. Booking a Monday morning in one town, then a Tuesday morning in the next. Reaching a wider customer base than she could in just the one location.

Again, this is little different to market stall holders, who move to different towns and areas each day. It just takes it into the modern era somewhat. The real problem market places have these days is that they're rickety, outside in the cold, and take a lot of trouble to set up.

I would provide a nice indoor place for them :)

They could simply turn up with their car or van (or even bag) full of stock and get going. (You could even potentially provide storage places on site for regular users at a fee).

Another benefit is that it would also allow small traders to deal with both the online and offline world.

The hat lady could sell in Middlesbrough on a Monday morning. In Newcastle on a Tuesday. Then spend all Wednesday dealing with her online Amazon orders. And so on and so forth.

Unlike when she had the entire store in one place, and she couldn't even take a day off because she couldn't afford to hire another staff member.

To sum up..

Obviously it's unlikely I could ever set something like this up, but nevertheless the organic and flexible nature of the idea seems very attractive to me. Certainly in comparison to our dead, cumbersome and abandoned highstreets.

It would also no doubt be nigh on impossible due to all the various regulations and business hoops. So there's that too. Along with the problem of communicating such an idea to the people you'd need to get it all past.

In theory though we should be trying to make it as easy to sell something on the high street as it is to sell something on Amazon. That's if we want to get things blossoming again. (That reminds me, I must remember to start including some smiley flowers in these annoying little doodles).

(There's no real purpose for these things, and they're getting a little creepy and bizarre lol, but I do like having a bit of colour on the page to break things up. It's also handy to have a little thumbnail to display. So I'll keep 'em coming. Mildly disturbing though they look.)

Also, before I finish I should note that there are many further strands to this idea. I'll no doubt do further posts in the future. For example, you could charge different fees for different times. Slots on a busy Saturday would be more expensive than a dead Tuesday morning say. Likewise for different times of the year. The run up to Christmas being extra busy and so forth.

This flexibility would be great for the sellers. Someone selling school uniforms may want more time and space before the start of the school year to meet the high demand; time and space they wouldn't necessarily require at other periods. Likewise at really dead times of the year, when demand is really, really low, the extra space could be hired out super cheap to entice new people. Or for local or student projects to use, and other such things.

Again, super-flexible.

Why are we trying to fill all these empty high street premises with a single business, in the unlikely hope that they'll be there 24/7 for the next 20 years?

Updates, updates, updates..

I haven't posted on here in a while, so I may as well do a little bridging post.

Firstly, I'll belatedly comment on the New Zealand election. Jacinda Ardern pretty much dominated it. Storming to victory with unbridled ease.

My personal view was that Judith Collins looked more impressive. Having watched the few debates I found myself really liking her. To be fair I also found Jacinda Ardern much more likeable than I'd originally anticipated, but still I felt what she offered was mainly soundbites and platitudes. With little core substance.

So it went contrary to how I would've preferred. However, I'm sure the New Zealand people know their country much better than I do, so no doubt they know what they're doing. Also, the New Zealand First leader Winston Peters had a bad election. That was the guy who was being helped out by the Arron Banks team. So in a way it goes against the grain of what's been happening over the last few years. Perhaps 2020 is the year the establishment pushes back. The big one is November though, so we'll see what happens there.

..lockdowns?

Now a little update about where we are with the lockdowns.

I think we've reached a point where the narrative has completely broken down. The public are largely fed up, and an increasing number are now outright questioning the whole thing. Governments the world over seem to be pushing ahead with the second wave of lockdowns regardless though. So it'll be interesting to see what happens.

Obviously I've been against the lockdowns since day one. However, back in March I understood only too well that over ninety percent of the public were onboard. So unlawful though I thought the rules were the reality was that they had public support. So I accepted the defeat and went along with things.

If you live in a fundamentally religious country it doesn't matter how barmy you think the religion is, you're gonna have to outwardly conform. Otherwise you face the wrath of the mob.

So it was no point pleading technicalities.

Now though we're in quite a different situation. When a significant proportion of the population don't agree with a law then it becomes difficult to enforce. So authorities risk surrendering legitimacy, and things begin to break down.

Personally, in my private life I've returned to normal. When I interact with other people in a personal capacity I do it by mutual consent. As would normally be the case. If someone wants to meet up, or wants me to visit their home I do so. If they don't I respect that. I have no idea what the actual rules are on visiting other people at the moment where I live (they change so often), but either way I doubt they're enforceable in any realistic sense. So in that regard normality is returning, and it's returning with or without government sanction.

In more formal settings, such as supermarkets and whatnot, I'm still outwardly respecting the faith. As are most others, but I wonder how sustainable this is too. Although in business settings it is much easier for governments and local authorities to enforce the rules, so any restrictions in these places may be hard to shake off. I wonder if we'll see some odd dichotomy where this all continues in business settings, but in residential areas, outside of the glare, things just return to normal.

There's also the prospect that we might begin to see the black market grow as legitimate businesses are impinged upon. After all, jail isn't much of a threat when you're essentially under house arrest anyway.

So I fear we're getting to a point where things could get ugly as public opinion and government intention desynchronise. I guess it's a question of how far governments are prepared to go to enforce these things.

Cheap, cheap housing.

Finally, and this returns us a little to the first section, I have a few little notes to make about housing. When I was watching the New Zealand election debates I noticed that both leaders were incredibly reluctant to admit that house prices would fall if more houses were built.

Apparently New Zealand has similar problems to those we have here and elsewhere. With people unable to afford their first home, or stuck on waiting lists for government housing. The obvious solution, which all the leaders seemed to agree upon, was to build more houses. However, when asked if the consequence of this would be falling house prices, the politicians hesitated and squirmed to openly admit it.

Politically it's understandable. Voters that own property will obviously be reluctant to vote for a candidate that will reduce the value of their assets. So it probably doesn't poll great. It's a huge problem for politics though, as we need politicians arguing for lower house prices. If this isn't openly on the table we'll get nowhere.

I've argued on here before that we should be aiming as a society to make basic housing as affordable as someone's first car (i.e. so cheap that someone can save for a single year and buy one outright). This may sound incredibly unrealistic when viewed from inside our current paradigm. However, it only seems radical because it's so unfamiliar. We think it's normal (one normal I don't want to get back to 😎) to spend your entire life paying rent or mortgage ..but tell that to the birds. Or tell that to people living nomadic or tribal lifestyles outside of our civilisation.

The whole economy seems geared towards paying money so that people can have some space to sleep at night. Even though space is the one resource that we always have and that isn't going anywhere. We're housing 99.9% of the population right now, so it's not like we can't house people - we just do it in an incredibly whacky way that impoverishes people and bankrupts the nation. Even home owners are largely losing out (in spite of their rising asset prices) as it's their taxes that are funding the vast sums of money governments pay in housing benefit and such like.

Rent/mortgage is pretty much the biggest bill people have. So big it makes it impossible for much of the population to live without state aid. Often even if they're in steady work. Imagine how much more balanced our economy would be if we could radically slash this bill down.

I've even argued that in a more utopian society people would essentially be given a basic amount of space to live in on reaching maturity. Completely gratis. I've been labelling this concept Universal Basic Space, as it's not dissimilar to the Universal Basic Income idea. (See the orange economy articles on this site for more information).

I think I'll probably struggle to sell the idea of Universal Basic Space just yet, but getting the notion that lower house prices are a good thing onto the political agenda would be a huge step in the right direction.

So I thought that was worth making note of.

I've also knocked up another little graphic for this orange economy blog series.

(I've moved from oranges, to carrots,

and now to apples it seems ..though that apple on

the right looks a bit too yellow perhaps ! 🍎)

Religious Education remembered..

Quite a different tone with this one. There was something that I was reminded of a week or so ago that I felt was perhaps worth noting down. In fact, it's one of those things that I'm reminded of every now and then. I guess it's a moment that has stuck with me.

At secondary school I had a Religious Education teacher. At the time, this is when I was about 14 or 15, I was pretty much a total atheist. My outlook was basically a materialistic, scientific one. Like a teenage Richard Dawkins. I just deemed all religion completely backwards and devoid of any reason. Consequently, though I was a good, well-behaved kid, I didn't have the slightest bit of respect for the lesson. Or for the teacher really.

Again, I was a fairly good child, so I was never rude or outwardly disrespectful, but deep down I had zero regard for it all. My maths and science teachers I thought were very smart indeed (which they were), but the RE teacher. Though she was a nice woman I never really held her in high esteem. To put it blunt I didn't respect her intelligence.

She was openly known to be a Christian too. I remember kids would mention it to each other - "Mrs So-and-so, she's a Christian y'know". Like it was something odd enough to be worthy of note.

So I kind of dismissed her. I paid lip service to the lessons and did the work, but always viewed them as a skive. I could relax and not worry too much about not getting good marks. I even enjoyed the days when I had RE on my timetable, as I almost viewed it as an extra break I cared so little for the subject.

Anyway, getting to the point of note - the moment that stuck with me. It occurred in a lesson where we were discussing abortion.

Looking back the curriculum must have been quite progressive. We were generally learning about other cultures and discussing social issues and such. 90's level woke I guess. Though at the time, in my ignorance, I just felt like I was having 'religion' pushed on me.

"It's called 'Religious Education' - they're making me learn about religion!!"

Though the teacher was a practicing Christian she taught it all very much to the curriculum, doing her job diligently, without pushing her own values in lessons. I only really knew she was a Christian because other kids would mention it. As noted above.

Actually, I remember sometimes cheekier kids would ask her; "Do you believe in God, Miss?" and she'd answer and say she did, then try to give some kind of answer as to why. Always on the back foot in a classroom full of little unbelievers, who regarded her as slightly mad because of it. Like they had a teacher who believed in fairies or Sasquatch. Which was precisely how I viewed her.

Returning to the abortion debate though. For our project we were split into groups and had to discuss the issue. The pros and cons, the arguments for and against. As I was a little micro-Dawkins back then I was obviously very much pro-abortion. I also grew up in a left-leaning, Labour household so my views were informed by that as well. My mam, who was pro-abortion too at that time, had given me all the usual arguments in favour of it. Backstreet abortions, mothers not being able to feed their children, the notion that foetuses are 'just cells'. The feminist-framed line. Likewise I was fully on board with the whole environmental catastrophism stuff, and the fears of over-population.

A micro-Dawkins or mini-Malthus I guess.

In the classroom debate I expressed all these views to the other kids on my table. With all the confidence of someone who knew with absolute certainty he was right. I didn't for a moment consider I might be wrong. Surely only uneducated people and horrible right-wingers could think overwise.

As I expressed all this though I remember looking up and seeing this teacher looking over at me, and she looked really, really sad. Not angry, she didn't tell me off. She didn't even say anything, or even express her own opinion in the lesson. In fact, I ended up with an 'A' in my GCSE RE, so she certainly didn't mark me down or hold it against me. She just looked very, very sad. Like I'd said something truly heart-breaking.

The look in her eyes really struck me at the time, and I didn't quite understand it. Of course, I had absolute certainty in the rightness of my own views, so I didn't even consider changing my opinion. It was only many, many years later when my views began shifting on the issue, but still, it made a deep impression on me.

That feeling when you know you've said something that's truly saddened someone. It really caught me off guard.

Now I'm older though I actually find myself in her position quite often. Listening to some of the words coming out of the mouths of younger people who've been brainwashed into believing quite horrific things. I remember when I first had that experience and I suddenly realised; "Aah, that's how she must have felt". Watching a well-behaved, swotty kid like myself casually talking about culling unborn children to save the planet. With no emotional depth or real concern or knowledge for what I was advocating.

So now I totally get why she was so sad, and I can empathise with how hard it must have been for her to helplessly teach that curriculum to children, whilst having to hold her own views back.

Falling stars..

Finally, one other thing I remember that stuck with me was one of the reasons she gave for why she believed in God. Having been asked, as she often was, by a curious pupil.

She told a story of how a family member had died, and as she was sat in the back of a car travelling home following the death she started to doubt her faith in God because of it. She prayed inwardly to herself and asked; "God, if you're real show me sign, I want to see a shooting star". She looked from the window, but saw nothing, and travelled back distraught.

Then later however when she arrived home her sister asked, "Did you see that shooting star as we were driving home?".

Again, at the time I was naturally dismissive. "Even if she did see a shooting star it will have just been a coincidence" I thought. "That's even if the story is actually true."

Still though, seeing an adult sincerely tell this story was odd enough that it must have impressed itself upon me. So much so that I can still recall it now.

It's strange how these small things can leave such a lasting impression. I wonder if these two moments have influenced my owns views in some way. Or if they're just things I can now empathise with as I've grown older.

Either way that teacher, that I had so little time for and so few interactions with, left a deep imprint on me. Perhaps much more so than all the other teachers that I had more time for.

A good Christian woman.

Election debates...

It's probably a good time for me to do a little post about the New Zealand election. Today I've listened to the Mulitparty Debate featuring the leaders of the lesser parties (from 8th October), and I'm also currently near the end of the Ardern v Collins debate (from 30th September).

Again, as per last time out, I know so little about this election that it's probably best I just sit back and watch. It'd be a miracle if someone from the UK reads this blog in the next few days, so I don't think there's a cat in hells chance that a New Zealander will come across it before they vote 😅. Still though, it seems a bit wrong mouthing off about something I know so little about. So I'll try to keep my opinions to a minimum.

Listening to both debates I'm left with the feeling that their debates have been of a higher calibre than ours. It might just be the novelty of watching unfamiliar faces, but I actually liked all the politicians much more than would've been the case were I watching a UK based political debate.

I was impressed by Judith Collins again, but even my disdain for Jacinda Ardern has softened somewhat.

So I'm just impressed in general. I now just need to make sure I pencil in the election date and don't miss any of the drama.

Chinese

On a side note I've also been trying to learn some Chinese in the last few weeks, both the language and the lettering. I think I'll struggle with the spoken word (I'm basically just watching the odd YouTube video). However, strangely I'm getting the hang of the symbols a bit.

I'm systemically going through them. Drawing, or rather copying out, six at a time on Paint, then kind of playing a little guessing game where I cover up the top row and try to remember what they all mean.

Each time then going back through the previous sets of six I've scribbled out and trying to remember them too. So the first few dozen or so are now rammed into my memory.

Hopefully I'll actually keep it up now.

NZ election gets going..

I've started paying attention to the New Zealand election again. Last night I watched the debate between Jacinda Ardern and National leader Judith Collins. Obviously I have no real idea what's going on. It was quite literally the first time I'd ever seen the blonde-haired lady speak. Perhaps that was why she made more of an impression on me. I thought she bossed the debate overall.

What I guess was most striking to me was how all the talking points were so similar to the talking points we have here; coronavirus, climate change, mental health, housing, and so forth. Half way around the world, but it could've been taking place at the bottom of the garden.

Drive an inch, take a mile

I'm back. Last night I was having yet another argument with someone (Twitter once again) and the drink driving analogy popped up. Again in relation to lock down law and mask mandates. The argument being that we have laws that infringe our freedoms to stop drink driving and other vehicle related offences, therefore we can have laws to restrict movement, impose mask-wearing, etc.

(..stay safe)

I touched upon this back in June with my post We Need Drunk-Rollerskating Laws ; where I made a few basic counterpoints to this argument. The main ones being:

a) Driving restrictions are relatively minor infringements compared to these much more far-reaching ones.

b) We've had proper debate, oversight and due process when bringing in driving restrictions.

c) Cars amplify the power of the person driving. For example, if I see someone walking down the street not wearing a face mask I can choose to avoid that person. However, if a car comes at me at 80mph it's much more difficult for me to avoid it. Though technically I'm free to do so. As a car is much faster than a human. Likewise the force of the car makes serious or deadly injury much more likely. In stark comparison to mask wearing where the risk is minimal.

Anyway..

There are two points I want to add in this post. The first is another point to add to the above list, and the second concerns the disingenuous attitude of the people making this 'drink driving' argument when they refuse to acknowledge scale and proportion.

d) is this..

Laws regarding vehicles are less of a concern as they don't really infringe upon democratic and legal processes. If people disagree with a driving restriction they are still free to challenge it. In a court, or even democratically. For example, you could form a political party with the aim of changing such a law.

However, when people's freedom of movement, freedom of assembly and freedom to meet other people is restricted then that potentially halts democracy.*

I can't vote a government out, or form a political party with like-minded people, if I'm under house arrest (!)

So such infringements are much more worrisome and serious. For they can inhibit correction mechanisms and accountability.

(Obviously having to wear a mask isn't as serious as restrictions on movement and human interaction in this regard, though if you were being pedantic I guess you could say it restricts communication. Either way though, all these corona impositions have came as part of the same general package. Advocated by the same general people.)

The disingenuous attitude bit

As for the disingenuous attitude I think this is something that really needs addressing, as it highlights precisely why people of a more libertarian mindset are so concerned with such infringements in the first place.

Normally most people, even the vast majority of libertarians, will acknowledge the value of having some minor restrictions on freedom. The prohibition on drink-driving being a very good example of a measure that almost everyone would support.

However, freedom-loving people often wince at allowing such concessions as they fear (rightly as current events prove) that it's a slippery slope, and that once you allow the sacred mantra of live and let live to be breached, freedom suddenly starts draining from the barrel at an alarming rate.

Advocates of such infringements into our liberties will start by saying;

"Don't worry, this is just a small infringement, where the dangers are very great. We promise we will never, ever make greater infringements into your rights!"

So most libertarians, not being totally fanatical, concede and compromise;

"Okay, the dangers are very great, I'll accept this infringement, I guess it makes sense ..as long as it doesn't go any further though, tut, tut."

But then the inch becomes a mile, and this concession gets flipped and used as an argument against any libertarian trying to hold back the tides of ever more infringements. With the label of hypocrisy then applied to really push home the argument. So the attitude suddenly changes;

"What? You think it's wrong to mandate mask wearing, but you accept laws restricting drink-driving?!! How hypocritical!"

All scale and proportion is ignored and brushed aside. With the one concession then used as an excuse for endless other intrusions. Which the libertarian, who's now abandoned true, unadulterated libertarianism, struggles to argue against without looking like they have double standards.

It's all quite unfair..

In fact, if we return to the beginning of the post, what spurred me on to debate the person I was arguing with was my annoyance at how unfairly they were treating other people who were raising concerns about civil liberties. (I just kind of joined in uninvited as usual xD). The people being criticised were people that had supported and tolerated many of the restrictions we've had placed upon us, and were only now after six months beginning to express their very genuine concerns.

They'd been perfectly reasonable and tolerant, and likewise their worries about overreach were perfectly normal worries that many people that value freedom would have. Yet they were being chastised as heartless and murderous just for voicing their dissent.

Of course, when you remove all sense of proportion (and silence or chill criticism) then basically any abuse of basic rights and freedoms becomes justified in the quest for public safety and 'the greater good'. So when people refuse to acknowledge that they're essentially advocating the suspension of all freedoms by equating every infringement with a very minor one that most people would accept then it becomes impossible to get the balance right. Or to even have a discussion about where that balance should be, and what safeguards should be in place.

So, finally, even though people are entitled to advocate further intrusions into our rights, it's unfair and dishonest to simply pretend that that's not happening. And to act like these intrusions are no different to other intrusions we already accept.

None of us are libertarians in the truest, most extreme sense of the word, but most of us (I would hope) do love liberty, and we need to keep reminding ourselves of that.

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////

*I've just read back the 'We Need Drunk-Rollerskating Laws' post and I basically make this exact same point in the article lol, so adding a (d) was pointless. Teach me to read things back properly in future 😅 Still I guess there's no harm in making these points twice.

South Bank - some pictures :)

I've actually stuck to my plan and cracked on with my novel. Hence the lack of posts on here. I'm well over 60,000 words at the moment. So I'm hoping I'll have the first draft finished by the end of August. Just in time for the elections and second lock downs (?). It's also good timing as I'll have to crack on and get an actual job soon too lmao. Though with the economy so shot to pieces it's probably the first time in my life I actually have a decent excuse for not having one.

Anyway, with the unbelievable heat today I haven't done much work on the novel. It's been too warm to think. So I thought I'd post something instead. I had a walk to South Bank earlier and took a few pictures. So that's the theme.

For context South Bank is kind of a suburb of Middlesbrough, though it's also a place in its own right - if that makes sense. The little commercial heartland of the area is a bit derelict and rundown now, but there are some nice buildings and monuments. I remember going on a few nights out there when I was younger, but the pubs and clubs seem to be mostly closed down now. It's unfortunate. There used to be shipbuilding and whatnot back in the day, in the long, long ago, but since that has gone the place is now a little bit out of the way. So the footfall is focused elsewhere.

Firstly I have a few pictures of the war memorial. I really like this.

Next up a few Christian images;

(The Crucifixion of Christ)

(Someone who I'm guessing is Saint Peter,

replete with golden keys. Also note the little gargoyle)

(A close up of Saint Peter)

Now we have a few images of an ancient-style statue. I think it's Bacchus / Dionysus, but I'm not entirely sure. It's situated outside the Saabat Gallery. I really like the way the whiteness of the statue is offset by the colourful flower basket. Very cool.

Next some contemporary art. A very northern-looking sculpture by the artist Ray Lonsdale.

...and finally, this is the sign from the Fat Katz nightclub. I can't remember if I ever actually went there, though the name vaguely rings a bell. It's all a bit hazy. My main recollection of those nights out are of me being warned not to act like a clown by my more streetwise friends because the area was "a bit rough" and we might get beaten up or something. That and how far away from Middlesbrough proper it seemed at the time. It's funny how distances seem so much further when you're young. South Bank is literally just a half an hour walk away from where I live, but at the time it seemed like an adventure to some far off region.

That's one of the positive things to come out of the lock down to be fair. It's forced me to wander round parts of the local area for want of anything better to do. It's amazing what's on your doorstep really when you look.

Is Football Still Illegal?

Yesterday a friend messaged me saying that someone he works with is thinking of starting a 5-a-side football team, and asked me if I was interested in playing. It then turned out that neither of us were even sure if it was now legal to even play football 😅 (I'm still not sure, I haven't even bothered checking to be honest, the rules seem to change by the minute).

It highlights the craziness we now find ourselves in though. I guess you have to laugh. What else can you do.

It's made even more surreal by the recent news that the UK government has big plans to get everyone to lose weight. Including doctors prescribing bike rides apparently, amongst other things.

Exercise vs Fun

This in turn got me thinking about the difference between exercise and team sports (or fun activities in general). Something that I've often thought about before.

Firstly, unlike running on a treadmill or a hamster wheel, football and other team sports exercise everything. Not only is it a full body work out, but you're also exercising your mind as well. Reacting to opponents, interacting with teammates. Moving and thinking.

You need to be aware, whereas on a treadmill or exercise bike you can be in your own little world. Literally just repetitively going through the motions.

Then on top of that you have the enjoyment aspect too. When you play football you're in the moment, having fun. Just enjoying the game. When you're on the hamster wheel though you don't have that distraction or euphoria (though granted I'm sure there are a few people who do get tremendous joy from running, etc). Especially if you're doing it simply because you feel you need to get healthy.

You're literally doing the exercise thinking "I hope this stops me from dying". Even more so if you're constantly checking your heart rate and so forth.

This fixation on health and death can't be a healthy mindset to have ( - if that makes sense :p ).

..and finally, this is the difference between stress and joy. You might do a lot of physical activity at work for example, but if you're stressed and worried that might not be great for your health. So is it the same with exercise? If you're running on your hamster wheel worrying about dying then is that good exercise, or is it just more work ..and more stress and misery.

Something you genuinely like though. Like football, dancing, or just spending time in the great outdoors, etc. Especially if you're doing it with friends is surely much better for you.

Making it easier..

Just a very quick post to update something. Back in May I posted about masks, making the argument that in a free society the force of law should always be used only as a last resort. I even made a little list of avenues we should go down before we reach that point. Writing;

Normally in a free society we only force people to do things like this as an absolute last resort, and even then we should ideally only do it for the minimum amount of time and with the maximum amount of oversight. That's definitely not the case at the moment though.

In a free society there are a number of avenues we can exhaust before we even begin to think about going down the compulsion route. If we want another person to do something that they don't want to do we can: 

• ask them - politely ideally :)

• try to persuade them, with appeals to emotion or reason

• give them incentives

• pay them outright

Anyway, I missed something off that list, and that's simply the practice of making something easier for people. For example, giving people free masks would make it easier for them to wear one. So I thought I'd add it to the list in case I come back to this later.

• ask them - politely ideally :)

• try to persuade them, with appeals to emotion or reason

• make it easier for them

• give them incentives

• pay them outright

Word Counts in New Zealand

I haven't posted on here in a while. I'm keeping it low key. I've actually been quite busy. I'm finally knuckling down to finish the work of fiction I planned on writing. I'm being very self-disciplined and doing it during the day! Almost like a 9 til 5. Unlike my normal mode of writing which is usually done with a coffee late at night when people are in bed.

In fact, it's been a bit of an eye-opener. In the past when I've written books it's always been a long, drawn-out affair. So much thought, artistic moodiness, and getting the feel and timing right (or wasting time and putting things off should I say). Consequently, whenever I'd hear stories of these people that knock out three or four books a year I'd always think; how on earth is that possible?!

I didn't understand how people could be so prolific without just producing junk.

However, now I've found that when you make a 'day job' of it, you can be incredibly productive. If you produce just 1,000 words a day you can have a 60,000 word book in just two months. If you can increase that to 2,000 a day then just thirty days may suffice. So I'm rattling along at the moment. Sometimes churning out two chapters a day! Simply unprecedented! (..don't worry I'm not using this many exclamation marks in the book). It does mean that I've put general blogging like this (which I find so much more comfortable) on the back burner though.

Anyhow..

..the reason I'm posting is just to make a quick note. Yesterday I saw this tweet.

..highlighting this article; https://thespinoff.co.nz

Apparently, Arron Banks is getting involved in New Zealand's general election later this year. Helping out the New Zealand First party. Like the Irish election earlier this year this should be interesting to watch. So I'm going to start paying attention more. When my patience runs out with the book I may even start blogging about it. So I thought I better put a little mental marker down now.

As with the Irish election I know very little about New Zealand politics. I did read the '2020 New Zealand general election' Wikipedia page though last night to get to grips with their electoral system. So I've already cast a little bit of light to dispel my ignorance.

Currently the Labour Party are in a 'minority coalition government' with the NZ First party - with 'confidence and supply' from the Greens. I already knew Labour's Jacinda Ardern was the PM, but I had no idea about any of this stuff. So I'm already learning.

The election is in September. No doubt it'll get heavily overshadowed by the US election. It does mean I'll have plenty of entertainment if we get locked down again though 😵