We’re Sheep in Human Clothing - Baa! Part Two

We all probably like to pride ourselves for being independent thinkers and doers – thinking and doing outside of the box that society has tried to put us, and confine us, in. Dream on. Nearly all of us conform to the norm and rest comfortably within that box because ultimately it’s too much effort to really be an outsider, a free thinker and doer due in part to the social consequences of being, well, different. Let’s face reality; most of us are sheep most of the time.

Continued from yesterday’s blog…

Marketing Those Fads & Fashions: Since you were knee-high to a grasshopper, you’ve been exposed to hundreds of thousands of marketing gimmicks* designed to make you think you need something you probably don’t, at a higher price than you should pay, all for the sake of the almighty profit of thousands of for-profit companies. You’re bombarded with ads on the telly, on the radio, in the movie theatre, in the baseball park, on billboards, skywriting, on the sides of buses, on buildings, in magazines and newspapers, on the Internet, email spam, junk mail spam, even the layout of goods in the shops is designed to get you to part with your money. Neon signs flash out their messages of ‘must haves’. You get bombarded constantly with symbols, jingles, too good to be true images, sex appeal that sells, appeals to the good life, promoting being forever young, etc. Hype, hype and more hype is the order of the day. Is there any product in existence that hasn’t been ‘new and improved’ dozens of times over? What does ‘whiter than white’ or ‘fresher than fresh’ or ‘flavour you can see’ really mean? Then there’s ‘certified organic’ food, or ‘real food’ (as if to suggest some foods aren’t real or aren’t organic – maybe they mean those plastic apples and bananas, etc. that decorate some living room bowls). If there were really such a thing as truth in advertising we wouldn’t need any agency dealing with consumer affairs. Where does it all get you? As the song lyrics go, “another day older and deeper in debt”, and a lot unhealthier too since a lot of that marketing goes into foods that contribute more calories than nutrition, alcohol products often abused, tobacco products which help keep the medical profession fully employed and a profitable one. The bottom line is that such gimmicks work; otherwise ads would have proved to be more expensive than the profits they brought in and cut from the company’s bottom line. Actually it doesn’t always have to be a for-profit motive. ‘Join the Navy and see the world’ or ‘vote for me’ are non-profit marketing exercises. Still, Madison Avenue and associated equivalents not only think you’re sheep, they know you are. Baa!

There’s A Sucker Born Every Minute: There’s a sucker born every minute so it doesn’t take all that long therefore to gather together a flock of suckers. For example, why would anyone spend their dollars on bottled water when tap water is nearly free in comparison – unless of course there’s something seriously wrong with the tap water but that’s rare in most advanced countries today. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the tap water where I live. It tastes A-OK and I haven’t gotten ill from using it yet, yet bottled water is a big seller locally. It nearly flies off the supermarket shelves so it’s a flock of suckers buying it. Why? Well, there’s a sucker born every minute, that’s why. Baa!

Walking Billboards: Many of us, probably all of us if truth be known, own items of clothing, usually tee-shirts, which ‘advertises’ or promotes something or other. Perhaps that lettering or image reflects a product like a soft drink, or perhaps a band tour, the name of a company, your alma mater, a favourite sports team, an entertainment figure or image, your holiday destination; the range is just about limitless. No doubt that reflects some personal parts of your, well, personality, something that’s your favourite something. Akin to that, you drive a certain brand of automobile that probably has a nearly irremovable sticker of the automobile dealer you bought the car from. Those items of clothing, that brand of car, that dealer’s sticker, and a lot more besides, are all free advertising donated by you to whatever agency owns that image or brand name. When you buy a home the real estate agency slaps a big “SOLD” sign with their logo in front for all to see. If you have some sort of renovations to the home’s exterior, the company doing the work will place a sign in front letting all who pass by who did that fine bit of reconstruction, It’s pretty hard to avoid advertising someone else’s product or business, but you do it and boy-oh-boy, don’t those outsiders just love you for it since it doesn’t cost them a cent. They are just ROTFLTAO at how they get extra mileage out of you at no additional deficit to their profit margin; in fact you are contributing to additional profits for them without anyone helping out your economic bottom line. Baa!  

Reviews: The point of an independent and neutral ‘Review’ of say restaurants, books, films, CDs, etc. is to inform. Your reaction to such reviews is a go/no-go depending on what the reviewer says. So in fact, the reviewer is leading you around by the nose. Around the water cooler at work, you don’t want to be caught out not having read this week’s ‘must read’ (or vice versa, having read something some ‘expert’ bucketed), or admit not to have dined out at this new five star eatery (or again vice versa if you had and the review suggested that not even a cockroach would be seen dining there). Reviews and reviewers may have their place, but the implication is that you’re a sheep that needs them to do your thinking for you. Baa!

Keeping up with the Jones Family: Who hasn’t heard of that expression? But isn’t it really way more than just an expression? Your fellow co-worker just moves into a new four bedroom home while you are still in a old three bedroom resident. Is this a motivation to move on up in the world? Your neighbour buys a new deluxe 4WD automobile while you still putt-putt-putt around in a Model-T by comparison. Is a trip to the automobile dealer on the agenda next weekend? Your second cousin just upgraded to this new and improved wireless PC while your landline tabletop computer is within months of a hard disk crash it’s that old. 99% of all those around you seem to have this tablet, that smart phone, this iPod, while you are still a relatively technological Neanderthal. But you’ll show them!!! Your wife complains that you earn twice as much as her best friend’s husband, yet his wife dresses twice as well as your wife does. What are you going to do about that? Have you been told today? Consider yourself told and act accordingly. Baa!

Melbourne Cup: Though this is uniquely Australian, I’m sure similar examples can be found around the globe. The Melbourne Cup is just another horse race in a land where horse races are a dime a dozen. However, this particular horse race is touted as the race that stops the nation. It’s run on the first Tuesday in November, which is now a public holiday in the state of Victoria (where Melbourne is located) and there are serious calls to make it a public holiday throughout the entire country – for a horse race mind you! Anyway, holiday or not, for some inexplicable reason, for just this one horse race, the whole nation goes bonkers! For hours before and after the race no work gets done. Transport comes to a standstill during the race itself. People are glued to their TV or radio sets. Women dress up to the nines trying to outdo each other in who can appear in the most ridiculous hat. Everyone and his or her maiden aunt has a flutter (bet) on the outcome, and short of World War Three starting, it will be the lead item on the evening news and in the following morning’s newspaper front page. All for a horse race mind you. Absolute insanity! Baa!

Not an overly pretty or flattering picture, is it?

*I’m surprised some marketing guru hasn’t yet come up with “buy our new and improved Manna Bread, the bread that God Himself endorses, and atheists can enjoy Manna Bread as well”!

We’re Sheep in Human Clothing - Baa! Part One

We all probably like to pride ourselves for being independent thinkers and doers – thinking and doing outside of the box that society has tried to put us, and confine us, in. Dream on. Nearly all of us conform to the norm and rest comfortably within that box because ultimately it’s too much effort to really be an outsider, a free thinker and doer due in part to the social consequences of being, well, different. Let’s face reality; most of us are sheep most of the time.

Sometimes it’s good to be a human sheep, like when you’re driving in traffic or following the tried and true training regime, being part of the work team, obeying lawful orders in the military or from other authority figures vetted for that purpose. You’re expected to be a sheep and follow the rules when participating in sporting events.

On the other hand, at times there’s something to be said for marching to the beat of a different drummer. Alas, what’s drummed into you tends to be something akin to being told to “Jump”, and you meekly reply, “How high?” Baa!

Unfortunately, there’s no shortage of that “How High” reply. For example:

Religion: There’s relatively little that need to be said here. Billions upon billions of people past and present would bet the family farm that a monotheistic deity (Allah, God, Jehovah, the Almighty, etc.) exists despite the fact that there is no evidence that one can see, hear, touch or taste or smell than even remotely hints at such a deity, far less confirms the actual existence. Whether Muslim, Christian, or Jew, there are just certain times of the day, week, month or year when you go to your closet and pull out and don your sheep coverings. It’s all due to the concept being rammed down your throat by authority figures from an early age, because they had that concept rammed down their throat when they were young and impressionable, and so on down the line to thousands of years ago. Would someone born and raised in an environment that had no concept of the supernatural come to believe in a monotheistic deity of their own intellect? - Probably not. Baa!

When in Rome: Unless you’re a hermit, you have to mingle with the great unwashed and it’s not just ‘when in Rome do as the Romans do’ but in anytown do as the local anytowners do or you will find yourself in social strife. Many a movie plot revolves around that theme of the alien and the alienated other, a stranger in a strange land; the outcast. Dare to be different but wear iron-plated underwear. It doesn’t take much otherness for anytowners to resort to necktie parties. On a scale of 0 to 10 for human tolerance of the other, well maybe 0.5 is a reasonable score. The other had better conform. Baa!

Christmas: The bills, the cards you send to people you really don’t give a damn about, the bills, the unneeded and unwanted presents you receive, the bills, all those presents you get to give to the great unwashed, the bills, the wrappings, the bills, the Xmas trees, the bills, the baubles, the bills, the Xmas lights, the bills, the decorations, the bills, the family guests you’d rather not have come around, the bills, the extra food (with a usually ever unchanging and boring menu), the bills, the cleanup, the bills, all those lengthy hours spend Xmas shopping for others instead of yourself, and oh, did I mention the bills that come due? Are we having fun yet? Why do people voluntarily subject themselves to total insanity; this annual nightmare, even if you can afford the bills? The only institutions to benefit are the banks who issue the credit cards and the retail sector. Nor can you use the excuse that you’re just part of the masses observing the birthday of Jesus. Nowhere in any religious literature, like the New Testament, will you find the date, even the month or season when the alleged deity Jesus was born. And woe to any authority figure who says there’s no Santa Claus. They will be crucified – reality is damned. Baa!

Birthdays: We nearly all ‘celebrate’ birthdays, our own obviously, and those most near and dear to us: WTF? Why ‘celebrate’ another anniversary of coming ever closer to your final demise, or the demise of those nearest and dearest to you, and why not celebrate, if you must celebrate, a date some nine months earlier at the conception instead of when you or yours were hatched? Many people also ‘celebrate’ the birthday of those already dead, why I’m not sure since they can’t participate in that ‘celebration’. There’s also the idiocy of ‘celebrating’ someone’s birthday on the wrong day, the example that immediately springs to mind is that of the British Queen Liz, at least in Australia. Then there’s the even greater idiocy of ‘celebrating’ the birthday of someone on a date that isn’t known with any remote degree of certainty, and of that same someone whose very existence is open to question – Jesus. Baa!

Peers Rule, OK: People, especially young people want to fit in, be accepted by their equals. In order to do that, they have to be just another face in that crowd of peers, and dress the part. If the ‘uniform’ of the day is wearing backward facing baseball caps, then to fit in you’d better wear your baseball cap on back-to-front. Another common ‘uniform’ accessory is the 600 ml bottle of water or soft drink tucked away in the required backpack, all part of the non-conformist uniform (vis-à-vis your non-peers) you wear to conform (vis-à-vis your peers). Now that bottle has to contain THE brand name. Any old brand just isn’t acceptable. Now marketing gurus, knowing this, rub their greedy little paws together and laugh all the way to the bank. It doesn’t take much to verify that a 600 ml bottle of top brand X will usually cost twice to three times as much as a standard 1.25 or even a 2 litre bottle of the same. THE top brand of course, in any size, will cost way more, two to three times more, than an in-store house generic brand of the same size, even though the difference in taste is usually minimal, if that. But, your peers say that THE brand, in this size, is required to be part of the in-crowd, so THE 600 ml top brand it is. Baa!

The In-Crowd: The in-crowd is not the exact same mob as your peers. The in-crowd is a combo of the ‘right’ place populated with the ‘right’ people. Not just any crowd found in any old place qualifies. Personally I find pandering to the social scene, the society pages, as if this somehow elevates your worthiness Boring (with a capital B). Besides, when all aspire to be one with the social set, the in-crowd elite, you become part of a flock again, even if it’s the upper-crust flock. Baa! 

Fawning Over British Royalty: Why do millions of people fawn over just a couple of handful of peoples who lead the super ultra good life plus; are a drain on the public purse; are a totally dysfunctional family; who never had to earn their position in life, yet who sit on the commoners throne in the same manner as the great unwashed? What’s Queen Liz (for example) done for you lately to earn your bowing and scraping? Baa!

Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, Email, etc.: Its obvious physical substances can cause addictions. Apart from tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, legal and illegal, you’re addicted to eating and breathing! You can also become addicted to various chemicals your brain produces when gambling, which is why gambling is addictive to some. But email addiction? Though I know humans are social animals, there’s something totally over-the-top in and use and abuse of social media. When you feel you have to log into these sites dozens, even multi-dozens of times a day, even when sitting on the throne or in a movie theatre or while shopping in the supermarket then you’re an addict, and IMHO in serious need of some therapy. You know, every now and then it’s good to just chill out, unplug the computer, and be your own best friend. Baa!

Mobile Phones: Closely related to the above, it seems that everybody and their great grandmothers have got to have a mobile phone, turned on, right next to their body, 24/7/52, in case someone wants to get in contact, or, shock-horror, failing that, so they can contact someone. This obsession with talking to people virtually non-stop is beyond my comprehension, especially when you overhear the nature of the conversations; say on the bus or in the supermarket or, much to the annoyance of others, in the theatre. It’s usually anything but important. In fact, it’s usually so trivial as to even be below the level of trivia. Whoever invented the mobile phone must be laughing all the way to the bank to deposit their latest billion dollar profit on the royalties, all because they had the insight that people somehow feel they need to bend other people’s ears, and have their ears bent in return, with trivia, trivia and more trivia. It used to be the case that only politicians and real estate agents and used car salesmen spouted off hot air. That’s no longer true. In the here and now, never have so many, said so much, about so little. Baa!

To be continued…

How Many Of You Are In You?

You probably think of yourself as singular. Not even your identical twin is you, your clone, but someone else. There is only one you, past, present and future. Not so. Quite apart from those abnormal psychological multiple personality disorders, I suggest there is a normal psychological multiple personality state of affairs. In a very real sense, you (and every one of us) are a quasi Jekyll-and-Hyde character.

By the phrase “how many of you are in you” I suggest something akin, and I stress akin, to the extreme mental conditions of dissociative identity disorder, dual or multiple personalities housed within the same mind, a split personality that’s sort of like a Jekyll-and-Hyde character. Only, by using the word akin, please now remove the word ‘extreme’ and substitute ‘normal’. In other words, have many of the normal you are in the normal you?

Here are some obvious examples of the multiply personality present and accounted for, albeit still with respect to, the normal you.

An angry you is not the same you as the you who is cool, calm and collected. Two differing personalities housed within the same mind.

A you that is wide awake isn’t quite the same you as the you who is sound asleep. Your little brat throwing a very vocal temper tantrum isn’t quite the same as your little darling sawing logs.

Clearly the five-year-old birthday you isn’t the same you as the twenty-five-year-old birthday you which isn’t the same you that’s identical with the fifty-year-old birthday you. In fact you don’t just change the status of your inner you year-to-year but moment-to-moment as all those chemicals part and parcel of the food you eat, the liquids you drink, the air that you breathe, are constantly adding to and rearranging and replacing those bits and pieces that make up your brain and hence your mind and therefore what makes you, you. It’s not just your bones (and other body parts) that get replaced bit-by-bit over roughly a seven year cycle.

But presumably, despite that and the above examples, you’d expect that there should still be only one you, one mind set, at any given moment in time, like right now, this very second. Presumably there is only ever one you, perhaps, but then again, perhaps not.

All of the above are of course representations of a different you at different times, but is that always the case? Can there be more than one normal you in you (your mind) at the same time?

I sometimes get mad at my body because it wants to do one thing as a matter of priority, but I (my mind) have more pressing priorities for it. This usually ends badly as way less than a case of mind-over-matter than what-the-body-wants-the-body-gets - the body wins. However, the body isn’t an alternative form of you, so getting pissed off with your body’s demands isn’t quite the same thing as getting mad at yourself. However, now and again I’m sure you do get mad at yourself. Come again? Surely one you that is mad at another you, both housed within a single (your) mind implies two separate and apart versions of you. How else can you be mad at yourself?

Or, how often do you have an argument with yourself? One part of you is having a go or debate with another part of you. In fact every time you make a decision you have a mini debate or argument with another version of you that inhabits the same body and mind as you do. Presumably one or the other version of you wins and a decision is made and acted upon. Things get even more complicated if there are three or four or more possible choices! But the bottom line is that if you and an alternative you have an argument, then there has to be a split personality involved since it takes two to have two differing points of view. One you, one point of view, can not have a debate! 

If you’re like most normal people, you’ll sometimes hold a conversation with yourself, and therefore the popular phrase ‘talking to yourself’ (which is often said to be the best way of having an intelligent conversation). But who are you talking to since it takes two to have a chinwag?

Or you might hold an imaginary conversation with a known other – like what would Mr. Spock (Star Trek) or Dr. Spock (baby doctor) or Joe Spock (work colleague) say or do if in my shoes in this situation. Of course Spock in this situation is just another version of you, an alter-ego of you that substitutes as an authority figure, an authority your alter ego doesn’t actually have. That’s why it’s called ‘make believe’ and ‘let’s pretend’. But is that you who ask questions put to your alter-you (Spock) any more real than that alter-you that provides the answer? Both of you, IMHO, are equally valid versions of you.

Many, maybe even most children have imaginary friends, a product of their minds, just another version of themselves manifesting. That even extends in some cases into adulthood. I’ve seen many an adult hold a conversation or at least talk a monolog to some imaginary other. The usual impression being that there’s something not quite right with that person. We might say they are a bit of a mental dingbat or touched in the head. Still, why is it okay or normal in kids but it’s a mental case if an adult?

Many people over the millennia have claimed to have heard voices in their head, oft attributed to a deity (or a demon) since there’s nobody else around to account for the audio ‘hallucination’ – or perhaps it was really just some other version of you, inside you all along, trying to get your attention.

The same might be true if you are seeing visions that nobody else can see. It’s just an image of some other you (in clever disguise perhaps) generated by your mind, again trying to get your attention to convey something of importance residing in your subconscious.

What about your dreams and your daydreams? You or your mind, whether asleep or wide awake, can dream of an alternative you that can boldly go where no you have ever gone before. In that sense, there are a near unlimited number of an alternative you housed within you. It’s akin to the you that is controlling your daydreams or night dreams being sort of like a puppeteer, and the you featured in your dreaming the puppet.

Each you within you is equal, but some are more equal than others. That is to say there is a dominant you. The you who will get pissed off at you is the dominant. Ditto that you who initiates conservations with another inner you.

What does all of this say about the reality of out-of-the-body experiences (OBE) or near-death (NDE) experiences? Talk about split personalities! Actually that you within that you scenario says absolutely nothing about the reality of an OBE or NDE. Your mind, dying or otherwise, has just generated another internal version of you which has all the outward appearance to you of being an external event, but isn’t, anymore than your dreams, however vivid, put another you outside of your body, or a child’s imaginary friend has any external reality. Your OBE, NDE, dreams featuring you or a child’s imaginary buddy can’t been seen, photographed or otherwise documented by any external observer. It’s all that you within that you scenario.

The upshot of all of this is that the question is what’s normal (psychology) and what’s abnormal (psychology) when it comes to split personalities is almost splitting hairs. The dividing line is a very, very fine one.

In summary, if you get mad, talk, argue, or debate, then you are mad with, talk to, argue with or debate some sort of significant other. If it’s you that you are mad at, talk to or argue/debate with, then that significant other is yourself, albeit another version of yourself.

Intermission!

I’m out of ideas for the moment so I’m going to take a bit of a break and signoff for now, but I shall return at irregular intervals, so if so inclined, keep checking back.

Relatively Painless Health Tips for Us Pensioners

Of all your possessions, your personal health is the most valuable and something that can’t be readily replaced once lost or damaged. There are going to be elements of your health beyond your control – you can’t stop the aging clock. But, many facets of your overall health are under your own control. Being healthy doesn’t translate into having to endure lots of dietary, etc. pain or restrictions.

Since the Year Dot there have been billions of articles, pamphlets, books, documentaries, Internet web sites, and other personal opinions that instruct you in how to be a healthier you. Over the millennia, all and sundry collectively have apparently achieved positive results – the average human lifespan keeps on keeping on increasing. No doubt each and every person has their own personal best way or philosophy of maintaining their health, and won’t hesitate to pass on their secrets to everyone else!

Yes indeed, everybody and their grandmother has THE solution to a healthy lifestyle and longevity. My dear old departed grandmother’s sole piece of advice to me as a child was to chew 32 chews with every bite of food. Even then I thought that was just about the dumbest piece of advice I’d ever received, and still do – no offence grandma. However, she lived to a ripe old age of 78 (that’s not a bad innings), so what do I know? I doubt I’ll make it that far. Anyway, different strokes for different folks, that’s my motto or philosophy. But as grandma had her go, here is mine, and forget the 32 chews!

Aspirin: There are lots of studies that suggest the common aspirin tablet has a mostly beneficial aspect to the average person if taken once a day or several times a week. However, not all people react positively to aspirin, and in some people can cause unwanted side effects like bleeding ulcers. See your medical practitioner first before taking an aspirin a day, but overall the vast majority of the population will benefit, not so much from the apple-a-day, but the aspirin-a-day.

Calcium: There are lots of trace elements essential to health, in this case having good solid bones that won’t crumble to dust in your maturing years. That something is calcium, most often found in dairy products. I get my daily dose from a cheese fix, but other dairy products are available. Don’t like dairy products? Well, one can buy over-the-counter calcium supplements instead.

Companion animals: Own a pet(s). Pet-a-puss! Lots of studies have suggested that having little something else in your life to focus on, something that can focus back on you – provide reinforcement to your attention – is beneficial to your state of mind, and mind influences the state of the health of the body. Translated, that something else is an animal companion (on the assumption that by the time health becomes an issue, that other ‘pet’, your kids, are no longer that something else in your day-to-day life; they are no longer your dependents. Companion animals however will forever and a day be dependent on you. So, not only will you thank the animal; the animal will thank you for being a loving guardian and looking after its welfare.

Dietary sins: There are about four of these with both pluses and minuses attached. 1) Alcohol provides calories, but empty (non-nutritional) calories. However, studies suggest that some alcohol is beneficial to mind and body. 2) Salt doesn’t provide any calories, and some salt is essential to a well functioning body, but too much can cause problems with blood pressure, etc. 3) Fats are high in calories, but also provide some essential nutrition; 4) Sugar, like alcohol, provides lots of empty calories. Since you need calories, sugar can have a positive role to play, but too much – well, a moment on the lips; forever on the hips.

It’s probably not likely for anyone to go the minimum route on all four ‘sins’. I say indulge in a reasonable way in two out of four that most appeal; absolute minimums on the other two. I personally take alcohol over sugar products; salt over fat, so I have a relatively large high alcohol, high salt diet, but I’ve nearly eliminated fat and sugar. Life’s too short to try for dietary perfection unless you’re content with a minimum sugar, fat, alcohol and salt diet. You’ve got to strike a balance between what you like, and what’s good for you.

Exercise: Experts suggest that everyone get a minimum of a half-hour of mild exercise/day. That’s real easy if you like walking, cycling, swimming, golf, or a host of other physical activities. On the other hand, I’ve never seen a jogger smile while running! If you don’t, like jogging, etc., then I suggest combining a half-hour of mild exercise while doing something else, accomplishing something else, that’s overall constructive at the same time as a substitute, something that you’re going to have to do anyway. That could be vigorous workout at housework; a half-hour of gardening; or, in my case, a half-hour walk, but to the store and back to buy the daily groceries or get other shopping done. Two birds with one stone. 

Genetics: It helps if you have a good genetic heritage. Actually you have no control over that, but by knowing the strengths, weaknesses, risks, and what did in your ancestors (parents, grandparents, etc.) you can take appropriate lifestyle steps to minimize your risk of going down life’s gurgler the same way.

Gums: I heard a long time ago that it was just as important to brush your gums as your teeth; a kind of massage for them, which probably helps to stimulate the blood flow through them and keep them healthy. Healthy gums make for better teeth. It sure ain’t because gums get cavities and need fillings! Anyway, I’ve adopted the practice and still have all my teeth firmly in place.

Hobbies: If you sit around the house bored out of your skull, that’s not good for your mental state which in turn has an effect on your physical well being. Hobbies help stimulate the mind, and everyone should have a hobby – actually several in case one loses its appeal for a while or peters out for one reason or another. One shouldn’t of course be weather dependent. I hear that mind gambes like chess or crossword puzzles or solving paradoxes or figuring out whodunits are especially useful for older, less able to be active, seniors. Hobbies don’t have to be expensive, though that’s between you and your bank manager if your hobby is collecting Rembrandts!

Iron: Iron is another one of those other trace elements that are essential to life and limb – okay, not so much a limb; rather in this case healthy blood. Foods rich in iron aren’t my thing, so I take an iron tablet as a dietary supplement. That works for me. But if you like lots of liver and spinach, you’re doing okay in the iron department.

Lifespan: I read a long time ago that two geographical regions had the longest and healthiest life-spans for their residents – The Japanese and those surrounding the Mediterranean region. In the former case, it was due to a diet high in fish. In the later case, it was due to a diet high in tomatoes. Both fish (and fish oils) and tomatoes apparently have positive values when it comes to contributing to overall healthy benefits.

Music: Music soothes the savage beast. Translated, listening to your favourite music has positive effects on your mental state; a positive mental state translates into a positive physical state – mind over matter. A happy mind makes for a healthy body. 

Organics: Eating organic foods are healthy eating right? Well, labelling something as ‘organic’ is just a PR rip-off designed to separate more of your money from you than you would otherwise pay for the same product but without the ‘organic’ label. One shop owner proudly displayed meat labelled with the word ‘organic’. I asked him to show me his range of presumably cheaper inorganic meats and of course he couldn’t since there is no such thing. All meat is organic. But the absolute height of idiocy was seeing a display of bottled water labelled ‘organic’. Now since does water contain the element carbon, which is what the word organic means, or should mean, as in organic chemistry – the chemistry of carbon compounds? And bottled water is another total rip-off. Tap water is just as good, cheaper and there’s no plastic bottles left over littering up the landscape. Actually, when my cats are faced with a choice of fresh tap water in their water bowl, or a rainwater puddle to drink out off, wild water wins hands down. Wild animals do very nicely drinking water that’s far less pure than what comes out of your kitchen or bathroom tap.

Purpose in life: You really need a reason(s) to get out of bed in the morning – some purpose in life. If you have no really real reason to get out of bed in the morning, you’ll vegetate. You may hate to get out of bed in the morning, but if you have a real reason to, a purpose, a responsibility to something above and beyond yourself, you’ll do it. There’s 101 plus purposes you could adopt as your own – charity work for one.

Sleep: Sleep is a very important part of our lifestyle. Much like oxygen and food and water, you can’t go on very long without it. And different people require differing amounts of sleep per day. However, as your time left on Earth as a living, breathing entity gets less and less; it’s seemingly a waste to spend one third or thereabouts of what’s left to you in limbo – asleep. You have personally got to decide for yourself a trade-off between quality of life remaining (lots of sleep; fully rested) and quantity of life (bugger sleep, live life 24/7/52) that’s left to you.

Smoking: Don’t smoke. Smoking is about as unnatural act as you can do and there is no shortage of nasties that are linked with smoking.

Stress: We all have to deal with stress to some degree or other. Mother Nature, fellow humans, politicians, and the tax man all throw curveballs at us 24/7/52. I’m sure even the world’s richest human; dictators, presidents and prime ministers, the British Royal Family; and associated pampered upper-crusts have to deal with some stress now and again. No one is ever stress-free all the time. Surprisingly, some stress is beneficial. It keeps you focused and on your toes. Too much stress stresses the mind too much which has an effect on the rest of the body – ulcers if nothing else. The only advice I have is plan ahead where possible to minimise or deflect future stressful situations; and try not to worry over those things you have absolutely no control over. It also helps if you have a friendly shoulder to cry on!

Thinning your blood: An ancient remedy for whatever ailed you was often to have leeches attached to your skin and having some of the blood sucked out of you. Apparently that had positive results in many cases. I’m not going to advocate you attach leeches to you, but there is one way to thin your blood, obviously beneficial to you, and also to others, and that’s to donate blood on a regular base if eligible. Losing 500 ml of your blood every 12 weeks doesn’t harm you one jot. Not everyone can donate of course – an aspirin a day can accomplish a bit of thinning as well or as an alternative. 

Variety is the spice of life: Don’t stick yourself in a total rut, even if routine is comfortable. Vary your daily routine or diet, even if just a little, so as to experience something new. If the one-off experiment flubs, well nothing ventured, nothing gained. You can then try something else. If you can’t find one tiny variation to your normal routine or diet per week, you’re not trying hard enough.

Waste products: Unfortunately, the very process of living means that your body has to intake various chemicals, process them, and eliminate the unwanted residues – waste products. There are four ways the body eliminates or gets rid of waste products – sweating, exhaling, urine and faeces. You don’t have any real control over exhaling – mainly carbon dioxide. You have relatively little control over sweating, which mainly eliminates salt from your system (which is not always good; your body needs some salt); you also don’t have much of a say in your more solid wastes. However, you can have some control over all those waste products that build up but ultimately get eliminated in your urine. You don’t want those waste products hanging around any longer than necessary. You can drink water, or products/foods that contain a lot of water. Extra water has to be eliminated, and along with it those other waste products that have accumulated. So, drinking lots of liquids, or eating foods which contain a lot of water like pasta, eliminates waste products building up in your blood stream that much faster. Good riddance to bad rubbish that does you no good while inside of you. 

Weight loss: There is one and only one way to lose weight. You have to burn more calories than you ingest. Say you need 2000 calories/day but want to lose weight. Most people go on a crash diet of say 500 calories/day and they are miserable. My solution is to ingest 1800 calories. Sure, weight loss will take longer, but because there’s hardly any real pain, it’s sustainable and you eventually achieve your goal. The other alternative is to keep ingesting your quota of 2000 calories, but start to burn off 2200 calories/day – like getting a bit more exercise. Then too, you could both eat just a little bit less; exercise just a little bit more. Rome wasn’t built in a day; weight loss isn’t a one-day affair either. Think long term.

Finally, for a happy healthy life, empty what’s full; fill what’s empty; scratch where it itches.

P.S. Essays like this are all well and good, but they are no substitute for consulting your favourite heath professional/medical practitioner for spot-on up-close-and-personal advice that conforms to your specific needs.

Observations on Human Nature

As we all are aware, even if we would never admit it, the human being is the nastiest species on this pale blue dot of a planet. In fact, if there is any species that really needs culling, it’s the human species. If I needed any reminding of this, all I need to do is take a daily walk to the supermarket, and I’m guaranteed to see, albeit in microcosm, the worst that humanity has to offer. 

I’m in a fortunate position where I can easily walk to the supermarket and get my daily quota of groceries, as well as my daily quota of exercise – killing two birds with one stone as it were. In terms of the highlight of the day, it surely does rank as that – only the worst highlight of the day.

THE WALK TO THE SUPERMARKET

I’m convinced that drivers are the scum of the earth. There’s something about getting behind the wheel of a car that turns many a decent human being into a raving selfish lunatic. For example:

*I’ve had it happen, not frequently but too frequently for comfort, that while crossing a road, for lack of a crosswalk or traffic lights, an approaching car in the distance will all of a sudden speed up and slightly alter course to head or aim directly for me, as if I’m somehow trespassing on their personal turf. The driver, ten times out of ten, is male.

*Again not frequently, but too frequently for comfort, I’ve had a car-full of young male hoons passing by who find it a delightful pleasure to yell obscenities out the window at pedestrians. Brave lads one and all of course, passing by in a speeding vehicle, since of course the lone pedestrian, a total stranger is obviously a major threat to their wellbeing and has grievously insulted them by the mere fact of existing. 

*Despite all the concern over greenhouse gas emissions and all the publicity given over global warming and throw in the high price of petrol, why don’t I really find it strange or surprising that roughly 14 out of 15 cars I see on the road have but one occupant. Actions speak louder than words, but most people will not put their money where their mouth is.

*Speaking of drivers, an awful lot of them must be on the road heading towards a really HOT date, given their excessive speed.

*And whether it’s a speeding driver, or even a shopper in the supermarket, texting and talking on their mobile is infinitely more important than paying attention to their driving or their shopping. That’s odd behavior since presumably, in either case, the reason they are driving or in the supermarket in the first place, is to drive or to shop.

*There’s one pedestrian crosswalk between home and the supermarket, and I usually try to time things to make at least one driver stop or at least slow down for me as I cross, not that that little road rule means much sometimes as not all drivers care to slow down, far less stop, for a pedestrian who is on their turf, resulting in some close calls. One idiot driver chose not to slow down far less stop in full sight of a passing police vehicle – tisk, tisk. I bet that’s one driver who won’t be pulling that stunt again.

*And then there are those cyclists who use the sidewalks instead of the road, which normally isn’t a problem, except when they race around a blind curve not expecting anything in their blind path, until, oops, they slam into you.

*While walking to my destination, I can always tell when I’ve left the wilderness and crossed over into civilization by the increasing amount of litter I spot along the roadside, not to mention the ever increasing amount of graffiti.

*And don’t you just love your neighbors when residents don’t bother to trim their front yard trees, hedges and bushes that grow and hang out and over a public sidewalk thus denying access and forcing all and sundry to go around. I see that every day on my walk.

*The neighborhood recycling bins are routinely collected same day every fortnight. Yet somehow some people can’t quite figure this routine out. And so I spot them out on the sidewalk awaiting collection that’s many a day away, and it’s not because the residents have gone off on holidays and had to put their bin out early. And some people can not, or will not, come to terms with what is, and what is not, recyclable. Apparently soiled disposable nappies are a regular item that some people consider recyclable.

*Speaking of bins, various charitable organizations put out charity bins at local shopping centers for people, who want to donate used, but useable clothing, blankets, etc. Alas, these bins have been turned into rubbish dumps as people leave all sorts of broken, unusable junk rather than taking their large item rubbish to the tip – where they would have to pay a fee. Instead, the charity is legally obligated to clear up the rubbish dumped and take it to the tip where they have to pay the fee, meaning less money for them is available to assist the needy.  

*If it’s been a bit wet, you can tell where humans have treaded by the number of stomped on snails littering the sidewalks. It’s probably a natural, if over-the-top reaction to that proposed Hollywood, and future Oscar-winning epic and sci-fi blockbuster, “The Revenge of the Snails”.

*Amazingly, the one thing I can’t fuss about is roaming dogs, apart from doggy-poop.

*When it comes to parking at the shopping center, where the supermarket is located, drivers rule, OK? I am a driver and I am entitled to park where I want to, when I want to, for as long as I want to and the absolute hell with anyone and everyone else. Is this a loading zone only? - Tough luck. Is this space reserved for the medical profession only?  – Too damn bad. Is this parking space reserved for the handicapped? – Let them eat cake. Is this a “no parking” zone? Sorry, that can’t possibly apply to me.  

*There is a sidewalk that leads from the main road to the mall and supermarket, with parking spaces alongside. So, of course shoppers wheel their trolley full of goodies back to their parked cars adjacent to said sidewalk. Now, what do these drivers (which there must be since they are unloading their trolley’s goodies into cars) do with the now empty trolleys? Do they return the trolley to a designated return point for empty trolleys? Not on your life. The empty trolleys are just left on the adjacent sidewalk which means those using the sidewalk, can’t. People in wheelchairs; moms pushing prams; kids on bicycles; and of course ordinary pedestrians, have their access blocked, just because the driver can’t be bothered to spend one extra minute taking the trolley back to the appropriate trolley return area. I make a point of putting said sidewalk-blocking trolleys into the parking spaces. Drivers can inconvenience other divers, but not pedestrians - that’s my motto. 

*But of course trolleys get scattered far and wide. They tend to be abandoned all over the place. I’d like to blame kids, but I’ve seen way too many adults wheel the loaded trolleys home, then abandon them – but not too close to their home. 

*Speaking of that staple of western civilization, the shopping trolley, supermarkets have to employ lads to round them up when customers leave them scattered all over the place. Let’s just say that the local lads employed to perform such duties usually are doing anything but, nearly forever goofing off. I won’t say what ethnic background they’re from least I offend the innocent, but I wish I’d had it that easy way back when. 

IN THE SUPERMARKET

*It must be said at the outset that supermarkets are run by a for-profit organization and as such they use every sneaky marketing and psychological trick known to all in the retail trade to separate you from your money to the maximum extent possible. They may advertise themselves as your ‘friendly grocer’, but supermarkets are not your friend.

*I often find pre-school kids on the rampage in the supermarket; to them it’s a lovely playground. The parents could care less about proper supervision. As we all know, the supermarket isn’t a playground, though many a parent doesn’t seem to be aware of that, or more to the point, they can’t be bothered. They got enough on their plate trying to shop and talk or text at the same time.

*Of course it really makes for an enjoyable shopping experience when some pre-school brat is just screaming their head off at the top of their lungs – mom might be wearing ear plugs, but that doesn’t help the rest of the innocents. And it’s as certain as death and taxes that there will be always one such event per visit per supermarket. It’s one of those highly unpleasant inevitable facts of life that only death can give one a release from. In fact, to be blatantly honest, I’m of the opinion that just because a couple enjoy a roll in the hay, doesn’t mean that the rest of the world should have to endure and suffer the resulting product(s). Of course to the parents in question, that’s a non-issue. It’s ‘my little darling right or wrong’, and wrong is totally synonymous with right as in ‘my little darling always is right’.

*When it comes to mom and the kids, well, mom has really figured out a racket – how to feed the kids lunch at no expense to her. I’ve seen it again and again, mom wheeling the kid(s) along in the shopping trolley, grabbing a candy bar here, and bread rolls there, some grapes, etc. All are nicked off the shelf, given to the brat, and by the time she and brood rolls up to the checkout counter, all the evidence of what’s been nicked has been consumed, meaning there is no evidence and no product(s) to pay for. I’d like to say that’s confined to young mothers, but I’ve seen mature-aged women treat the supermarket as a free smorgasbord. I’m never seen an adult male help themselves to ‘free’ off-the-shelf food consumed in-store, but that’s not proof they don’t. Still, it does appear to be a primarily feminine trait. Help yourself to the goodies on display and help out the family budget. Of course it’s honest people like you and me that ultimately pay for this in higher grocery prices.  

*Speaking of brats, you just know that a lot of the kids you spot hanging around the mall and supermarket should really be in school. By wagging it, I guess they are just following the example set by their parents. It’s the kids’ version of the time honored adult sickie.

*There is an express twelve items or less lane, for those who have, well, twelve items or less. The numerate level of shoppers is obviously challenged for there are many who feel that a trolley full – say 60+ items – is obviously close enough to twelve to qualify for them to use the express lane. If, as a shopper standing behind them you politely point out the discrepancy, well let’s just say you’d better be prepared for a barroom brawl. The innumerate don’t like to have their mathematical abilities questioned. You’d think the staff would enforce store policy, but they won’t say anything and in fact they have been directed not to rock the boat and alienate a customer.

*Another irritation is that you often have two separate couples with trolleys who meet in an isle and have a right royal catch-up gossip session, totally blocking the isle to other customers yet totally oblivious to that fact; the fact that they are inconveniencing others.

AFTERWARDS

*However I too get my jollies. The parking lot is usually pretty full up, so when I leave and walk through the lot homeward bound, there often will be some driver slowly following behind me thinking I’m headed for my car and that they’ll get my parking spot when I load up and pull out. Alas, when I reach the parking lot’s perimeter I just keep on walking. Usually pisses them off no end, he-he. 

CONCLUSIONS

Of course in some parts of the world the ‘walk to the supermarket’ could be far worse. One could be mugged at best; blown up by a suicide bomber at worst. That’s something I’ve yet to experience.  

So, given this is just humanity in microcosm, and one really has to extrapolate to humanity in terms of the big picture, please let the culling being – pretty please. It’s really time for another dose of the ‘Big Wet’, say another forty days and nights of rain and thus another global flood! There of course would be survivors, but hopefully most of the dead-shits would be too preoccupied being their little nasty selves to notice until it was too late!

Your Soul, Free Will and Afterlife in Heaven or Hell: Part Two

The soul, free will, and the afterlife consisting of Heaven or Hell are among the central tenets of the Christian religion, and because they are central to the human psyche, fall within the providence of anthropology, hence natural history. All have philosophical baggage attached. In two cases, the soul and the afterlife, that baggage is a rather excessive amount.

Continued from yesterday’s blog…

The Concept of an Afterlife: Heaven, Hell or Other:  It should come as no surprise that we have some sort of internally hard-wired need to believe in an afterlife, especially one which is pleasant (like Heaven - that of course doesn’t make it of necessity a given). The only experience we’ve ever had has been as a living being. Since we haven’t yet experienced death, it’s in the realm of the totally unknown, and unknowable (until we cross that boundary). At best we are nervous about the unknown, even scared, perhaps terrified – even more so when the unknown is also unknowable. No one has yet be proved beyond reasonable doubt to have come back from the grave and tell us about death, which, is the biggest, most important unknowable of the lot. So, it’s no wonder that believing in an afterlife (or Heaven) helps us overcome our unease.  Despite that, we still fight like the dickens to postpone death, no matter how convinced we are that Heaven awaits! Anyway, let’s look at some specific questions that suggest that the concept of Heaven is, as Star Trek’s Mr. Spock would say, ‘Illogical’.

Firstly, I have to assume that Heaven is an actual physical place with a defined location. That is, if it’s to accommodate humans (and animals?), and presumably the humans are physical (in order to see, hear, touch, etc.), then you need a physical location – the exact place and size are immaterial. So, we have a third dimensional Heaven, that experiences the passage of time (not everyone arrives at Heaven’s Gate at the exact same moment), and allows an existence of physical objects that can be touched, seen, heard, tasted and smelled. Translated, Heaven has a physical location within our Universe and has the properties central to mass, energy, space and time. That said, the ultimate fate of Heaven, and therefore ultimately your ultimate fate, rests with whatever the ultimate fate of the Universe will be. Either prospect is bleak. If our Universe, of which Heaven is but one suburb, ceases its expansion and begins to contract, then it ultimately comes together in a Big Crunch, the mother of all Black Holes and presumably goes ‘poof’. On the other hand, if it continues to expand for all eternity, then ultimately the suburb of Heaven will be totally isolated from the rest of the diluted Universe; dark, freezing cold, and absolutely boring! The idea of spending eternity – absolute infinity - in one place, no matter how heavenly, must ultimately prove to be depressing. In fact, such an existence one could argue would be pure Hell! Lastly, there’s this scenario that as space ever expands, more and more ‘dark energy’ is created (because ‘dark energy’ is a property of space itself), and ‘dark energy’ is a repulsing push-apart force. It is postulated that there will be ultimately enough ‘dark energy’ in the Universe to firstly rip apart clusters of galaxies, then individual galaxies, then their stars, right down to the level of molecules and atoms. This Big Rip (obviously) scenario ultimately has the fate of the cosmos having a Universe composed of nothing but the absolute un-rip-able elementary particles. Presumably, Heaven and all it contains will be ripped to shreds as well.

Anyway, before the end of the Universe as we know it, okay, so you arrive in Heaven. What do you do? Apart from the wings and the haloes and harps bit that is, I would assume that Heaven would be a pretty boring with eternity stretching out in front of you. If they don’t have your favourite beer on tap in Heaven, are you really in Paradise? What do you do in that great cosmic eternal waiting (for Armageddon presumably) room after you’ve read all the National Geographic’s or Woman’s Weekly or Reader’s Digests from cover-to-cover for dozens of times? Do you have hobbies in Heaven? Do you have some kind of nine-to-five job? Are there cultural events and libraries and dining out available? Do you form new relationships, or are you stuck with the old ones? What about shopping – supermarkets presumably are necessary to feed a body that still has a physical essence. Presumably you also need water and air. If so, where do they come from?

Let’s start with one obvious question, what do you look like in Heaven? Presumably you must have some sort of appearance so that others can recognize you (I can’t imagine you go around wearing a nametag). Do you look the same as that you that died? That could be tricky if you died all mangled up in a car/plane/train wreck, or had your atoms scattered to the four winds at ground zero at Hiroshima or Nagasaki. What if you died as a six month old foetus? What if you died with some body parts of someone else or had plastic surgery – is your appearance that of before or after? We could assume that everybody in Heaven is given their appearance that reflects what they did, or would have, looked like at age (pick a number, say) 21. But how would Mum recognize her six month old foetus, or a child recognize their father when the child wasn’t born say until daddy was already 55 years old?

Let’s say you died with essential artificial body parts. What’s the status of your health in Heaven? Presumably you are restored to perfect health, so if you have an artificial heart I gather you get your old organic heart back, even if it ‘died’ decades before you and had long since decayed away. If you were mute, or deaf, or blind all your life, can you now speak, hear or see? If you were old and senile, presumably you’ll have your memory fully restored and razor sharp in Heaven.

How do you communicate? Is there one universal language in Heaven which you instantly master the moment you get there, no matter what your previous languages or language skills or in fact if you died before ever learning a language?

How do you get on with people in Heaven who you didn’t get along with when living, like maybe your neighbour, or boss, or ex-spouse, or that bully who pushed you around in school? Is everybody lovey-dovey with everyone else?

Do you have any natural sexual desires in Heaven? What about sex? I take it as given that you’re not allowed to, or can’t, reproduce (despite the edict to ‘be fruitful and multiply’). But is a Heaven without heavenly pleasures really Heaven?

So, a physical Heaven appears to be a somewhat difficult can-of-worms to deal with.

On the other hand, maybe Heaven doesn’t have any actual physical reality (there’s no matter, no energy, no time, and no space) and it just houses nebulous non-physical souls that exist in total isolation. That’s a rather depressing concept.

Either way, Heaven is illogical. Oh, the same sorts of arguments apply equally to Hell.

Forgetting Heaven for a moment, could there be an afterlife but no God? Yes, of course, but (there’s always got to be a ‘but’).  The ‘but’ in this case is that it’s possible, providing that you can provide a natural, as opposed to a supernatural ways and means of transcending life to life-after-death, and that I doubt you can do. Since I reject a supernatural explanation, and since you can’t come up with a plausible natural one, then I conclude that there is as likely as not, no supernatural God (or gods) that can provide this afterlife service. A natural afterlife would be akin to being a citizen of a country that has no government; an afterlife without any infrastructure. But (there’s that ‘but’ again), maybe there is a natural, well naturally artificial anyway, explanation for an afterlife after all.

I refer to the idea noted above that we might exist in a computer software simulated cosmos. If our life is simulated, so too may we, after being deleted from the alive-and-well, full-of-life software, reappear in another software program called Heaven or Hell (or maybe Spirit World). Now I know nearly all of you gentle readers will reject the idea that you are just a simulated being in a computer generated universe. However, I conclude that you take the idea seriously, since it just may well prove to be your one and only ticket to an afterlife!

Your Soul, Free Will and Afterlife in Heaven or Hell: Part One

The soul, free will, and the afterlife consisting of Heaven or Hell are among the central tenets of the Christian religion, and because they are central to the human psyche, fall within the providence of anthropology, hence natural history. All have philosophical baggage attached. In two cases, the soul and the afterlife, that baggage is a rather excessive amount.

The Concept of a Soul: The trouble here is that ‘the soul’ has so many diverse definitions that it can mean just about anything you want it to mean. Probably no two people would describe the concept in the exact same way. However, I think we can agree that an egg cell has no soul – however you define it. A sperm cell has no soul – however you define it. Therefore, at conception, you have no soul. No cell has a soul, therefore no tissue (a group of common cells) has a soul, therefore no body organ has a soul (an organ being composed of various tissues), therefore you, as a collection of various organs and organ systems must have no soul!

So when did you get a soul (assuming there is such a thing and that it has some degree of tangibility)? Did you get your soul at birth? Perhaps it was on your first birthday? Perhaps you received you soul when you became of age, say 21. Perhaps it’s just as likely that you don’t receive a soul at all – there is no such separate and apart physical thing you get from any higher authority. Perhaps your soul just develops or evolves naturally as part and parcel of your growing maturity over the years, in which case it can’t be totally separate and apart from the body. In other words, if you develop a soul akin to your developing a sense of morality or spirituality, then it can not ‘leave’ the body after death. Translated, your soul (however you define it) isn’t your ticket to an afterlife. It resides somewhere in that brain-thingy of yours, locked somewhere within that maze of biochemistry that collectively makes up your grey matter. As an aside, if you were to clone yourself, would your clone have a soul?

The Concept of Free Will:  To start will let’s examine the paradox of free will. Here’s one of many contradictions. You insist that you have free will. Therefore, God has no control over your actions. Therefore, God is not an all-powerful being. A God who isn’t all-powerful isn’t the most perfect being that can be conceived of. God has to be the most perfect being anyone can imagine. Therefore, there is no God. Now if God is all-powerful, even though God has granted you free will, your free will is ultimately an illusion living on somewhat borrowed time in that God can revoke that free will gift at any time He choses and thus have His wicked way with you!

Another take is that if God exists, all His attributes must be compatible. If all God’s attributes are not compatible, God must not exist. For example, God can not have His own personal free will and be all-knowing. If God is all knowing, then God knows in advance what He will and will not do. If God knows in advance that He will not do something, then He has no free will of His own. He has no options available to Him but to not do what He knows he won’t do.

Anyway, God has apparently granted humanity, including you, a concept called ‘free will’. That is, you are free to pick and choose between various alternatives, including making choices or decisions that can be described as good, or as evil; moral or immoral; ethical or otherwise. However, regarding such a free will, I would argue that you can never be 100% sure that any choice or decision that you make wasn’t due to the universal laws, principles and relations part and parcel of physical causality that started operating from Day One (the Big Bang event) and thus forever and ever predetermined. You might be 99.999% sure you have free will, and that it was God given, but I can’t figure out any way you could absolutely prove it to any outsider, or to yourself for that matter if you are honest with yourself..

If you accept free will, then you must of necessity admit that causality does not always operate. Just as you, dear reader might refuse to believe in pre-determinism, I absolutely refuse to abandon 100% causality, an absolute cause-and-affect principle, which then forces me to reject free will, even though I do so reluctantly. It gives me no joy to think that what I’m doing right now is the ultimate outcome of the set of conditions that existed at the time of the Big Bang event and that I therefore have no choice since that’s the nature of a clockwork Universe, but it’s the lesser of two philosophical evils for me!

I assume that anytime you, dear reader, make a voluntary choice, that there must have been some causality chain of cause-and-effect happenings that led to that choice vis-a-vis some other choice. Your decision didn’t happen for lack of any reason at all. Put another way, your choice has a foundation. Now I just extend that foundation, that causality chain, back to the initial set of conditions present at the origin of the Universe in much the same way as you can trace your (extremely improbable) existence via the chain of existences of (extremely improbable) ancestors, going right back through the unbroken chain to the first proto-cell some four billions years ago, (a proto-cell which in turn may have come from the depths of space and has an ancestry (your ancestry) extending back untold billions of years before Planet Earth ever formed).  You certainly can’t deny that ancestral causality chain, so why deny a causality chain that ultimately extends back to the Big Bang event and the pre-determined chain of happenings and which leads you to whatever choices you are currently contemplating?

And so ‘yes’, using that logic, you aren’t responsible for your decisions and resulting actions (though I’ll bet legal eagles everywhere would have something to say about that, for that undercuts our entire legal system). But from the point of view of the Universe, it might ask, ‘so what?’ It matters not at all to the cosmos (and to 99.9999% of all life forms, including humanity – past, present and future) whether you deposit money in a bank, or rob that bank!

Just as we have computer simulations (such as ‘Life’, a computer software package) that allow for no free will, that is, everything is pre-determined given the initial set of programmed conditions, could we in turn be part of a simulated ‘Planet Earth’ computer ‘game’ or simulation of someone (something) somewhere out there? Do the characters in a typical video game have free will, or do they dance to the tune of their programmer and player? Can you, dear reader, prove to me (or anyone) by some chain of logic that you or we are not the product of or existing in a simulated and therefore no free will, computer generated, virtual universe?  If not, then you have to admit, however remote the odds, that that possibility exists.

If the ‘many worlds’ interpretation of reality is correct, free will is an academic or moot point since all choices or decisions are enabled. To explain the ‘many worlds’ concept, it boils down to the interpretation that whenever you (or anything else – animate or inanimate) are forced to choose, to make a decision, all possibilities are entered into. So, you have this free will decision to do X or to do Y or to do Z. You actually end up doing all three, and thus there’s a new universe Y, and a new universe Z, which splits and branches off from universe X because you choose via your free will (or so you think) to choice X. In reality, you also choose Y and Z. Therefore, no free will was ultimately exhibited.

However, if I were a betting man, I’d bet that humanity does have free will, although that in no way actually proves the existence of God. Ultimately however, does it make any real difference whether you, dear reader, have free will, or the illusion of free will, as long as you actually believe you’re your own boss? 

By the way, can you have free will in Heaven? I mean can you, of your own free will, commit a sin in Heaven? If you can, well you shouldn’t be in Heaven at all and God has stuffed up, being all-knowing, in letting you in, in the first place. If you can’t commit a sin in Heaven, then God has revoked your free will!

To be continued…

The Trouble with Human Evolution: Part Two

When it comes to the standard model of how modern humans evolved from our primate ancestors, be prepared to ask the tough questions and see if they get answered to your satisfaction. Questions like can you really go from primates to what makes you, the reader, you, via natural selection in 6 to 7 million years. So, if you think the standard model is unlikely, and you reject any supernatural explanation that leaves but two alternatives: artificial selection or we’re simulated beings.

Modern humans have evolved over the past six to seven million years a number of traits that make us, Homo sapiens, a very unique species indeed. Here are some more of them.

Continued from yesterday’s blog…

A VOCAL LANGUAGE

* Is an anomaly in that only humans vocalise not only everyday, routine, survival ‘language’ (all manner of animals do that) but abstract concepts (which no other animals do).

* A vocal or spoken language required to communicate abstract ideas, as apart from just making sounds, requires an evolutionary rearrangement of the relevant internal organs required; lips, teeth, tongue, hard and soft palate, larynx, etc.

C - Cats meow, lions roar, but their meow (or the lion’s roar) has nothing to do with communicating abstract concepts like basic mathematics.

TOOL USE

* Is an anomaly in that while a few other animals can make and use tools, that relative degree of sophistication relative to what humans have achieved is akin to comparing the survival skills of a day-old infant with that of an adult.

* Tool use requires an evolutionary rearrangement of the finger-hand-wrist-arm-shoulder configuration, as well as that extra-large brain thingy to figure out that a tool is required, what resources are required to make that tool, and how to manufacture the necessary implement from those resources. A lot of just-so conditions have to be met to accommodate even the most basic of tool technologies. 

* Tool use could ultimately prove our undoing as tool use, or technology, is a double-edged sword. A gun can put food on your table; it can also exterminate humans.

C - Cats are not adapted at using tools. If they could use a can opener and a spoon they could get their own meals! That would suit me just fine, but alas.

BREEDS or ETHNIC/RACIAL DISTINCTIONS

* Are anomalous in that when taking into consideration the rest of the animal and plant kingdom, breeds (groupings that look different but can still breed and produce non-sterile offspring) tend to be associated with artificial, not natural selection. Are human breeds therefore a product of artificial selection, and if so, by whom? 

* Human breeds cannot be adequately explained in the just 70,000 or some odd years since that one unique racial type of Homo sapiens migrated out of Africa and spread throughout the globe diverging into numerous racial types. Even if there were several migrations out of Africa, a wave of migrations, all those migrant waves were of one race or breed. The 70,000 year time period is very short, the blink of an eye in evolutionary terms, to achieve this uniqueness of going from a local African uni-race to a multiracial global society. Further, the evolutionary (survival of the fittest) advantage or reason(s) for ethnic distinctions are lacking any rational natural explanation, apart from in some selected races, skin colour.

C - Your standard pussycat comes in various breeds. That’s artificial selection at work, albeit the whodunit in this case is well known.

UNIQUE FACIAL FEATURES

* Are a relatively human anomaly. Apart from identical twins, no two humans from the neck up look the same, and thus this is how we tell human identities, once seen, apart. We tend to tell animals of the same species or breed (if applicable) apart by size, colour, skin/fur patterns, abnormalities, or else we don’t distinguish who’s who at all. To me, all magpie faces look the same. The question is, why humans have unique facial features and not the rest of the animal kingdom?

C - If you took 100 pure short-hair black cats, same size, same sex, same eye colour, could you tell them apart by looking at just their face? I doubt if I could.

THE WHITES-OF-YOUR-EYES

* Are anomalous in that apparently no other animal show them, and based on all the animals and birds I see around my local environment, that certainly seems to be the case.  So why do we show the whites-of-our-eyes? There would appear to be no rhyme or reason for this natural human evolutionary (if it was a natural selection) trait. The whites-of-our-eyes: how very, very odd.

C - Cats have whites-of-their-eyes, only you have to peel back the skin surrounding their eyeballs to see the whites-of-their-eyes. Looking at a standard cat, you’ll fail to see the whites-of-their-eyes.

EARLOBES

* Are anomalous in that apparently no other mammal (and certainly not any fish, amphibian, reptile or bird) have them. So why do we have them?

* Earlobes? WTF you ask? Well we all know that our earlobes serve a cultural purpose or function as a prime site as an accessory to fashion – pierced ears and earrings. However, earlobes serve no actual biological function. You could exist, survive and thrive without them. Because we alone have earlobes, and because they serve no biological purpose, they are anomalous.

* On the other hand, earlobes apparently don’t do us any harm. But, biological evolution tends to select for the positive benefit, not the neutral. Why would Mother Nature evolve them if they serve no biological purpose? WTF indeed!

C - Cats have ears; cats do not have earlobes.

RISK TAKING

* Is anomalous in that if done just for the sake of doing it, serves no positive evolutionary purpose or outcome while accenting a negative one, giving oneself a ‘Darwin Award’ for eliminating yourself from further contributions to the evolution of the human species. 

* No animal will engage in any hazardous activity that doesn’t have some connection towards its own, its immediate family brood, its community or its species survival. An animal doesn’t take risks just for the sake of taking risks and just for the thrill of it all. Humans however will often engage in extreme risky activities, without any benefit to anyone, including themselves, except to perhaps remove themselves from the gene pool. Risky behaviour might include right up to and including suicide which most decidedly removes you from the gene pool. Suicide is not a trait that tends to be shared by our animal relations, and apparent exceptions, like whales stranding themselves in shallow water, have a physiological explanation. 

C - Cats are not known to take risks above and beyond the call of their feline duty, even if they do occasionally get stuck up a tree!

PRIVACY AND EMBARRASSMENT

* Is anomalous in that no animal species, outside of the human species, seems to be the slightest bit concerned with privacy (not to be confused with territoriality or personal space, rather just privacy from being observed under certain conditions or in certain situations usually of a sexual or bodily function nature). Nor do animals, unlike humans, suffer any form of embarrassment. That suggests that there is no evolutionary or survival aspect to the need for privacy or the suffering of being embarrassed. Somehow, in humans alone (but not yet in babies or infants), these concepts have been imprinted onto our collective psyche. Imprinted by whom? What is the ultimate origin and how far back does it go? Why is it so? Who knows! But the upshot is that this has to be a cultural quirk; it’s certainly not a biological one.

* There are apparently two real taboo places in human society where intruders are not welcome: the bedroom and the bathroom, or put another way, sex and bodily functions, where privacy is paramount and when violated, embarrassment ensues. The latter especially is puzzling in that bodily functions are universal. Every human has to go to the bathroom, all women have ‘that time of the month’, so why these should be embarrassments if witnessed by others is anomalous. That’s also highlighted in that sex and bodily functions are not biological events which animals find requires privacy or causes embarrassment to them if witnessed by others.

* Nudity per se doesn’t seem to be the root cause, as people seem to be way less shy of appearing nude in fairly standard social situations than when engaged in more personal bedroom/bathroom matters that require exposure.

* Embarrassment in humans can be caused by many other oops events, maybe comical, like wearing mismatched socks, maybe somewhat more serious like splitting your pants in public. But if an equivalent event happens to an animal, no such reaction comes to the fore. For example, if you stumble and fall down, piss your pants, or vomit in public, you’re embarrassed. If an animal does the equivalent, it just picks itself up and acts like nothing unusual transpired. Animals don’t blush.

C - Cats don’t care if you or another cat sees them mate or go to the litter box. They don’t suffer embarrassment and they don’t blush.

CATS

C - Its only fair to ask in regards to my feline comparison, does a cat have any anatomical or physiological or behavioural feature unique to them and only them? The surprising answer is yes. Cats purr, and the reasons why and how are still not well understood. Humans don’t purr. No other animal purrs. Their big cat relatives don’t purr, but then again lions and tigers, etc. roar, and your pet pussy cat doesn’t. So perhaps the two vocalizations are related from way back when they all had a common ancestor! But purr or roar, there appears to be no evolutionary drawbacks, just positive survival benefits like warning off rival lions (my roar is louder than your roar) or mother/kitten bonding in cats.

CONCLUSIONS

* There are four possible explanations for the various anomalies associated with the existence of the modern human species relative to our alleged ancestral stock which goes right back to the chimpanzees. In descending order of probability, IMHO, there’s the simulated universe scenario inhabited by us as virtual entities (created by ‘persons’ or things unknown and probably forever unknowable); there’s artificial selection (the ancient astronaut theory); there’s natural selection (the Darwinian biological evolution concept); and way, way last, by a wide, wide margin, there’s supernatural creation (the dust-and-rib theory and variations thereof).

* Why this ordering of probabilities? There are many paths to a simulated universe, from wetware to software, via extraterrestrials or maybe a future ‘human’ society, that it borders on the near inevitable. There’s but one pathway to the artificial selection scenario, though that too is just about inevitable. There are many issues to be had with natural selection as this essay demonstrates, though that’s the standard model. Lastly, the concept of an all-perfect supernatural deity who would screw up things so royally is laughable – as is the concept of a supernatural deity in the first place.

* The interesting bit is that a virtual reality simulation could easily be a simulation of an ‘ancient astronaut’ generated artificial selection, or Darwinian natural selection, or even a supernatural creator deity! Truth be known, only the simulated universe scenario makes any real sense, IMHO, because therein, “anything goes”, and when it comes to the problems with human evolution, one needs an “anything goes” explanation.