Wednesday, August 20, 2008

My Socratic Readers

It seems so far, from the questionnaire, that 'acquiring knowledge, wisdom and understanding' is the most popular purpose in life amongst my readers.

I'll leave it a bit longer before commenting on the results and revealing and explaining my choice. I'll wait and see if I can get 20 voters. Hmmmmm.

Meanwhile I'll continue to enjoy the countryside. This enjoyment, and other diversions besides, explains my recent less than fulsome commitment to this blog, as may have been guessed.

All this golden success in the Olympics reminds me very much of the early 80s, when the likes of Coe, Ovett, Cram, Capes, Goodhew and Thompson gave the Union Jack a similarly vibrant outing. Of course, we were helped in Moscow in 1980 by the absence of the Americans.

But that just makes our current success all the more significant.

Will Boris be playing Vangelis' theme tune from 'Chariots of Fire' over loudspeakers in Trafalgar Square, I wonder, when we have the day of celebration that he has planned for our team? Or for that will there first need to be more success on the track?

2 comments:

Selena Dreamy said...

“that 'acquiring knowledge, wisdom and understanding' is the most popular purpose in life amongst my readers.”

As a clear refutation of the more evident forms of human behaviour, it superbly illustrated the bizarre contradictions as yet unresolved in the wishful aspirations of the human mind.

It’s a bit like intending to go on a diet, but never quite adhering to it. If I were you, Jonathan, I’d ignore those results - blithely assume the opposite!

Jonathan said...

Are you assuming Selena that my readers don't know their own minds, don't know what they really want?

Just because most humans, evidently as you say, don't appear to want insight, doesn't mean that all don't, surely?

Ah yes the shadow falls. Between intention and effect. Sometimes we intend and do not effect what we intend. Othertimes we have effects we did not intend. But this has more, I think, to do with the flawed, shadowy nature of our encompassing reality than it does to a weak or diminished will on the part of specific individuals.