Critics who treat adult as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves. To be concerned about being grown up, to admire the grown up because it is grown up, to blush at the suspicion of being childish; these things are the marks of childhood and adolescence. And in childhood and adolescence they are, in moderation, healthy symptoms. Young things ought to want to grow. But to carry on into middle life or even into early manhood this concern about being adult is a mark of really arrested development. When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.
- CS Lewis "On Three Ways of Writing for Children" (1952)

You know all you people who don't read kids' books or watch kids' TV because it's for kids? Grow up.

Quote of the Day today is with regard to the Atheist Bus Campaign, which I think will make a pleasant change from all those bloody Alpha Course adverts (how the frig much are they spending on THOSE anyway? Wouldn't it be better for the CHRISTIANS to spend all that money giving homeless people a nice Christmas, Mr Black? After all, it's their bloody festival. Well, mostly it's not really, mostly it's Saturnalia and Yule and various other Pagan midwinter festivals with a bit of Christian wallpaper on, but you get my drift). Stephen Green, of Christian Voice, disagrees with me. He thinks the atheist bus campaign is bad and wrong (and I swear I am not making this up) because

people don't like being preached at

Now, far be it from me to be one of those atheists who knows the source material better than YOU do, Mr Preachy McPreachypants, but before looking for the speck in our eyes you want to remove the Forth fucking bridge from your own? Also, can I just interject at this point how much I love my bank.

You can donate to the Atheist bus campaign here, if you so choose.

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Much more cheering than the fuckwittery of Stephen Green:



More this way

Via draxar, when you see this quote Shakespeare:

Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this son of York;
And all the clouds that low'r'd upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.

(trans: I am so awesome, because I am from Yorkshire, that I can change the weather!)

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All my antics didn't get me in the Golden Dozen. I am unsurprised, but I am surprised that James Graham's posting about The Syntax-challenged one got to number one - not because it didn't deserve to, or because I am jealous, but because I figured nearly_everyone reads James anyway, so who is going to click through to him from Lib Dem Blogs? Obviously I was wrong, and James has less regular readers than I thought...

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Anyhoo, the something giggleworthy: MightyGodKing has posted a set of book covers which, well... see the example below:



They all made me giggle, though. All sci-fi and fantasy fans will enjoy, IMHO, although possibly in a slightly embarrassed way. He could have been a bit meaner to that twat Goodkind, though...

Our first Liberal Drinks in our home town is in an hour or so. I am nervous, even though most of the people who have said they are coming are people I know personally. What if no-one turns up? What if too many people turn up? What if the beer runs off?

Panic is not good.

Mat is being very calm and lovely. He is helpful to have around.

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I am very amused by watching The Real Iain Dale's Vehicular Blog Meme and Gina's Book Meme.

So far Iain's meme has been picked up by Tez Burke, David Matthewman, Casey, Moodie, Ozzy, and several f-locked people, too; and Gina's much more complicated and involved one by Mat, Jo Crispy-Strips, and more f-locked people.

This pleases me.

The Real Iain Dale has self-deprecatingly referred to his blog as a 1970's Trabant in comparison to Alix Mortimer's beautiful handbuilt Bentley...

Clearly my blog is a Triumph Daytona 675 - British built and designed, but with some foriegn parts; small, fast, and noisy; cheap in comparison to the competition; openly hated by some, but inspiring bizarrely loyal affection among others; thought of as a bit naff and boring by hip young things, but considered incredibly cool by men with beards... ;)

If your blog was a vehicle, what would it be?

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(this section has been x-posted at readingpleasure)

ginasketch invented a book meme:

-Choose a book genre
-Choose five books from that genre
-Tell me why I should read them.

I choose philosophy.

1, On Liberty, by John Stuart Mill

I honestly think that every person should be forced to read this book [/intentional not-very funny joke]. Mill built a moral framework which can apply to everything, and put it into a book small enough to slip in your pocket. Alex Wilcock once posted an essay about how Doctor Who made him a Liberal; it was reading Mill at university that did it for me (although I admit that the good Doctor probably laid the foundations). I was brought up red, and both sides of my family are about as Old Labour as it gets; reading Mill was like someone switching a light on in my head. Suddenly the stuff that I felt instinctively had a name and a path, and reasoning. This book is as near to a holy text as I get. It's a reasoned, logical basis for secularism, feminism, tolerance and non-conformity. It's the definition of Liberalism. It's a truly amazing book. If I could only recommend one more book to you, ever, it would be this one.

2, Can a Robot be Human? 33 Perplexing Philosophy Puzzles, by Peter Cave

Entertaining and lightweight introduction to philosophical concepts.

3, Critique of Pure Reason, by Immanuel Kant

When it comes to philosophy, Kant is The Daddy. We've all heard of his categorical imperative, right? This is his most famous work.

4, Essays in Jurisprudence and Philosophy, by HLA Hart

HLA Hart's Concept of Law is the most effective cure for insomnia in the world; chock full of spot-on ideas, but worded in such a soporific manner... Hart's genius (because he unquestionably IS a genius, when it comes to understanding the philosophy of English Law) is much easier digested in bitesize chunks. If you ever wanted to grasp how and why English Law works as it does, read Hart.

5, Animal Farm - A Fairy Story, by George Orwell

This is a little bit of a cheat, I admit, but I had to slip some Orwell in there, and Animal Farm is his most accessible work. Nineteen Eighty-Four is a bit too close to the bone at the minute, and The Road to Wigan Pier is just too depressing. I came very close to picking Essays, though. In particular, you should read Politics and the English Language and In Defence of English Cooking.

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I don't know whether I should be offended, or laugh, or be scared by the apparent news that JC is planning on standing against Nick Clegg at the next general election... Further thoughts on this posted at topgeartotty

I do know how to react to this news, though: heart-aching sadness. Poor Tony. It's the cruellest of fates for an artist to lose the use of his hands :(

Via el_staplador comes the news that this week is Banned Books Week

If you're not in the USA and so can't join in the organised events, I invite you to do one or more or fewer of the following, to celebrate/commiserate/show solidarity:

- find a Banned Book. It doesn't matter who banned it, when they banned it, or what they banned it for. Read it. Let other people know you're reading it.
- find any damn book you like. Read it. Let other people know you're reading it. Chances are, if it's worth reading, someone will want to ban it for something or other.
- sign this petition
- nominate an author or book you really would like to ban. (Bags Enid Blyton for crimes against English and plot counterfeiting.) Comment, if you want to, to let me know who or what, and why. Reflect that if everything people disliked or found offensive was banned our libraries would have very empty shelves.

I'd like to ban... Actually, I can't think of a book I'd like to ban. Even really awful stuff like Terry Goodkind has it's place, even if it's only to tell everyone how awful it is. Bloody Liberalism LOL.

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Via andrewducker comes this tale of a computer geek taking his small daughter to the computer museum in San Francisco. It made me well up, it's so lovely. Go, read, now!

In other news, one obsessive control freak without original ideas who did OK in the beginning but cocked up massively by the end has decided to fund a whole bunch of similar to the tune of one million quid. I'm rather glad I didn't buy book seven now.

Meanwhile, Paddy has come out 4 Ros (watch video with annoying music here). This is a much more satisfactory coming out ;)

Via lonemagpie comes this heartwarming tale in the Daily Fail of one prude with her head in the sand woman and her fight against sanity reality obscenity.

I'm not denying that words have power, and that some words OUGHT to have power, but is anyone seriously suggesting that a nine year old will not have heard the word twat before? Am I the only person in the world who thinks that the power of words ought to be explained to children? You can't wrap them up in cotton wool forever; surely it's better that they face the world equipped to deal with the words they will encounter in it?

What I find the most hilarious about this is that the woman who describes herself as not a prude, but... has kicked up all this fuss over one word in a Jacqueline Wilson book, while happily reading all the Enid Blyton books to the child in question. Books which promote every questionable attitude under the sun - misogyny, racism, heterocentrism, picking on people of non-standard appearance, and Uncle Quentin - are somehow less offensive than a single instance of the word twat?

Since they made a video response to the petition to make Clarkson prime minister:



... and using my icon, no less! Part of me is annoyed that my taxes went to pay for this. The rest of me is rather pleased that someone in Downing Street appears to actually be a human being.

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The age banding of books row rumbles on. If you want to join Pterry and Gneil and many many others in signing the petition against it, the link is here.

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Dear old Boris. Just when you think you've got him pegged, he goes and makes a good point.

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Septicisle reviews the Book of Dave and finds it somewhat wanting.

First things first: endless_psych in brilliant defence of British Sci-fi. And he doesn't even MENTION HG Wells or John Wyndham.

Secondly, today's xkcd_rss is awesome:


Speaking of teachers, Teachers teach to the test shock.

Via Chicken Yoghurt, What are your a-levels worth? 3 As and a D for me. This means Jaiesh 4 As is smarter than me?

Tory Party Election Slogans. - “Tories: because money-grabbing opportunists are STILL better than well-meaning psychopaths.” - “Tories: We’re marginally less likely to march the whole country down the slow road to becoming Airstrip One.” - “Tories: Because you want to believe there’s a difference.”

I want one! Best spider EVAR!

OMG the BPAL update!! I want Hellhound and John Barleycorn and Sugar Skull and Sticky Pillowcase...

Marvel/DC does Batman Vs Iron Man.



Watch out for Lee Griffin's cameo just before Jesus appears, about half way through... O:-)

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Hilarious quote in the CAMRA magazine at work from Sebastian Faulks:

When I hear people ordering lager in a pub, I am mystified. It's like going to a tailor for a new shirt and being told that you can have cotton or linen or silk, and insisting on nylon.

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Read the first two chapters of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe to Shrubby for her bedtime story today. Wanted to keep reading, too. Bloody Christians and their entrancing allegorical books... ;)

I spent last evening losing at Ludo with matgb and burlesque_bunny and her other half, and therefore didn't get around to backreading. Thus, today's linkspam of random things that caught my magpie eye is HUGE! Also, if I haven't hat-tipped you for the link, it's because I forgot who linked me to what. This is because I are a scatty old bint. For which, I apologise. A fair few of them came from m'colleague Douglas over at LC, though.

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First up, Ros Scott is unsure that too much choice is a good thing. I certainly agree that in terms of schools and (particularly) hospitals, people don't want choice, they just want their local one to be good. If someone is bleeding to death, the last thing you want to have to do is to decide whether St Luke's or the BRI would suit your needs better.

However, it's not just about whether or not people have the ABILITY to make choices, it's about whether or not there aren't better uses of their time, IMHO. A lot of the time I don't want to choose between a set of things because I'd rather be doing something else. Choice of beer is great, choice of buses to get to the pub is not. I just want a bus that's frequent, prompt, and stops where I want it to, not a choice of three, none of which go at convenient times, or stop at the stop I want.

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Via Neil Gaiman: No to age banding on books.

I agree, to an extent, with age restrictions (but emphatically not censorship for 18-rated films) for violence on films and computer games (less so for sex), because you don't need to put any actual effort into perceiving the violence of a film or computer game, and it could cause some serious trauma to some children. Books? No. I first read the bible cover to cover aged seven (after the Hobbit but before LotR), and you'll be hard pushed to find a book more stuffed with violence than that. I still think it was a worthy use of my time. Reading books that are "unsuitable for children" is an im;portant part of any child's intellectual development.

Similarly, I loved, and still love, books which are clearly aimed at much smaller people than me. Why should I be castigated for this by over-prescriptive publishers?

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el_staplador makes a good point about feminism, inspired by this article on the BBC:

Feminism, the way I learnt it, isn't about voting for the woman because she's a woman; it's about voting for the best person for the job because of them being the best person for the job. Where the feminism comes in is that, should a woman be the best person for the job, there should be nothing more standing in her way than there is standing in an equivalent man's way. I must admit that I haven't been following the campaign terribly closely, so can't give a considered opinion on the question. (In any case, it's too late now and I have no influence upon it whatsoever.) But honestly, it should be simple: which of the two could do the job better? They're both human beings, no?

I'd go further than the sainted El S. I think that voting for a woman just because she's a woman and not because she's the best person for the job DAMAGES feminism, just as "positive" discrimination is a patronising pat on the head from the patriarchy. YMMV, of course.

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Much hilarity abounds about Tony Blair's new plan to foster peace and stuff by not invading other nations getting people of different faiths to talk to each other. Like the author of jesus_and_mo, and I think the result of this is rather predictable:



OTOH, maybe cabalamat2 is right, and this will result in more questioning of the overweening power of religion in general. Which would possibly be a good thing. I don't mind religious folks doing whatever they like in the privacy of their own homes, but I don't want them present in my legislature, and I don't want them indoctrinating my child. Shame this still seems to be too much to ask.

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I originally did the "wife" version of this, and, somewhat predictably, I was atrocious. However:

109 As a 1930s husband, I am Very Superior Take the test!

This contrasts nicely with my result for this test, I feel:

What philosophy do you follow? (v1.03) created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Hedonism Your life is guided by the principles of Hedonism: You believe that pleasure is a great, or the greatest, good; and you try to enjoy life’s pleasures as much as you can. “Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die!” More info at Arocoun's Wikipedia User Page... ( percentages and stuff under here ) Big hurrahs for the really, REALLY old guy! I particularly like that the secret to his longevity is "cigarettes, whisky and wild women". An organ which definitely disapproves of wild women, especially in conjunction with whisky and fags is the Daily Hate. Here's a couple of links to stuff about their misogyny and how it negatively affects the whole of society. Via the incredibly talented ginasketch, today is Drawing Day. So get your pencils, or Wacom tablet, out. Via shishmish on the TGT, someone at the BBC has seen the woeful Brainiac: Science Abuse on Sky, and thought that's not a bad idea, but the execution is terrible... I bet we could do better! Am really looking forward to this, even though Hamster is my least favourite of the TG3. And finally, guaranteed way to get me to accept your Facebook, friends request? Unashamed fanboying of this humble blog! As a reciprocal measure, I'd like you all to go and have a nosey at ottenfeed, which is being added to lcreadinglist as we speak ;)

This post has been

If you're quick, you could get a free book from Penguin Classics, and all you have to do is promise to review it on your blog. Hurry on over to here, before they are all gone.

* crosses fingers for On Liberty *

Come on, give me Mill... Or The Trial of Lady Chatterley! That could be cool!

ETA: Oh fuck. The email arrived. Your book is: The Penguin Book Of Romantic Poetry

Not even HG Wells or Orwell? YOU BASTARDS, PENGUIN!!!!