Balance

[toprob]

This random post kills two birds, first I did mention to someone a week ago that if you watch 24 hour news channels, you are going to get a rather negative view of the world, and although it's a good idea to know what is going on, you need to balance that with something more positive.

Secondly, I've just read a thread here which while kinda funny, also annoys me a lot, and this too needs to be balanced with something a little less.... mean-spirited.
My main source of good news is Ted. 30 minutes of Ted can balance days of bad news.

Here's a link to a random talk, which is as good a place to start as any. Watching Ted on the website (as opposed to some sort of app) auto-runs other talks when they finish, so you can just let it run for a while, and I'm pretty sure you will feel more positive about the world, and a bit more understanding of people...

[Fozzer]

I don't know.... ....

..I listened to Ted for a while...

...and I thought back to all my past, all 82 years of it, and I thought to myself, (as I frequently do), it was a lot different to Ted's, 'cos it was MY past!

...and all the stuff that happened in it was mostly my doing, for good or bad.

Would I change anything?

YEP!.. maybe one or two things.

I just wished that I had shown more visible love to my dear Mum and Dad who always were so proud of me for the whole of their lives!

...and that's about it!

All the rest was purely a matter of "Chance" at the time...cant change that now!.... ....!

I'm just very happy to have lasted as long as I have, with all I have done, with a big smile on my face!.... ...!

...and I am old enough to look at the World around me and pick and choose the bits I like, or don't like...and there's not much I can do about it, either way!!... ...!

Paul....A Happy Bunny....and always up for a laugh and a joke!... ...!

[toprob]

TED's independent 'brother', TEDx, visits Christchurch now and then, and today if you can't make it along to the theatre Royal you can watch thelive stream.

[Charl]

Many of the younger generation resolutely do not watch any "News" channels.
Partly because it is not new - they get 'new" on social media.
Partly because of the poor quality of reporting.
And partly because in order to maintain ratings, the "News" is very selective in what it reports.
As you say, this tends to be somewhat negative and/or sensationalistic.

I agree about TED, there's a wealth of really interesting stuff to be had.
In order to tip the balance against the pervasive Kardashians, I send my kids bits of TED I know will interest them.
TED is also available on Netflix, which I reckon is a better TV (and multiplatform) deal than most.
TEDx too, and I just watched "Why you will fail to have a great career"

[Ian Warren]

TED so true , watch out for the crap !

Watch on youtube.com

[toprob]

If anyone wants to want this, the full thing is now available online.
I did watch the first session, but had to go out, so I'll watch the rest later. As always, well-worth watching. And although I posted here as a kind of antidote to negativity, one of the first speakers was Rod Oram, who did mention something which I've come to believe -- that our civilization is basically over, as it was never sustainable, and although it may linger for a long time yet, I do believe that my grand-children's children will live to see the end of civilization. But I mean that in a good way...

[Bazza]

As a political, business type journalist, anything Rod Oram would postulate towards the end of civilization, would be so
unqualified as to be a load of old bollocks. Excuse me if I don't get too concerned. Woe is me, we are doomed...!

[toprob]

Did you manage to sit through him, or did you fast-forward that bit?

As I said, I don't believe the end of civilization has to be a bad thing, so there's no doom involved, human beings are nothing if not adaptable, so they'll survive, and maybe do better next time.

[toprob]

By the way, Rod Oram was referring to Roy Scranton, and his book Learning to Die in the Anthropocene: Reflections on the End of a Civilization, and Gus Speth, who are both worth listening to on environmental issues. A comment which really resonated with me was that ultimately the problem comes down to greed, selfishness and apathy, which science can't fix.

I think that science can prolong things, but the goal of science tends to be to support those who have the most greed, selfishness and apathy. So maybe we are all doomed...