An Introduction

In introducing the blog two conclusions from future posts can be flagged. One is that humanity is the greatest asset the human race has ever had. The other is that war is the greatest mistake our race ever made. These, for many people, may be self-evident. For others they will not. Whichever, the question remains, even if these things are true, what, now, can we do about them? We, surely, are the helpless victims of our past?

It is often said that "what cannot be imagined cannot be done". By implication, what can be imagined can be done. This is important. It tells us that, just because the world, currently, is chaotic, confusing and appears to be beyond rational understanding, doesn't mean that it is. It means we need imagination. It means we need to find the sense and the meanings, currently hidden from us, that have steered us, and our ancestors, the way we have come. If these can be found, we can begin to move in a different direction and begin to make the world better.

Perhaps surprisingly, once we know where to look, finding a narrative that contains the meanings we need, is not that difficult. Modern scientific discoveries, honed through healthy scientific scepticism, provide all the bits. All we need to do is put them together. The well-known answer to the question "can you tell me the way to Paddington Station?", being "I wouldn't start from here", does, however, apply! — finding our way through the maze of confusion that we have created for ourselves, is not automatic. Imagination is much needed, as also is an open mind.

The blog beginning here presents that story. As such it is like a book. Each post develops the "plot". Some posts, I anticipate, will be challenging. Having grown up in a world of tangled misunderstandings, some propositions, no matter how well argued, will jar with the pre-perceptions that we have of common sense. Each will need, therefore, its own untangling. It follows that the end of the story is unlikely to be understood without following the narrative thread.

This is not to suggest that beginning in the middle is impossible. For those who do and who encounter aspects that seem not to make make sense, hyperlinks will be available to take you to where the sense that is needed can be found.

That said, like a blog, each of the posts has a comments section for open, critical and constructive discussion.