Are you one of those, like my deceased but loved friend Peter Cairns, who always seemed to think of the perfect rejoinder, right then, in real time, perfect and unanswerable? Well, I am not and I fear, never will be. So typically, I did not think of this one until after the event and by then it would have been impolite to bring it up and I would have revealed my self as a smart arse, a fact known to some but I try to limit its spread.
We were sitting having a drink with our friend Ethel on Boxing Day who had just been telling us the gruesome details of her husband's brachytherapy treatment for prostate cancer.
Following that, the next subject raised was climate change, not by me, you will be surprised to know, but by another, less knowing of the host's attitudes to such 'Green conspiracies'.
All chance of an exchange of ideas was dashed when the hostess declared; "I don't believe in climate change and neither does Bert!"
I looked out the window at the yachts and took another sip of white wine, a cowardly intellectual retreat, when I should have said: "What a quaint thing to say! Saying you don’t believe in climate change is equivalent to saying you don't believe in prostate cancer, a well proven reality. However, you do have a choice to believe or not believe in its treatment, as you do with climate change.”
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No, this is not really a new post. The other version was washed away with the dross as I attempted to remove anonymous comments from the blog. Mission impossible I think. Maybe the only solution is to save any good bits of the blog, delete the whole blog and start again!
ReplyDeleteSince writing the above comment, I have changed settings to make it more difficult for spam to get through. "About time!" says Gabriel and I agree.
ReplyDeleteThis is a snap quiz ... recite the comment I left as I was the first!!!
ReplyDeleteIt was a test too. It came up as an e-mail and I was tempted to delete. :-) The answer to the quiz, paraphrased, is that in not getting into the argument, I demonstrated that discretion is the better part of valour. Howzat? XX
ReplyDeletePretty darned good for an old duffer ....XX
DeleteStafford, you can avoid anonymous comments by changing yours 'posts and comments' settings from 'Anyone' to 'Registered Users'. It stops all the spam rubbish. I don't moderate or use that annoying Word Verification, and any suspected spam is put in a file and I'm notified to moderate. I don't get much spam, but Google sifts the posts and any that does come is separated out.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sue, Have activated the 'see first' setting, but I think your solution might be less of a hassle!
DeleteThinking of you...hope your holidays were grand! Best ever....
ReplyDeleteStafford- I do what Sue suggested- It's a Snap! I cannot remember my previous comment but- I think if someone doesn't "get it" have them watch "Chasing Ice" a wonderful documentary that will convince most non-believers. Cherrio - have a lovely day!
ReplyDeleteIt's my New Year's resolution not to keep quiet when I hear people say idiotic things such as your host's comment. I do agree that sometimes it may not be worth the hassle. But often it is worth speaking up, and prejudice should be challenged. For example, there are a couple of members of my extended family who regularly spout nonsense at family gatherings. And except for exchanging knowing glances, those of us who don't share their prejudices usually keep quiet, not wanting to cause a fuss. But I've decided that from now on I will make my views known - as politely as possible and without trying to be confrontational. Why should we let stupid remarks go unchallenged? Especially when younger members of the family may be taking notice of the adults' viewpoints, I feel we owe it to them to register an objection when someone expresses views that are not justified by available evidence or just plain stupid or hurtful. To this day, I can still remember a family gathering many years ago when a favourite uncle of mine, who happened to be a genuinely devout Catholic, quietly rebuffed my brother at a family gathering for making fun of religious beliefs based on the fact that the sins of many priests were becoming common knowledge. With most of us being non-believers, it was a brave thing to do. I've never forgotten the quiet dignity with which he defended his own belief in God, and pointed out that it had nothing to do with the actions of priests or other third parties.
ReplyDeleteNext theyll be burning witches in the square ! Check my blog for a terrifying excerpt from bill mckibbens " Eearth" - making a life on a tough new planet . ..
ReplyDeleteIt really is the Gallipoli of our time , and all too many are cowering shamefully in the bottom of the trench , refusing to go out
good to see you attending to your spaminess ;) sometimes it is 'nicer' to just ignore idiotic comments at dinner parties - now, if it was a standing up drinking type party - you could go for it (easier to dodge the fists - hahaha) but a dinner party is far too civilised for that.
ReplyDelete