Peter Rose
Bio
Collections of "my" vocal essays with additions, are available as printed books ASIN 197680615 and 1980878536 also some fictional works and some e books available at Amazon;-
amazon.com/author/healthandfunpeterrose
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Stories (329/0)
Why do politicians, of all parties, say such stupid things?
Why do politicians, of all parties, say such stupid things? Why must a politician have an opinion of everything? Look at the headlines, on just about all media platforms, and you see statements supposedly from prominent politicians that just do not seem logical. First, we need to examine the platform and its own political bias, they all have them. Some are so extreme in their devotion to a particular political ideology that everything they say has to be treated with great caution. They will make claims that rival ideology statements are dangerous and evil when in reality the rival ideology has not made any such statement. Even less extreme platforms will “misinterpret” the meaning of innocuous quotes that a rival politician has made. All parties have begun to operate in the same way and democracy itself is suffering because of it. Fake news, disinformation, inuendo and downright lies have become normal to such an extent that they are accepted and not even vilified anymore. This is not healthy for the future.
By Peter Rose6 months ago in The Swamp
Perception rules over reality
Perceptions and reality Is the perception more important than the truth? We all have perceptions and the collective of large numbers of people’s perception affects reality. For example, there is a general perception, in Britain, that the police will send six officers after someone who is anonymously alleged to have committed a “hate crime” but will totally ignore a person who is the victim of a robbery.
By Peter Rose9 months ago in The Swamp
Ageing
Ageing. An unavoidable fact of life The transition from birth to death affects all things, from an ant to an oak tree, from a human to a mayfly. The speed of this transition varies from species to species and between individuals within each species. Why some humans live longer than others, has always been a fascination to both medical science and to journalists. Many theories and claims have been made, often with a religious claim or with a sales pitch attached. Statistics are published claiming life expectancy has improved, that is on average people live longer, but like all such figures, the number of variables which can affect the end number, make it unwise to base a great deal on it. Certainly, it would be unwise to base any decision on a worldwide global figure for average life expectancy.
By Peter Rose9 months ago in Longevity
Protest needs a rethink
Protest needs a rethink. Protesting is having opposite effect to the one claimed to be the objective. Protests, from the time those organised to try and get atomic bombs banned, have changed and today we have stop oil and extinction rebellion- both of these have financial backing and organisation leadership. Neither of these facilities existed for ban the bomb marches. In the main the ban the bomb protests were peaceful, that is they did not involve much violence or anti-social behaviour. Modern protestors are different, they seem to glory in causing as much social disturbance as they possible can. This new trend does not appear to be aimed at gaining support for a selected set of opinions, but aimed at causing as much nuisance and aggravation to as many members of the public as they can. The result is that very large numbers of “the general public” regard the protestors as selfish, self-indulgent, ego driven, arrogant and disconnected from reality. Because of this, the protests have lost all chance of exerting political pressure. They are just exhibitionist demanding the world takes notice of them. It is widely accepted that these new protestors get paid “expenses” for disrupting the law-abiding activities of other people. This is nothing other than rent-a -mob dressed up in middleclass clothing.
By Peter Rose9 months ago in The Swamp
Why do we have legs and arms
Why do humans only have arms and no tail? Way back in the time, before time itself began, three sorts of creatures began to walk upright, rather than scamper about with four limbs bearing the weight of their body. All three creatures came into being because of the same need, the ability to hunt in tall grassland. Tall prairie grass covered many miles and the grass stood tall, except where grazed short by the wandering herds of bison and antelopes. A hunter need only make one kill a week, from either of these herds, to feed his family, and the rest of his time was his own, which made hunters very keen to stand up and see into the distance. Because the herds could not see over the taller grass, that had not yet been grazed, a humanoid standing on 2 legs could watch the herds from the margins of that which had not yet been grazed, and only had to wait for a beast to lower their head and start to munch away at the taller grasses, then a flint tipped spear brought down the family food. So, standing up on two legs made for an easy life. So, all of the three plains humanoid tribes, started to do it.
By Peter Rose9 months ago in Fiction
A time of peace and change
A time of peace, and change. The forge stays hot. It is now June in the year of our lord 1600. The crops are growing and the children are running about the strips, to chase away the crows and rooks. I am a blacksmith and if I make so bold, I am a good one, I have learnt the craft well and I am naturally inquisitive as to why things work and how to make things. Unlike most smiths I can also read and write, after a fashion. I spent a few years traveling with the army and learnt much about the making of weapons, before returning to our village and taking over the forge when my farther died. The skills of my trade mean that I have privileges other men lack, My Lord wanted a smith in his manor at all times and so my father’s passing caused him to track me down and order my return. The village was quite isolated in the past and this probably is why the black death did us little harm. Now the worst of this pestilence is passed, we can travel more, at our Lords command.
By Peter Rose10 months ago in History
Crime and punishment
Crime and punishment Over the last few thousand years human societies formed and flourished. In order that any society can manage itself, it has rules. Even the non-human groups, such as Apes, Lions, wolves etc have rules of behaviour within that group. So, the existence of rules appears to be natural, necessary for the survival of the group.
By Peter Rose11 months ago in The Swamp
The heist that made cops laugh
As robberies go this was not my finest hour, if fact it was a very brief affair, I spotted a truck from a security firm, noticed that the back doors of the truck were open, no sign of driver or security. I saw an opportunity and took it; I grabbed the nearest box and ran. I had an image in my head of gold or silver bars on the way to be minted into cash. Within three steps disaster took over. The box was so very heavy that I dropped it onto my foot. My scream of pain attracted the driver, who burst out laughing, then the cops were called, and they took me to hospital. Through the mist of pain, I saw the officers were all laughing but I did not know why. My broken bones were set straight, my foot encased in plaster, and I was back in jail again. The next day up I was in court, again. The judge decided I was punished enough, so I limped free, all within three days. And for what? The box was full of scrap metal, old security seals from crates of bullion, waiting to be melted down and recast.
By Peter Rose11 months ago in Fiction