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November 2024

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<a href="https://sketchplanations.com/optimism-bias" target="_blank">"Optimism bias"</a> is licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0" target="_blank">CC BY-NC 4.0</a>“Man’s fatal flaw is misplaced optimism.”

Allan Wolf, ‘The Watch That Ends the Night’

In November of 2016 I wrote a post to this forum in response to the seismic events of that year… the which, of course, included the decision by the United Kingdom to depart from the European Union – and the unexpected (by many) election to the US Presidency of the orange weirdo!

I closed that post with the following:

What has transpired this year has been a massive wake-up call. In neither the UK nor the US can politics carry on being ‘business as usual’. That model is broken. What now needs urgently to happen is that the centre and the left of centre must start over and build themselves completely afresh – learning not only from what has happened, but also from how and why it happened. This represents a huge opportunity – such perhaps as has not been presented since the end of the second world war. And – concerning that prospect – I feel optimistic“.

You can be pretty certain that – when I scribbled (typed!) that screed I could not have imagined in my wildest fantasies that the madman across the water who was then about to enter the White House would again be poised so to do eight years hence. Or that what in 2016 looked to all the world to be a terrible and potentially calamitous error of judgment on the part of the US electorate now transpires to be an wilful expression of the darkest desires of the majority thereof.

Few of us could have dreamt of the frankly inconceivable sequence of events that has occurred over this late period, and that has led us to this point. I am shocked that we find ourselves in a position regarding which the paragraph that I wrote in 2016 could – and perhaps must – be written again entire…

…though perhaps without the concluding “I feel optimistic“…

Can we really not do better than this?

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Quincy Jones

1933 – 2024

RIP

"This work" by David Shankbone is in the Public Domain, CC0Quite possibly the greatest and most gifted record producer of the age.

Definitely irreplaceable…

From the many, many obituaries and retrospectives published since his passing, this piece from the Guardian seems to me to illustrate best the sheer breadth and depth of Quincy’s talent.

Rest in peace.

 

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This news item appeared recently on the Anam Danu website:

Siobhan and Andy of Anam Danu have written, recorded, and self-released three original albums over the past five years.  Back in 2023, they decided to focus on growing their creative partnership.  They enjoy being in the studio, but like many musicians, they know that performing live is the true test of their music.

They realized that the music they create as a duo often needs more musicians to perform it live.  Over the last year and a half, they searched for other artists who could help bring their ambitious work to life.  In late 2023, they met Adrienne Dyer, whose beautiful soprano voice added a powerful element to their music.  Together they started to create fresh tracks for a new album.  

Euphoria explores what it means to be a mature adult in today’ s challenging times.  It includes songs about storytelling and creativity, the value of long-term friendships, teaching and learning, the search for our roots, and the important choices we make as we grow older.

Most importantly, it highlights the need for joy.

Siobhan, Adrienne and Andy are particularly grateful to Mairéad for her gorgeous and striking cover art, which encapsulates the essence of the album perfectly.

Euphoria” will be available for streaming and download from November 22nd. 

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