Humble

Been a bit pants at this lately: I keep logging on, but my brain's not coming out to play. Mainly because of this funny head cold/virus thingy, but also because I'm just not quite there creatively: I'm feeling a bit dull-witted and inhibited. Not sure why.

Maybe because of what I've been reading -- first that Einsatzgruppen book -- which got more and more harrowing as it went on -- and now a book about the US eugenics movement in the early 20th century; the author's thrust is that this US movement closely informed the Nazi euthanasia/'national cleansing' philosophy. I haven't got far enough to see how plausibly he makes the case yet, but even reading about the shallow, pseudoscientific value judgements these people -- scientists, legislators, doctors, judges, 'philanthropists' -- made about the 'feeble minded' is disgusting and chilling, and a reminder of what too much power and too little sympathy can result in. (It's called War against the weak, and it's by Edwin Black, who also wrote that IBM and the Holocaust book.)

At times like these, I just need to follow Susan (?) Cameron's advice, and just turn up at the page (or text file editor) and put something down. I'll come back and do that later. (I'm listening to a rather beautiful John Coltrane boxed set at the moment, back to back, and it's making me feel much more mellowed out and Fridayish already.)

It's warm, the birds are frantically making nests, and the rain's brought out the smell of the earth and the pavements. I realise that it's pretty good to be alive in the springtime. (How rapidly can my moods cycle? I'm the Chris Boardman of serotonin release...)