Something of an Understatement

Daft robber? More like borderline moronic, I’d have thought…

An 18-year-old burglar who vandalised a children’s campsite building was caught because he wrote his name on a wall at the scene, a court has heard.

Authority

Guest-blogging at the Wardman Wire, ThunderDragon writes an interesting series of why he blogs at his age - saying that he is ‘only’ 22. As another similarly fresh-faced – and who started blogging much earlier than that – I was intrigued by his arguments.

Age and life experience are important in forming a political opinion. For example, it’s amazing how many kids supposedly support the Lib Dems. But most of them soon grow out of that. It is through living that one can develop real and intelligent opinions. I stand by my point that whilst the views of 18 year olds should not be ignored, that they should not be taken into account quite as much as those of an older person.

To me, focusing on the age or otherwise of a person seems to me to be totally redundant. I’m in America at the moment, and going round a number of the historical sites, it’s quite evident that I have a considerably greater knowledge of American history than most people. I was able to point out that Jefferson and Adams did not sign the Constitution, as they were serving as US envoys to France and Britain, respectively, in 1787. Yet those two names were the first suggested when the group I was in was asked to name signers of the Constitution. Similarly, when at the National Archives, the family in front of me (who were very thoughtful about their history, based on the comments they made on the displays) couldn’t understand why there were only 12 states with signatures on the Constitution – I was able to point out that Rhode Island had refused to send any delegates.

Then again, I should know this stuff – after all, it’s what I’m out here researching.

Now, the obvious criticism of this is that it relies on a knowledge of facts, rather than depth of thinking. In those two examples, it would certainly be a fair criticism. Anyone could remember those facts, but it isn’t necessarily indicative of critical thinking skills. Yet extrapolating from those stories, I’d have a fair bet that I could contribute more usefully to a discussion on the ‘original intent’ of the Founding Fathers than anyone else in the room.

That’s because there are two things that are important in formulating an opinion – knowledge, and an ability to think critically based on that knowledge. I’d hope that I possess plenty of the latter ability, too, but it doesn’t matter how well I am able to think if I know the square root of sod all on a subject.

The key question when evaluating someone’s argument has absolutely nothing to do with their age. It has to do about the logic of their argument, and the experience they bring to bear (the two don’t necessarily go hand-in-hand). I imagine ThunderDragon would be better able to explain the pitfalls of recent changes to the education system in Britain than a Department of Education mandarin, simply because he has intelligence, and considerably better direct experience of the operation of the system itself.

If I was looking to inform myself for an argument on cricket, I might turn to Richie Benaud for his opinion long before I turned to David Lloyd. But this has nothing to do with Richie’s more advanced years. It’s because after so many years of listening to cricket, I know that Benaud thinks before he speaks, whereas Lloyd offers inane comments based on what’s on the screen in front of him.

Turning back to politics, there are many things that people of my age or ThunderDragon’s age will be able to debate more usefully than older people. A greater appreciation for the norms of youth culture, perhaps. Or the effect of the difficulties that are faced by first-time house buyers. Because these are issues that we deal with on the coal-face, as it were. Now, that doesn’t mean we don’t have inherent biases or specific axes to grind. Any intelligent reader would make an effort to fillet these out in consideration. But age isn’t really one of them.

The ability for young people to speak in the public arena is derived not just from the fact that we exist. The ability to think critically, and the different experience that we bring to the table is vitally important. David Cameron’s opinions aren’t ill-thought out because he’s considerably younger than Gordon Brown. Nor are mine less thought out than David Cameron’s because of a similar age gap. Arguments should stand or fall based on their content and their logic. All other factors are just irrelevant flotsam.

Britblog Roundup #117

Greetings, and welcome to the 117th edition of the BritBlog roundup.

How many of you were up till 1am to watch John Higgins win the Snooker World Champion? Fewer of you than there would have been if Pandemian’s ideas for livening up the game were adopted…

Second up has to be the article at Lib Dem Voice questioning whether Ming should go. It’s refreshing to see such an honest approach to debate from a website that sees itself as at the heart of party debate.

There’s been an interesting spat going on in some corners of our mysterious world over the decision of a Peterborough ’superschool’ not to have a playground. Dsquared is a good place to start off, with a well-researched support of the policy; Crooked Timber responds.

Not Saussure launches into a delightful attack on Hazel Blears’ campaign for Deputy Leader of the Labour Party.

Jonathan Fryer opines on Lord Browne, and offers the useful advice… don’t lie!

This week’s big news is obviously Tony Blair confirming for the umpteenth time that he will resign, only this time giving a definite date to boot. Bloggers up and down the country have lived up to their reputations as wannabe columnists by wasting virtual rainforests pontificating on what Blair’s legacy will be.

The Magistrate castigates the Sun for its portrayal of Broadmoor, and throws in a sideswipe at Blair’s pandering while he’s at it.

Liberal England describes a process of coming to grudging respect for Blair, or the “reverse of Britain”, as it’s also known.

Chicken Yoghurt finds himself in the unfamiliar position of agreeing with Michael Howard. Alastair Campbell has a funny way of uniting people…

G Fawkes at Dodgeblogium thinks it is time to say good riddance to management graduates.

Central News gives his take on how the NHS should be governed.

Disgruntled Radical has a joke at the expense of Ian Paisley. The old ones are the best, after all!

The Overgrown Path brings our attention to Reginald Goodall, the holy fool.

The Big Blue Meanie, meanwhile, suggests that the reports of the death of bees may be somewhat exaggerated. As long as you are only talking about organic bees, of course.

Save the Ribble shows off his way of enjoying a politically-active and socially-conscious May Day at the glamorous Preston Flagmarket.

Susanne Lamido wonders whether Simon Jenkins is right in suggesting the Lib Dems call it a day (and do follow the link at the bottom of the post, too).

In a similar vein, The Daily Maybe wonders what the Green Party stands for. Is it anti-capitalist? My answer would be simple – yes. But it’s worth reading a lengthier and more clearly reasoned response!

Getting cultural for a second, My London Your London reviews the “Sacred” exhibition at the British Library.

Diamond Geezer has an entertaining look at the geography of 28 Weeks Later.

And finally, Inky Circus acts as an albatross dating agency.

That’s all for this week – next week, your host will be Clairwil.

Dragon Slaying

When England were in the process of qualifying for Euro 2004, I wandered into the centre of Oxford with a friend to watch their final group game, against Turkey. It quickly became apparent we hadn’t gone to the most suitable pub for the occasion, when the crowd broke out into a raucous chant of No Surrender to the IRA.

The anti-bigot in me wanted to point out that St George was, in fact, Turkish. Thankfully, the part of me that believes in self-preservation thought better than that idea.

I mention this because Nosemonkey has written a wonderful post about St George, and why, in fact, he is the perfect symbol of an England that wants to play a role in Europe and the wider world. Well worth a read.

Salvaged from the Dustbin

Here’s a few general blog links that might be of interest – the weekly Britblog Roundup, hosted this week by Mr Eugenides, and the biweekly Euroblog Roundup, hosted by Siberian Light.

I’m also blogging at Oval Office 2008; should have a piece or two up there later, which I will link to here.

Britblog Roundup #109

Greetings, and welcome to the 109^th edition of the Britblog Roundup. I’m Ken, your host for this week, and here’s a selection of the best of the British corner of the blogging world:

Troubled Diva kicks off this week’s roundup, with his own roundup of Shaggy Blog Stories, an impressively well-organised and speedily produced collection of British blogging, all with the aim of raising a sizeable sum for Comic Relief. The announcement of the finished book can be found here.

The Lone Voice gives a thorough fisking to the story of Lewis Green, a 10-year-old recently given an ASBO, hot on the heels of a string of other convictions. Sounds a wonderful little chap.

An Englishman’s Castle laments the death of Sally Clark.

My Paris Your Paris gives a wonderful rundown of a visit to the Museum of Decorative Arts.

Susanne Lamido wonders how Sera Kentmann got away with her numerous aliases.

The Ministry of Truth engages in a lengthy and thorough fisking of Tom Watson’s rationale for supporting the continuation of Trident.

Gracchi takes on David Frum and his limited conception of freedom as regards new legislation on homosexuality.

The Daily Maybe warns about the dangers of a crackdown on prostitution.

The Magistrate paints some delightful pen pictures of the characters to be found around the courts.

Early Modern Whale laments that John Aubrey was born a mere three hundred years too early to have been a blogger.

Liberal England reflects on the 75^th Anniversary of the first transmissions from Broadcasting House

L’Ombre de l’Olivier takes issue with a new book, “101 Ways That England Ruined The World”. “Despite all this I am proud to be associated with my English ancestors – even the upper class global oppressor ones.”

Continuing the theme of attacking those critical of England’s past, Dodgeblogium longs for a more informed reporting of the history of the slave trade and its abolition.

The Flying Rodent loves the experience of eating out.

The Purple Pen has a visual image summing up home economics.

Wayne comes up with a well-researched alternative to David Cameron’s idea of a personal flying allowance.

And finally, Freebornjohn has an enlightening note about some very, um, supportive parents.

 

That’s all I’ve managed to fish out of the dustbin of history for this week; next week it’s the turn of Clairwil to host the roundup. As ever, send your submissions to britblog@gmail.com.

 

We’ll meet again and all that…