Are past nightmares becoming a reality?

Everybody always says the world's going to hell, but somehow we seem to keep muddling along. Did anyone else notice Ray Bradbury, rather tetchily, recently announce that Fahrenheit 451 was absolutely *not* about censorship. Apparently he's written a short story a week since 1930.

"People sit at home entranced by the glow of their video screens and blind to education, intelligence and logic. Books have become taboo, and those who embrace them are outcasts. This is not dissimilar to modern times" It's very dissimilar to modern times. £3billion worth of books are sold in the UK every year. I'd imagine books are doing ok in the US, too. Reading is increasing around the world, not least because more people than ever are able to read.

I don't have much time but I'm glad you posted this; it's a very interesting topic for me at least. I'll read it later. When the power of love overcomes the love of power, we'll find peace. - Jimi Hendrix

"It's very dissimilar to modern times. £3billion worth of books are sold in the UK every year. " I agree but as an aside, I'd guess most of that £3b comes from non-fiction (academic or biogs or "How to win at bridge") or um, crap genre fiction. What were the sales of lit fic like? Not that I'm judging. I bought Perry Groves' book. "Free thinkers are shunned by society, and slowly, conformity takes everything" Nah mate. Here in the Uk for example, people can think (and more importantly, speak!) pretty freely. Not totally freely, mind, but more freely than they could historically. Blasphemy most likely won't get you killed now days, for example. Good peice though, interesting if a little melodramatic.

Can I turn this into a general whinge and say that my secondary school's alumini group on facebook is peopled with semi-illiterate fools. And it's one of the leading State schools in the UK according to league tables! This is in Suburban Surrey, not an inner city ghetto. I know that my grammar, spelling and punctuation isn't 100% but these people (some of my friends included) are a joke. I'm not just talking about choosing to use text speak but spelling errors such as 'ledgend' and grammatical errors such as mixing up where, were and we're. jude "Cacoethes scribendi" http://www.judesworld.net

"I agree but as an aside, I'd guess most of that £3b comes from non-fiction (academic or biogs or "How to win at bridge") or um, crap genre fiction. What were the sales of lit fic like?" A lot less, I'd imagine but this is an ongoing reality rather a sign of decline. The live literature scene - particularly poetry - is a lot stronger now in the UK than it was ten years ago. And I was objecting to the implied suggestion that, 25 years ago, 50 years ago etc. the average young person was spending their spare team reading war and peace. I think a lot of the time now spent playing computer games used to be spent fighting and torturing small animals. "Not that I'm judging. I bought Perry Groves' book." The legendary Arsenal winger?

"The legendary Arsenal winger?" Is he consigned to old wives tales for dark nights, haunting the dreams of children tucked up in bed? For most of the time that humans have existed, life has consisted of getting by, not dying, tending to social or family group and fitting in a bit of shagging, wandering or talking if time allowed. There's lots of places where it's still a like this, to a lesser or greater extent. Us readers have always been a bit of a minority. 'Clever folks' used to begrudge 'less clever' folks their penny dreadfuls, illustrated newspapers, religious tracts, sermons and trips to the theatre, music hall or pub. We're lucky. We've got access to a big amount of stuff, both old and new. We can pick it and choose it as much as we want. We have more freedom access information than any group of people ever. Was it really better when people who didn't want to read the small amount of available stuff didn't have an infinite amount of other things they could be doing? Reading makes you private, and means that you go places that those around you have no access to. It's not a communal experience. Neither's writing. Them folks in front of the video screens were at least enjoying sharing something with each other. Us readers, well, we're on our own, and we choose it. We choose to be outcasts. Cheers, Mark

"A lot less, I'd imagine but this is an ongoing reality rather a sign of decline." Yeah for sure. I would guess that sales of the 'classics' have been boosted over recent years rather than faller, now they're available so cheaply. "The legendary Arsenal winger?" Indeed! There was a little campaign to get his book to outsell Cashley's - they came out at about the same time. It did. In fact, right now We All Live in a Perry Groves World has an Amazon sales rank of 8,600-ish compared with a pathetic 118,000-ish for Cashley. Really bad when you think of all the promotion it got, etc. Enzo..

Hi Enzo, don't you mean those figures the other way round? My brain hurts.

Hi Enzo, don't you mean those figures the other way round? My brain hurts.

Hey Styx - no, it's the right way round. 1 is the highest rank.

I watched Jerry Springer for about 5 minutes the other day then I started to feel sick.The people were almost feral.Even animals that have no morality about sex have pack rules.These people had no rules of behaviour at all and were violent as well.It is a level of chaos and unthinking that perhaps is hard to comprehend.

Well, I think it's fairly easy to comprehend. You say to people 'say some mad stuff and we'll put you on TV' and they say some mad stuff and you put them on TV. They're generally very aware of rules of behaviour because it's by appearing to reject them that they get their fifteen minutes of fame.

They're all from central casting. Hey, a gig's a gig.

The past has always been a happier place... http://www3.shropshire-cc.gov.uk/extracts/E000136.htm pe ps oid ... What is "The Art of Tea"? ... (www.pepsoid.wordpress.com)