The anthropologist Gregory Bateson once said, “You can’t have a new idea ’til you’ve got rid of an old one. - John Cleese

You can’t have a new idea ’til you’ve got rid of an old one.

In my view, ordinary everyday sanity is harder for “only children” to achieve: they have nothing to moderate or dilute a parent’s influence. It must be very liberating to be able to share your parents’ attention, and indeed to have fellow offspring with whom you can actually discuss parental behaviour. I’m sure I could have dramatically cut the hours I spent in therapy if I had had a brother (or, better still, a sister) to whom I could have turned and asked, “What the hell has got into her today?

Но докато вижданията спрямо псуването и вулгарността се изменят в една посока през последните 40г., друга ценностна система сякаш застрашава комедията, движейки се наобратно. Говоря за отричащата живота сила, наречена политическа коректност. Това може и да е започнало като добра помисъл, но скоро бе отвлечена и разбрана ad absurdum от няколко индивиди без чувство за мярка - което по определение означава, че нямат и никакво чувство за хумор.

Oh, I could spend my life having this conversation - look - please try to understand before one of us dies