Category Archives: Medicine

Implicit narcissism

Posted on 17/03/2021 by Jon Garvey

I’ve no idea why YouTube started assailing me with psychologists’ guides to narcissism some months ago. They do that sometimes, the algorithms suddenly deciding to deluge you with clips on “carpentry tips” maybe, or some obscure Australian band. But it has become very apposite, since a possibly narcissitic relationship at the very top of society has been in the headlines for the last week or two, suspected as such by many lay people as well as pundits.

Posted in Medicine, Politics and sociology, Theology | 2 Comments

Sharpley and son revisited

Posted on 15/03/2021 by Jon Garvey

“Better get a move on Paul – we’ll be late for church.” “Uhh… if you don’t mind, Dad, I’d rather stay home.” “Hmmm – hold on a second, Son… Grace! I’ve got an issue here – you go on with the girls and we’ll catch you up! Now, what’s the problem, Paul? You’ve never missed church before.”

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More on closed churches

Posted on 13/03/2021 by Jon Garvey

Looking at historical instances of mass-closure of churches, one thing is clear: it was taken very much more seriously by our brethren in the past.

Posted in Medicine, Politics and sociology, Science, Theology | 2 Comments

It’s always the models

Posted on 23/02/2021 by Jon Garvey

I’m getting more and more convinced about the centrality of our animal physicality, in everything from benefiting from nature to worshiping God “in spirit and truth.” A rather saddening recent essay suggests that the greatest harm to children from “online education” in lockdown is going to come from “derealisation,” whereby they become increasingly undistinguishing between reality and the virtual world. Worse still they become less able to see that the difference matters. There seems to be a similar problem in the sciences.

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Meeting public expectations

Posted on 19/02/2021 by Jon Garvey

I came across a little-known story about the London Blitz yesterday, best summarised in this article by Londoner Simon Webb, or if you’re impatient of more reading, in his YouTube video on the subject.

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When will we beat the false positives?

Posted on 17/02/2021 by Jon Garvey

Daily Telegraph headline today: “Covid lockdown to continue until cases drop below 1,000 a day.” It’s accompanied by a graphic projecting the current fall in UK cases to make April 7th the likely date. But there is reason to doubt this optimism.

Posted in Medicine, Politics and sociology, Science | 1 Comment

Proportionality

Posted on 14/02/2021 by Jon Garvey

Just a couple of UK-based graphics to consider this wintry Sunday:

Posted in Medicine, Politics and sociology, Science | 2 Comments

Tragedy

Posted on 12/02/2021 by Peter Hickman

This is a guest post by Dr Peter Hickman, an experienced UK medical practitioner, and a regular commenter on The Hump. The phrase “every death is a tragedy” has been repeated multiple times by the Prime Minister and other politicians during the 2020/21 SARS-Cov-2 Coronavirus pandemic. What does “every death is a tragedy” actually mean, and is it a useful or appropriate thing to say?

Posted in Medicine, Politics and sociology, Theology | 1 Comment

Paranoia and Patriarchy

Posted on 08/02/2021 by Jon Garvey

Paranoia is a pretty distressing symptom in its common setting of schizophrenia. My in-laws once went for a house viewing, only to find the place full of scrap metal structures intended to prevent US satellites spying on the owner. But it can occasionally be potentially lethal as well.

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Those best placed to know

Posted on 06/02/2021 by Jon Garvey

Bret Weinstein, in discussion with Heather Heying, makes some interesting observations on why “scientific consensus” is not always the virtuous thing it seems. His topical example is the increasing evidence that SARS-CoV-2 was accidentally released from the virology laboratory in Wuhan, as the evidence for the “wet market” hypothesis becomes less and less persuasive.

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