In Response To Paris

Hi -di-hi y'all. Bet you didn't expect to hear from me again so quickly.

Like everyone else with access to the free media, I heard about the terrible attacks in Paris, among other places, last week. The media have covered it pretty much non-stop since it happened (at least in Paris, I've not seen a lot about anywhere else). I've been pondering my personal response to these actions for the last few days. I know I'm only one person, but with this blog I know I can reach at least, like, three whole other people. So maybe I can make a small difference.
When I heard about Paris, I was shocked. I wanted to cry, and scream. I wanted to get over to France and do anything and everything I could to help. Sadly, France was in total shutdown, and it wouldn't have been practical to go even if it hadn't been. So I decided to do everything I could from my family home in Hertfordshire.

I checked that my friends in Paris were safe, and then I did nothing.
That's it.

I didn't cancel my plans to travel (using public transport) into central London with my family on Saturday. I didn't stop myself from enjoying a night out in one of the most "at-risk" cities in Europe. (Xanadu at the Southwark Playhouse, if anyone's interested. Amazing. I'd recommend going, but they've sold out until the end of the season!) And I did nothing to lessen my experience of getting on the tube (I hate the tube) any further. I also didn't cancel my flight from London to Berlin (arguably another "high risk" city) on Sunday. I didn't change my travel plans to get to the airport either. And I didn't complain when they wanted to check my bag at security (my bacon showed up as a liquid on the scanner.) When in Berlin, I didn't do anything to alter my arranged journey back to Braunschweig. I didn't worry about anything apart from making sure I got on the right train.

Because that's the best way to fight these morons.

Terrorists are like naughty children. If you react to every little thing they do, they will never learn that that's not the right way to behave. If a child throws a hissy-fit in the middle of the supermarket because you refuse to buy them sweets, you shouldn't give in and buy them sweets. Then the child learns that making a fuss leads to getting what you want. If a terrorist organisation kills innocent people in one of the biggest cities in Europe, you don't creep around in fear for the next few months. And you certainly don't get into a screaming match in the middle of the metaphorical supermarket. You just get on with your day as you would have before. You don't let them learn that they win by making a fuss.

If we live in fear of everything, we provoke the response "Look how weak the West is! They cower at our feet!" If we retaliate and bomb them into oblivion, we provoke the response "Look how dangerous the West is! We must fight back to protect ourselves!" If we band together, recover from the atrocities they've committed and leave them alone, they'll realise that their plan isn't working. They might try again (I really hope not, surely nobody is that heartless), but they'll learn that it isn't going to help.

They'll grow up a bit if we just leave them alone.

America and Europe have sent fighters and bombers and soldiers into more countries than there are scenes starring Daniel Radcliffe in a Harry Potter film. IT DOESN'T WORK. We've never had the result we want, and we never will. What on earth makes people think "This time. This time we're going to come out on top." It just kills more innocent people, a result nobody wants.

Actually, that's a lie. You know who wants that result? Terrorists.

My point is: stop. Stop trying to fight back. Stop giving them reasons to come and do this again. People died. Over one hundred and thirty people died. One hundred and thirty. That's about the same as the number of people in a reasonably large Scout group (Beavers through to Leaders). That's not OK. In no universe is that OK. So don't send troops and planes and bombs. Don't cancel your holiday plans. Mourn the dead, of course, but don't make things worse for the living.

Carry on as before.
Offer support the the refugees trying to escape from these people.
Look after your friends, family, and neighbours. (Especially those who peacefully practice Islam, they need the support right now too.)
Help out if you can.
But apart from that, do nothing.


All my love goes out to those affected by the attacks France, Lebanon, Chad, Cameroon, and Nigeria, to name some of the most recent ones. I hope life can resume for normal for you all as soon as possible.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Hello team and may I say Well Done! This is the 100th post in this fabulous blog called "Stuff I Ponder". I feel very proud to have made it to this point, especially considering that I've done so in less than two years which means that, on average, I have somehow posted more than twice every week.

Given the enormous gaps I've had between some of these posts, I think that's pretty impressive. Plus, it means I must have an awful lot to say for myself :S

So, there's not really a lot I have to say on this post, I'm not pondering anything in particular, certainly. I guess it was just Happy Birthday. Maybe I'll put up some random quotes from the best of "Stuff". Yeah, that sounds like a good plan. So here we go. I'll put 2012 on this post and 213 and 2014 on the next post (post no. 101):

• you can just erect (laugh if you must) a "bitchin' yurt" - 1st April 2012
•  "Excuse me sir! In the Onesie! You look Excellent!" and my friend Adele yelling "Like a sexy baby grow!!" - 18th April 2012
• I have discovered the Tabernacle. It is like the mother of all tents; bigger than a yurt and without the yaks. - 18th April 2012
• (especially when I shouted "You sir, you look like a man who likes a cuddle!" at an Emo) - 18th April 2012
• Shove a Crout inside him (confusingly) (Emily) - 30th April 2012
• Hollow him out and use him as a canoe (Liz) - 30th April 2012
• My ponderances since I last write have been minimal, although my working-ness has been much - 17th June 2012
• I really am very, very sad. I thought to myself, as I cleaned my saxophone, wearing a shirt with a colourful message about Jesus after finishing playing music nobody had listened to and thinking about Scouts. Yes, I am about six walking stereotypes. - 17th June 2012
•  So basically, I have decided that I really don't want to be a Cub Leader! - 27th June 2012
• Team Saxophone, for those of you who don't know, is a group of seven "epic" people, who all play the saxophone in Concert Band (probably as a punishment for something bad they did in a former life...) - 17th July 2012
• Peter Hurrell should not, NOT be allowed to wear a mankini. Ever. - 27th July 2012
• Eventually, somewhere in the midst of the eighties, Jeff Lynne got bored and left, after writing a song about it (as you do). - 2nd August 2012
• Gabi and Markus, our German friends (from Germany, because they're just totally awesome like that) - 19th September 2012
• The only reason we should care if Kate gets pregnant is if the baby ends up ginger. And they should totally call it Emma if it's a girl. Just saying. - 21st September 2012
•  Like every other musical activity I do, this is the highlight of my week. - 6th November 2012
• Welcome back, Internet Dwellers, to my cave of mystery. My name is Plato (not really) and I have many wonderful things to discuss with you. Or not. At all. - 11th November 2012
• If you do it wrong, you die. Then you're dead. Forever. - 11th November 2012

Am I The Only One...?

OK, so Valentine's has been and gone (And I'd like to take this opportunity to apologise for Oliver once again) and I'm pondering its aftermath. For some, obviously, their relationships have been strengthened and for others it's a beautiful beginning. For me, I always find Valentine's Day a little bit creepy.

I mean, I got a card from someone, who I'm still not convinced isn't my parents. But if it's not my parents, then I find it a bit creepy, to be honest. I can't really think of anyone who knows my address that would send me a card, which means that someone else went out of their way to obtain my address and send me a card. Am I the only one who finds that a little bit odd if this person isn't willing to tell me who they actually are? I would much rather that whoever this person is (providing it's not a joke or something) just told me if they like me.

Anyway, I found this picture the other day, then lost it, then found it again. And I thought you lovely people would like to see it because it made me smile. This is how I feel about people when I do things for them. Happy Valentine's Day, person.

Don't forget you can follow me on Twitter (or Tweeter as I saw it called today) at @EmPernilla and I sometimes say things. It can be quite nice.

Thanks :)

Pointless Holidays

Today is Valentine's Day. Therefore I am pondering it. Congratulations to anyone who has a Valentine; from what I can tell, it's more common for people to be breaking up in the last few weeks than getting together. Which is really quite disillusioning for a hopeless romantic such as myself.

Anyway, it might just be me, but Valentine's Day doesn't seem to have been such a big deal this year as it has previously.  The only couples I know who are still together appear to be playing it down and not doing anything together this year. I know that Valentine's Day is just the "celebration of a guy who had his head chopped off for marrying Christians" (thanks Sophie!), but it's a little bit sad that so many people aren't using today as an excuse to be soppy and loved-up.

Which got me thinking, why do we expect so much from this particular day when so many other days go past without even being noticed? There's not really anything different about today compared to yesterday, except that it's Thursday. But anyway, what can you do?

And now for a shout out. On a day such as today, it is fair to gaze upon those less amorously fortune with a favourable glance, and thus I offer the opportunity to indulge temporarily in charity and humanity. As strong and as muscular as an ox, Oliver would act as a valuable asset (with a number of other valuable assets) to any life. If you think yo ready for this jelly, Move yo booty up and downn, make your booty touch the ground for this man filled with ennui.
(Sorry, he wrote it himself. I just think it's funny)

Now, I must go, for Peter Andre awaits (not in a weird way), and Mrs Compton is yelling. Very loving.

A Couple Of Links For You

As I always do, I am going to put up a couple of plugs for people I like (or at least know) who are getting Internet Savvy.

Emily's mad blog has now moved URL address from Famous Last Words ( http://shirleynomates.blogspot.co.uk/ ) to : http://mirrorscantseeyourheart.blogspot.co.uk/
It is still amazing :) (I wonder where she gets her inspiration...)


Alice's literary blog is still going strong at: http://mingledyarns.wordpress.com/
It's fabulous. If you type mingled yarns into Google, it's the second one :)


Seb and Aidan's podcast - for anyone who has yet to discover this, it's a podcast dedicated to sharing unsigned bands with the world. It's quite nice and I know lots of my friends listen to it because it's very funny. This is a link to the first one, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlP8RdmB59U but I think there are about nine now?

Herries's fantastically daft/philosophical blog does actually get its own post on here in a few months' time (yeah, I know, Emma from the future! Woooooooooo scary!!!) but for anyone who is reading this through from the beginning (you strange, sad little people) you can find it here: http://thingsthatijustdontunderstand.blogspot.co.uk/

Thanks guys, much love

xx