Kiaran Finn on Life Matters!

This is a slightly different theme to my usual Blogs and a little less tongue in cheek. One of the most baffling contradictions I see in life is the prevalence of unhappy joyless people surrounded by an environment of milk and honey and more choices to do, have and experience than ever in the history of the world. Are we pre- programmed to be cynical or just blind to the 'miracle' of existence, or is it a mal-adjustment of our perspective lens? You be the judge Excitement, anticipation, aspiration or however you want to label the charge that gets you up in the morning is probably almost completely aligned with you happiness quotient. Some of the most cranky, uninspiring people I’ve ever crossed paths with have invariably shared a couple of personality traits. One is ambivalence, that devil may care attitude, that on the surface presents as cool and unruffled, but upon closer examination manifests its true essence, that of disenchantment. A second trait shared by these joy...

I have way too many Twitter connections. Let’s not delude ourselves that they are Followers-that’s a misnomer if ever there was one. Yep that’s the price you pay for accepting every request. What you say! How can you have too many? Isn’t the goal to have an infinite number of Tweeters in your tribe? Those with the most followers win-surely. Ok perhaps I’m being overly wry. But have you considered the downside to building a large Twitter base? Too many tweets from anonymous twits create a din, not an orchestra.  The tweets that you actually see are completely random and virtually impossible to engage.  Too many ‘followers’ assume that they now have an intimate relationship with you that justifies them sending you automated direct messages-that under any other circumstances would be considered spam. Why bother then? Well of course it’s not ALL bad! A few minutes browsing especially following the retweets (those are usually the interesting ones) can be very illuminating, ...

“I read the news today, oh boy” The Beatles lyrics echo like a broken record in my head. If you’re under 30 I’ve probably lost you with the insect and antique references! As an avid scanner of newspapers, another soon to be outmoded medium, I’ve been wondering lately if there is any correlation between media exposure to ignorance or wisdom. In Ireland there is an idiom, ‘cop on to yourself’, meaning to get a life and not to be so stupid. It’s one of those neat rebukes that is rarely taken offensively, but serves to highlight and dismiss pretentiousness and stupidity. Which I would argue are one and the same anyway. I would also argue that the degree to which we are exposed to the latest media expose is actually more likely to delude us into believing we are savvy, attuned and wise. If you didn’t tune in to the latest current affairs show, read the newspapers or even listen to the radio, what would happen? No doubt the world would continue to unfold on a daily basis. Howev...

The following Blog is written with intention of providing a wry observation on Life Matters and I am flattered if it encourages commentary-however no offense is intended to those, celebrity or otherwise who are under the curse of depression and a link* is provided below to some resources that may prove useful. In a celebrity obsessed modern culture which parades the foibles, inadequacies and fallibilities of these tabloid icons on the red carpet of our social consciousness, I ask the question: When did it become quaint to embrace serious malaise as trendy? Depression seems to have taken over the mantle from suicide as the new chic of uber-modern social currency. How so? I don’t expect delinquent athletes, supermodels or rock stars to provide a moral compass or embrace the mantle of role models. And yet by virtue of the sheer visibility of their every stumble and muttered obscenity, they do indeed have a profound influence on the malleable mind. A demise of a tenuous flirtat...

Why Are You So Stupid? If you have even a mild reaction to that greeting then you’re in good company. Call me any number of names and direct unsolicited vitriol in my direction and unless your opinion actually matters to me I guess I’ll continue on my merry way. Or not. How many of us are that grounded and rational? 'Why are you so stupid?' is a question that reads differently depending on the word emphasized. There’s also a presumption you are in fact stupid. Fully-grown and productive members of society often revert to the emotional state of a three year old when criticized, particularly if name-calling is involved. This is most in evidence on the anonymous highways of our urban jungle. Placid librarians morph into frenzied psychotic gesticulators and incoherent expletive rendering ranters at the merest of accepted traffic etiquette being breached. In the cold light of day and reasoned contemplation it would appear to be evidence of global lunacy. Let’s assume t...

‘You can’t always get what you want, but you know sometimes you get what you need.’ Inspiring words from Mick and Keith. I have an irrational lack of appetite for shows that purport to be Current Affairs. Not for any compelling reason other than the fact that they gnaw on my soul when I inadvertently wander into the sphere of their influence. Not unlike the sound of long nails clawing across a windowpane or a Celine Dion record for that matter, the irritation is palpable.  Like fodder to sheep or lambs to the slaughter, to prolong the metaphor, the overt manipulation of salacious and highly edited ‘news’ into a neat advertising friendly package, is acutely self serving. So what you may ask?  I have no particular opinion on tabloid journalism. In fact the more outrageous the headlines, the more entertaining and by extension, the less seriously we accept the message. Current affairs shows however, masquerade as arbiters of right and wrong, providing the moral compass ...

Certain phrases and labels mysteriously appear in the everyday lexicon and virally spread. Before long Four Wheel Drive vehicles are the quaint labels used by absent-minded old codgers to describe SUV’s.  Portfolios used to refer to man-purses carried by toffs. All day has morphed in to 24/7 and social networking has erupted from the realm of Church tea and scone get togethers in to the ubiquitous tweeting of mass popular culture. A few years back it seemed like all change was described as a paradigm shift. More recently the term ‘Tipping Point” has made its entrance. Unlike the word paradigm, which is a non-descriptive word without soul and colour, favoured by Lawyers and politicians for the obvious reason that they facilitate obfuscation, I quite like this new player. You can mentally shift gears when imagining a tipping point. With the warp speed evolution of ideas into things and an apparent unquenchable appetite for the novel and uber cool latest technology; ti...