A CHANGE HAD BETTER COME

 Thanks Sam. There have been many changes since you wrote and performed that song not the least you getting murdered soon after.

Not all the changes have been good however with many opportunities having been lost with modernisation and the headlong rush to embrace new technology. Social upheaval, decline of family values, the widening of the gap between rich and poor are just a few of the failures of modern society.

The internet - the 'world wide web' is an example of how such a wonderful creation can be distorted and abused. An information and communication platform that could only have been dreamed about in my earlier life has become a means of transferring misinformation, hatred, racism, pornography and extreme political views that would have been the envy of Goebbels. Many social media platforms have managed to destroy legitimate news media, literature and normal neighbourhood interaction allowing trolling and the worst of human nature to surface and to get a hearing. I reluctantly use Facebook to access the Neighbourly site to keep abreast of news and developments in the area I live in which is essential when living in a rural community and to keep contact with civil defence and citizen associations that I'm (now loosely) connected to. I'm appalled at much of the diatribe that is posted and commented though. Much of it is nasty and libellous but disturbingly, demonstrates ignorance of fact and reality which is self-perpetuating because the worst offenders get their news and information from - you guessed it - Facebook.

AI already is making inroads into education and employment and the new ChatGPT platform is the most dangerous yet in that it instantly creates viable looking essays, arguments, CVs and other 'writings' that will be used to cheat, lie and obfuscate. While looking viable this AI created stuff lacks common-sense, experience and a moral compass and will require readers to take a much closer interest to try and ascertain the truth. Good luck with that.

Another modern trend that is more backward than improvement is the 'engineering' of consumer goods and foodstuffs to make more profit for the manufacturer. This is the real reason for this post. Today I had a poached egg on a toasted English muffin for lunch. I haven't had one of these for ages but, as The Old Girl had bought some yesterday I thought I'd give it a go. Boy was I disappointed. The poached egg was OK - I make a good one which I'll tell you about sometime - ha ha, just kidding. I'll tell you about it now:

Bring some water to boil in the smallest pot you have. We have a tiny saucepan that's ideal.

Crack an egg into a very small bowl. When the water is simmering strongly, add a splash of vinegar (I used white wine vinegar) and stir vigorously with a spoon to create a whirlpool. Carefully pour the egg from the bowl into the whirlpool and simmer for a few minutes depending on how you like the consistency of your poached egg. The whirlpool effect holds in the white of the egg so that it doesn't spread out and when you lift the egg out with a slotted spoon the egg white and yolk are in a nice oval shape.

The English muffin though was a disappointment. For a start it was much smaller and thinner than ones I'm used to. The manufacturers have reduced the size and increased the price in an attempt to maintain margins after greedy grocers have stripped their profits. Unfortunately for them this is a way of losing customers. I won't by any in the future. The muffin was a pale imitation of what I remember with a minimal amount of cheese in it and lacked fluffiness. Ingredients had obviously been engineered downwards.

This is the case with much of the favourite food and drinks that are available today. Sizes are reduced and quality compromised. Younger generations are being gypped and, worse, they don't know how good things once were.

I hope for their and future generations sakes that things will change for the better.