violence is a STATE of mind: and ...? | |||
|
My source: Financial Times. 9 September, 2026, p.1.
Cathleen Schine, Ungovernable, Capricious Life, The New York Review of Books, April 10, 2025, Volume LXXII, Number 6, pp.15-16.
Shattered by Hanif Kureishi. Ecco, 328 pp., $28.00
 |
| 'Shattered' c/o Penguin |
'Hanif Kureishi, the English playwright, screenwriter, and novelist, posted these words on his Substack in January 2023:
On Boxing Day, in Rome, after taking a comfortable walk to the Piazza del Popolo, followed by a stroll through the Villa Borghese, and then back to the apartment, I had a fall.I had been following Kureishi's Substack for a while out of admiration, curiosity, and loyalty-though Id met him only once, briefly. His dispatches were warm and entertaining, often about the writer's life. But this one was shocking:
I cannot move my arms and legs. I cannot scratch my nose, make a phone call or feed myself. As you can imagine, this is both humiliating, degrading and a burden for others.According to his hospital report, his fall resulted in neck hyperextension and immediate tetraplegia. An MRI scan showed a severe stenosis of the vertebral canal with signs of spinal cord injury from c3 to C5. It was unclear, he said, whether he would be able to walk again "or whether I'll ever be able to hold a pen." He was speaking these words through Isabella, who was slowly typing them into her iPad.' p.15.
shattered | SHATTERED |
| SHATTERED |
'A hospital is the place from which modesty and dignity disappear, desert you, seemingly forever, as soon as you cross the threshold. Kureishi, a reliably sexy, unrestricted writer, presents the physical deterioration and indignities he undergoes with his usual wit. The sense of vulnerability is crushing, but it is also one of the characteristics Kureishi reveals about himself that makes him so likable here, and the writing so intimate. The tone is remarkable: even the self-pity has no self-pity. One way he achieves this is by sprinkling punch lines throughout:
I woke up and started to cry. When you cry you must wipe away your tears, which is something I'm unable to do. So my eyes filled with bitter salty water and I got into a panic and thought I might lose my eyesight along with everything else. Finally, a kind nurse came into my room and downed me with a good dose of Lorazepam, then she touched me on my cheek and said, "It's not so bad, at least you're not in a coma."' pp.15-16.
How many dimensions does a written - narrative record have?
Sketching out some ideas, I asked the question on Google and as usual an AI Overview response followed - snippet:AI Overview
A physical written record has two primary spatial dimensions (length and breadth/width) as a flat document, or three dimensions (including thickness or depth/height) when considering its physical form or binding. [1, 2]
In archival and Records Continuum theory, a written record exists dynamically across four conceptual dimensions: [1, 2].
I put the question to the Records Management list with the above snippet and received several useful suggestions and sources. Perhaps I can share that at a future point?
Acutely aware of not pursuing maths and category theory for its own sake, the query was driven by an attempt to look at Hodges' model in mathematical terms. Starting, rather obviously with the models structure and axes. When the model is assembled, as per many posts, the vertical axis:
INDIVIDUAL
|
GROUP
- shouts out the issue of parity and the distinction between mind and body. It does this at the individual and collective level. If we were to draw a silo, a cylinder springs to mind, and there are specific reasons for silos adopting this shape. Descartes gives us the perfect excuse, in the ongoing legacy.
 |
| Mathematical Visions |
The question above came up from Joan L. Richards book 'Mathematical Visions' (c/o Lancaster Univ. library). Euclidean and the emergence of projective geometry is described. There is an interplay between 2D and 3D representation, that made me think about the health record and its dimensions. Not in a dataset sense (multi-dimensional), more generally and concretely(?). A patient's record on paper has physical dimensions (A4), there is a flow. An EHR has its virtual dimensions (discuss!). Abstractly the content is a time machine. At some point in a health encounter it is a literal 'history', the level of detail in accord with the context. The record might present the problem, premorbid situation, diagnosis, current state, observations and prognosis and much more.
I can revisit this, Richards provides a series of figures. We progress from two distinct circles (my silos) through to examples with a discussion of continuity and projection that sees the circles touching, then intersecting. This is a radical axis.
Richards, Joan L. (1988), Mathematical Visions: The Pursuit of Geometry in Victorian England, Boston: Academic Press, ISBN0-12-587445
Book cover: Amazon.
World Patient Safety Day calls for global solidarity and concerted action by all countries and international partners to improve patient safety.
The Day brings together patients, families, caregivers, communities, health workers, health care leaders and policy-makers to show their commitment to patient safety.
The resolution WHA 72.6 ‘Global action on patient safety’ recognizes patient safety as a global health priority and endorses the establishment of World Patient Safety Day to be observed annually on 17 September. ...
Source: https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-patient-safety-day
The discovery of a reading group on philosophical counselling (PC), through University of Liverpool, continues to prove helpful; to utilise professional experience, that included counselling, family therapy, cognitive therapy in psychoses, and practical experience as a mental health nurse (in-patient and community). There is overlap with Hodges' model, but it's fascinating and rewarding to listen and learn from practitioners of PC. As noted before, I was aware of PC through two popular philosophy magazines. This time around we read:
Ran Lahav, “Philosophical Counseling and Self-Transformation,” in Philosophy, Counseling, and Psychotherapy, eds. Elliot D. Cohen & S. Samuel Zinaich, Jr. (Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2013), 82.
Abstract
This paper presents my approach to philosophical counseling, which is geared towards self-transformation, and is inspired by important thinkers throughout the history of Western philosophy whom I call transformational thinkers. I take from these thinkers the realization that our daily life is normally confined to rigid and superficial attitudes towards ourselves and our world. This is because individuals’ everyday attitudes are based on limited understandings of life, which form what I call the person’s perimeter, or perimetral worldview. The goal of philosophical counseling, as I see it, is to help counselees transcend their constricted perimetral worldview, or in the language of Plato – to realize that they are imprisoned in a “cave,” and then to step out of it towards a fuller reality. A case study is presented to illustrate the two main stages of the counseling process.
I know there is the (biblical) phrase 'Seek and you will find'; but there is also the notion of seeing only what you seek, and missing other content - contexts. This is marked in beliefs and the development of delusional ideas.
Of interest to me, Lahav discusses (as indicated above) a person’s perimeter, or perimetral worldview.
We still hear how difficult it is for people to access help. I wondered (again) about referral pathways for PC? The nature of the person's problems that prompts them to seek help? Lahav acknowledges the complexity here. Speaking of 'prompt', of course now there is AI in the mix. Lahav points out how PC does not quite have the foundation and hence theoretical impetus (and rigour?) that Freud provided to psychoanalysis and psychotherapy.
PC is, however, to some extent a broad field: '... philosophical practice has come to include several different formats in which it is practiced: one-time workshops for the general public, philosophical retreats, long-term self-reflection groups, the philosophical café, and of course philosophical counseling'.
I wonder if philosophical counsellor's could have a role, post AI / agentic ai interventions. This could provide a step-down assurance, and be rolled into 'treatment / intervention programmes'. This could help retain the humanistic element of duty of care, underscore the person_al in care architectures/systems and provide a step-down - just in-case AI has missed, or upset something? The acknowledged strength of AI in not being subjective is balanced. Although evidence also points to misogynistic responses derived through what can be biased, and prejudiced learning sources: thus a reflection of 'society'.
In the introduction, more encouragement with reference to situated, a general map, and basic - fundamental aspects. There are (at least) two domains: 'the domain of philosophical discourse and the domain of everyday life and predicaments'.
Hodges' model was created to facilitate the FIRST approach in PC, the Critical Thinking Approach, with an associated subtype of Problem-Solving Approach.
It was also designed to help with the theory-practice gap. Lahav describes this in the how and what of philosophy and PC itself. I wondered to what extent if the approach of PC 'leave out the more important “what” of great philosophies.' then would a counselee be denied avenues to learning, as we may be drawn to specific philosophical schools of thought, and crucially reasoning?
The SECOND approach to PC is the Edification Approach. The author has adopted this second approach in practice.
Guess what? Yes, you've got it. Hodges' model can actually close a circle here. Or, more accurately help sustain the reflective, reflexive, recursive ... reasoning loop as needed. Another objective of Hodges' model is to produce reflective practitioners, critical thinkers and lifelong learners.
A take-away for me is the 'perimeter and the perimetral worldview'. A search for 'perimeter' here on W2tQ is null.^ I'm also wondering about transformation (in the title) and throughout the paper.
There may be an example here were a domain of Hodges' model can itself reflect the model, as in the Intra- Interpersonal domain below.
Lahav employs a case study to illustrate his thought and practice. The discussion really helped improve my reading and understanding of this.
Psychology | Philosophy(-isms) | basic - fundamental |
case study | referral pathways |
Abstract [ REVIEW | Article in Press ]
In 2014, a large systematic map found that relational factors were amongst the most frequently reported facilitators of evidence use in policy. Since then, there has been a growth in evidence-use initiatives and research, many of which have attempted to address relational factors. In this timely updated map, we describe the current state of research about which factors influence evidence use in policy. A search strategy combining ‘evidence’, ‘barriers and facilitators’ and ‘policy/policymakers’ was used to identify studies across 15 electronic databases between 2012 and 2022. Studies were screened for those that include empirical data about evidence use in policy. Data extraction enabled descriptive analyses characterising studies in terms of focus, topic area, setting, and types of factors influencing use. Two thousand, one hundred and ninety-nine studies were included, a 20-fold increase over 10 years. The most commonly reported factors influencing use were the relevance of evidence, and then organisational (resources, skills, personnel and managerial support). A large number of studies reported on evidence-use interventions (n = 877) of which 379 were evaluations. Findings may indicate a shift towards relational and systemic thinking about evidence use. There appears to be a growing recognition of the resourcing, work, time, and workforce required to embed evidence use within and between organisations. With this huge growth in the literature, particularly in new evidence use interventions being tested across policy sectors, continued review and mobilisation is necessary to effectively inform the design and implementation of evidence use interventions and research.
Oliver, K., Malin, J., Akerlof, K.L. et al. What factors influence evidence use in policy? An updated systematic map. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. (2026).
https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-08391-6
Not a citation for Hodges' model, but I am grateful to Prof. Oliver and co-authors for being able to assist with data extraction using EPPI-Reviewer Screening Wizard. The preceding patience and guidance to complete the coding tasks was also invaluable in being transferable. I learned a great deal and it has been perversely reassuring (disheartening!) to see that the path to final publication is also 'circuitous' for academics.^ An additional lesson is building on existing work and publication (Oliver, 2014) to revisit a method and research question. (Updates to follow).
Previously: 'map' : 'systematic' : 'policy'
^A conclusion, much shared I believe: academic publishing is systematically dysfunctional.
 |
| The Examined Illness |
THOUGHT
EDUCATION
DESIGN
THOUGHT Cognitive maps Your - Sense of direction? | Maps DESIGN 'True South' |
EDUCATION for All | Maps - Power Our - |
Previously: 'thought' : 'education' : 'design' : 'cognitive map'
My source: https://x.com/NobelPrize/status/2098073718371262921?s=20 and @TED_ED
All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms;
And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lin’d,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances;
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slipper’d pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;
His youthful hose, well sav’d, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion;
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.
Source: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/56966/speech-all-the-worlds-a-stage
 |
| TIME FRAMES |
'As Shakespeare and his contemporaries wrote for the epic scale, the imaginative commitment and the 360-degree embrace of the Globe so, three hundred years later, generations of playwrights wrote for the velvety darkness, the enclosed acoustic and the picture framing of the proscenium arch.
For a century, the story of the changing world was told inside proscenium theatres, by a series of remarkable playwrights. In over sixty irreverent, illuminating pen portraits – of both famous giants and lesser-known talents – Dominic Dromgoole takes us on a journey from 1865 to 1965, revealing how these writers used the framed stage to reflect the social upheavals of their times.'
 |
| Hodges' model: Axes and Domains |
Of course, the question posed here might be re-framed as:
Are the axes of Hodges' model, life and death's proscenium arch?
Dominic Dromgoole (2026) Time Frames: A century of proscenium playwrights. London: Faber.
https://www.faber.co.uk/product/9780571374113-time-frames/ [Text source].
'I think my favourite story to work on has been the 434 dinosaurs that are in the tapestry. So much has changed about what we know about dinosaurs and all because the study of fossils and dinosaurs has grown up alongside geological survey for mining and petroleum drilling. Studies say dinosaurs were much more colourful than originally imagined and many were feathered, and in fact birds are their distant relatives. Only 50 years ago we were taught that oil was made from decomposed dinosaurs and plants. Today research suggests oil formed from aquatic algae, called diatoms. Much more than half of all life on earth died in a mass extinction at the end of the Cretaceous period. The most agreed upon theory, based on research, suggests the cause was when an asteroid collided with the earth and triggered volcanic eruptions, that disrupted weather patterns, growing seasons and ecosystems. This one-two punch killed off the majority of Earth’s flora and fauna, including the dinosaurs, all of which were unable to adapt to the changes in climate.' |
The Black Gold Tapestry | ||
My source: Sandra Sawatzky, Oil in a Material World, Resurgence & Ecologist, Nov/Dec 2022, Issue 335, pp.52-55.
See also: https://www.theblackgoldtapestry.com/
Previously: 'Canada' : 'environment' : 'activism'
As is oft the case, I recovered a newspaper cutting (or ripping) that made my feet feel drier, for several moments at any rate ...
Reading this really gave me a lift, given the ongoing state of world events then and now:
The Australia-Tuvalu Falepili Union treaty was signed on 9 November 2023 and entered into force on 28 August 2024.
As part of the Falepili Union treaty, Australia has:
- recognised for the first time in a legally binding treaty, Tuvalu's continuing statehood and sovereignty, notwithstanding the impact of climate-change related sea-level rise
- committed to assist Tuvalu in response to a major natural disaster, health pandemic or military aggression
- created a special visa pathway to support mobility with dignity, which will enable citizens of Tuvalu to come to Australia to live, work and study.
There are also obligations under the Treaty to ensure Australian interests are protected and to facilitate the smooth operation of the migration pathway and increased security cooperation:
- Tuvalu is obliged to ensure its immigration, passport, citizenship and border controls are robust and meet international standards for integrity and security
- Tuvalu will mutually agree with Australia any partnership, arrangement or engagement with any other State or entity on security and defence-related matters in Tuvalu.
Continued ...
My source: Nic Fildes, Migration: Australia offers Tuvalu residents visa to escape climate change. FTWeekend, 11-12 November 2023, p.4.
To mark its 10-year anniversary, arts and mental health charity Hospital Rooms presents a major exhibition at Victoria Miro this September.
Bringing together leading contemporary artists from across the Hospital Rooms programme, the exhibition features re-creations of monumental new artworks created for hospitals this year, alongside artists the organisation has collaborated with over the past decade. It reflects on the impact of transforming NHS mental health environments through art, while looking ahead to expanding access to creative programmes nationwide.
Call for Papers
How important has socialism been to adult education? For most of history, adult education – structured learning, involving organised study and usually teaching – was restricted largely to social and religious elites. During the nineteenth century, however, as the industrial revolution tore apart the bonds of ‘traditional’ economies and societies, propelled migrants to towns and foreign lands, and demanded mastery of new skills, new popular democratic movements arose – most profoundly, the socialist movement.
In Britain, prior to the Elementary Education Act 1870, few working-class people had any formal education; even after that opportunities were limited. In response, a diverse range of non-statutory voluntary adult education organisations emerged. These included the Mutual Improvement Societies, the Young Adult Schools, the Education Settlements, the Mechanics’ Institutes, the Working Men’s College, University Extension, Co-operative Education, the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA), and Independent Working Class Education and the Labour College Movement. Some were deeply linked with socialism – others more tenuously, if at all – but together they made adult education in literacy, technical skills and knowledge, the liberals arts and politics accessible to many adults.
Through the twentieth century, at least until the neo-liberal era, the influence of socialist ideas and movements on adult education was deep. In the 21st century, however, the forces of global capitalism have systematically sought to marginalise socialist (and democratic) thought. As jobs, and much work that rewards the human spirit, are threatened by the advance of Artificial Intelligence, adult education is more and more expected to meet the objectives of “the economy” and the labour market. Wider educational purpose is ignored.
How have we come to this? The marginalisation of socialist perspectives is by no means confined to adult education. Yet so central was adult education to the emergence and growth of socialism – and the reverse is also true – as to pose essential and urgent questions. In what ways did adult education contribute to the development of socialism? Why did socialist perspectives play so central a role in the practice of adult education – and did they enrich or constrain it? What can we learn from examining the part that socialism, and socialists, played in adult education’s rich history?
We aim to revisit the topic of adult education and socialism in Britain in the 21st century through a special issue of the journal Socialist History. It seeks to revive the field of study, and to explore the idea to meet the diverse needs of a multi-cultural society more – rather than less – adult education is needed – and that the adult education needed should be broad rather than narrowly job-related. This is especially relevant to consider in connection with the new Lifelong Learning Entitlement which has the potential to transform how post-18 students fund and approach their studies throughout the course of their lifetimes.
What new research perspectives can academics – and scholar-practitioners and activists – from all disciplines bring to the history of adult education, and to the understanding of socialist approaches to improving economic, social and cultural welfare?
We invite submission of abstracts of approx. 300 words. They may explore any aspect of the interlinked history of adult education and socialism. We welcome contributions relating not only to Britain, but to Europe (western, central and eastern) and other locations around the world. Topics may include (but are not limited to):
Please email abstracts with your affiliation, a short biography and contact information to:
john.holford AT nottingham.ac.uk and p.kumbhat AT staff.newman.ac.uk.
The deadline for submission of abstracts is Friday 30th October 2026.
We hope to convene a symposium on this theme on Wednesday 7th April 2027 at Birmingham Newman University, where contributors can discuss their draft papers and ideas. The symposium will provide an opportunity to share work in progress, receive feedback, and develop papers to be considered for publication in the Socialist History special issue in autumn 2027. The April symposium will be an in-person event, although authors based outside the UK will have the option of presenting remotely via Microsoft Teams.
My source: Bob Foster, Admin: https://www.raymondwilliamsfoundation.org.uk/
UN tells the world: Stop making Africa look small
'By 164 votes to one, Member States on Friday endorsed a resolution promoting map projections that more accurately reflect the true size of continents – the culmination of an African-led campaign against the 16th-century Mercator projection, still the most widely used map in the world.
The United States cast the sole vote against, dismissing the initiative as part of a “radical ideological project.”
Six countries – Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine – abstained.
The resolution does not ban the Mercator projection or impose a replacement. Instead, it encourages governments, schools, international organizations and technology companies to use the Equal Earth projection and other so-called equal-area maps when relative size matters, and to teach the limitations of any flat map in representing a spherical planet.'
Intima: A Journal of Narrative Medicine is a literary journal dedicated to promoting the theory and practice of narrative medicine, an interdisciplinary field that enhances healthcare through the effective communication, empathy and understanding between clinicians, caregivers and patients. Our name Intima has a specific resonance in the field: For us, narrative involves the intimate interface between people, who yield and gain from the experience of stories involving the clinical encounter.
The word itself has an anatomical reality: intima is the thin layer lining a blood vessel, speeding blood to the heart and brain, an apt analogy for the kind of narratives we publish that speak to the emotions and the intellect, the feelings and facts that engage the senses in stories with meaning and impact..
.webp) Intima, Fall 2013 | |
Art - https://www.theintima.org/missionandvison also reminded of Escher and Byte Magazine.
My source: Intima list
Previously: 'creativity' : 'crossroads' : 'narrative'
Dear colleagues,
Book onto our celebration for Black History Month.
Join us for a full day at the Friend's Meeting House in Manchester to celebrate Black History Month!
North west members are invite to join us in celebration alongside the RCN President, who is making a special trip to Manchester to join us for part of the day. This year we will be exploring the theme: From Allyship to Action: Building an Inclusive, Anti-Racist Future for Nursing.
The event, organised by the member-led North West Multicultural Group, will hear from speakers including:
Estephanie Dunn: Non-Executive Director of the Caribbean and African Health Network (CAHN)
Estephanie will discuss exceptionalism and how intentional and unintentional actions can negatively impact equity, inclusion and belonging in healthcare. Her session will encourage reflection on bias, challenge inequitable practices, and promote more inclusive workplaces for all.
Temitope Babajide: General Practice Nurse
Creator of both the General Practice Nurse Starter Manual and a separate nursing-themed colouring book, will share her inspiring journey in primary care. Her session will recognise and celebrate the historic and ongoing contributions of Black nurses, while showcasing the achievements, leadership and influence of Black nursing professionals in the North West and beyond.
Patricia Hughes: Associate Director RCN : Nursing Practice Nursing
Patricia will focus on equality, leadership and career progression, encouraging greater representation of Black nurses in senior and decision-making roles.
Bejoy Sebastian: RCN President
The President, will discuss the importance of allyship and the role nursing professionals play in creating anti-racist, inclusive workplaces. He will recognise and celebrate the significant contributions of Black nurses to the NHS and wider health and social care sector. The session will explore how inclusive leadership, workforce equality standards and fair career progression can help create a culture of belonging. Attendees will be encouraged to take practical action to challenge discrimination, support equality and inspire the next generation of nursing leaders.
Anandi Ramamurthy: Professor of Media and Culture, Sheffield Hallam University; Principal Investigator, Nursing Narratives: Racism and the Pandemic; Co-Editor, Anti-Racist Nursing and Midwifery: A Resource for Students, Practitioners and Activists.
The Anti-Racist Nursing and Midwifery book, the Nursing Narratives research project, and the film 'Exposed'.
There will also be a panel discussion and a poetry workshop and 'Allyship in Action' challenge workshop in the afternoon.
Book now to avoid missing out. This event will take place in person and is open to all North West members. A sandwich lunch is provided.
For further information regarding the aims and objectives of the NW Multicultural Group, please visit our webpage.
Olanike Babalola
Olanike.Babalola AT reps.rcn.org.uk
 |
| Brian E. Hodges - c/o Brian's family. |
Born in Liverpool, NW England, UK.
Community Mental Health Nurse NHS, Part-time Lecturer,
Researcher Nursing & Technology Enhanced Learning
Registered Nurse - Mental Health & General
Community Psychiatric Nursing (Cert.) MMU
PG Cert. Ed.
BA(Joint Hons.) Computing and Philosophy - BIHE - Bolton
PG(Dip.) Collaboration on Psychosocial Education [COPE] Univ. Man.
MRES. e-Research and Technology Enhanced Learning, Lancaster Univ.
Live and work in NW England - seeking a global perspective.
The views expressed on W2tQ are entirely my own, unless stated otherwise.
Comments are disabled.
If you would like to get in touch please e-mail me at
h2cmng AT yahoo.co.uk
orcid.org/0000-0002-0192-8965
