Introducing Humanism: Non-religious Approaches to Life - Week 2

I am doing a MOOC on humanism from Humanists UK. 

Here are my thoughts on week 2:

If more than one theory fits the evidence, how can we choose between them?
Different theories should make different predictions which can then be tested to identify which should be preferred.

Does science provide us with the best way of answering questions about the world? Does it provide the best way to give ourselves the highest probability of our beliefs being true?
Science is an approach which helps answer questions about the physical world. It doesn't answer questions about beliefs relating to morals or politics i.e. questions about the non-physical aspects of life.

Does a scientific understanding of nature leave any room for religion when it comes to answering questions about the natural world?
Science hasn't resolved every question relating to the natural world so there there is some uncertainty in our understanding. That uncertainty can be filled with many theories in the short term but over time science will identify the most reliable theory - basically there is room for religious possible answers until a scientific understanding has been developed.

Are there questions science will never be able to answer? If so, does this mean we need religion to provide the answers?
There are questions that science has not answered yet and is unlikely to ever do so (I have learnt to never say never!). I don't think we need religion to provide answers to those questions but religions can provide multiple answers to those questions, as can non-religious approaches.

Introducing Humanism: Non-religious Approaches to Life - Week 1

I am doing a MOOC on humanism from Humanists UK. 

Here are my thoughts on week 1:

What am I hoping to get out of the course?
Whilst i have some understanding of humanist thinking, i want to expand that understanding and be more confident in being able to discuss/argue about it publicly.

What is humanism?
Responses include:

• Living ethically, 
• not believing in a god or gods, 
• thinking of others, 
• not believing in an afterlife, 
• living our one life positively, 
• supporting human rights, 
• scepticism, 
• empathy, 
• evidence-based

The responses fall into two categories: how humanists try to live their lives (ethically, empathetically, supporting human rights, etc.) and what humanists don't believe in (no god or gods, no afterlife, no ghosts, etc.).

A humanist is someone who doesn’t think there’s any supernatural side to this universe we're living in but thinks the universe is a natural phenomenon. They believe morality comes from us, not imposed from a supernatural body. The starting point of our reality comes from our senses. It is also an evidence-based approach. There is no life after death. The meaning of our lives comes from ourselves and is therefore different for everyone. Moral decisions take place in a context of other people's feelings and the implications of the decisions. Humanism is not secularism (the belief in the separation of religion and the state) but they can overlap in many people.

What does it mean to be a human being? 
Physically we are mammals that have evolved to stand on two legs and use our hands to manipulate tools. Internally, we are self-aware and want to develop our individual interests.

International Affairs: Global Governance - Week 4

I am doing a MOOC on global governance from The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. 

Here are my thoughts on week 4:

Blending global governance instruments
Different fields have taken different approached. Food standards have been embedded into the WTO. Labour standards have not, although the USA incorporates them into free trade agreements. different blends in different fields!

Summary
I found the MOOC quite interesting. It introduced me to new terminology (hard and soft laws) and how they are combined differently in different fields.

International Affairs: Global Governance - Week 3

I am doing a MOOC on global governance from The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. 

Here are my thoughts on week 3:

Hard Laws and Soft Laws
A hard law is a treaty/agreement which is agreed by national bodies and contains rights and responsibilities. An example of this is the European Convention on Human Rights which is an international treaty which created a court which can penalise national bodies if judgements go against them.

A soft law is a resolution passed by an international body, which national bodies voluntarily choose to follow. An example of this is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which is a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly. Whilst it affirms a number of rights, they are not legally enforceable.

The arguments in favour of a hard law (and therefore against a soft law) include:
 - they are legally enforceable
 - there is a single interpretation of the law
 - if a national government changes, the law still has to be implemented

The arguments in favour of a soft law (and therefore against a hard law) include:
 - A national body can work towards compliance without being penalised
 - A government has to choose to comply rather than having compliance imposed on them - embedding the policy within the nation
 - Nations can customise their compliance mechanisms to suit their situation

When should hard or soft law be used?
Hard laws should be for enforcement and sanctions. Soft laws should expand and clarify the hard laws e.g. exemptions or an evolving standard that you don't want to make permanent yet. Soft laws might be all that is possible politically at a certain time.

The advantages of soft law
Soft laws can be preludes to hard laws to prepare the ground politically. They are easier to create and amend over time. You don't need hard laws if a soft law will lead to compliance e.g. Basel and banking.

International Affairs: Global Governance - Week 2

I am doing a MOOC on global governance from The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. 

Here are my thoughts on the week 2:

What's the biggest challenge facing the world today?
War, Poverty, Climate Change, Inequality, Terrorism, or Other?
I chose inequality but they are all interrelated and can't be resolved individually.

How to address global problems?
Some problems (e.g. trade and environmental problems, or terrorism) need a multinational response
Does an emphasis on nation-state activities hinder action at a lower level (e.g. US states vs the US on climate change)? Probably, and only going to get worse

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Sustainable Development Goal 17 calls for partnerships between governments, the private sector and civil society
https://www.usaid.gov/news-information/fact-sheets/lgbt-global-development-partnership
The LGBTI Global Development Partnership is a partnership between the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Swedish International Development
Cooperation Agency (Sida) and a range of other partners to support LGBTI human rights and development in 14 countries around the world.

Global governance and the role of nation-states
Should they give up power to larger entities? Citizens feel disconnected from nation-states already, let alone larger entities
Could they devolve powers to cities and regions? Unlikely to give up power!

What are your views on the future of the nation state?
There is pressure to integrate states to include multiple nations (e.g. the EU) but also pressure to split states into single nations (e.g. Scottish independence from the UK).
I would love to see more of the former, to create larger democracies able to stand up to global corporations and resolve global problems but i fear that populist nationalism will lead to more fragmentation and lower the effectiveness of global solutions (by many states opting out of solutions)

International Affairs: Global Governance - Week 1

I am doing a MOOC on global governance from The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies. 

Here are my thoughts on the week 1:

What is Global Governance?
My one word answer: Diplomacy
A framework of values, institutions and agreements to manage international trade and other activities
Temptation to do "deals" rather than "rules" - too much power for richer nations
"Global governance is the sum of the many ways individuals and institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs, as long as those affairs have effect or implications beyond national borders."
Visible - meetings and summits
Invisible - technical outputs of agencies

WTO Summits
Ministerial meetings catalyses other activities
Challenges - logistical and getting consensus at one time
Summits progress day-to-day activities of the WTO

Ad-hoc vs regular summits
Ad-hoc summits would include those focused on a specific topic e.g. Iranian nuclear situation.
Regular summits would include annual organisational meetings e.g. G20.
Summits/organisations combining the two categories would could include some of the summits following the Kyoto treaty (I think they are called Conferences of the Parties) in that they are annual meetings but the specific agenda for each meeting changes.

Invisible governance - standards
Internationally recognised standards - e.g. ISBN code on books - International Standard Book Number
International Organization for Standardization (ISO), a private standard setting organisation with headquarters in Geneva

My 2017 objectives - How did i do?

In January 2017, I set myself 8 objectives for the year. Let’s see how I got on…

1 Hit my fitbit target (10,000 steps per day) 90% of the time

I like my fitbit. It does provide motivation to get out of the house and get some exercise, especially on days when I’m feeling lazy (aka most Sundays!). It also has an app for your phone so you can check the historic data really easily. Here are the number of days in each month that I hit my target:

Jan 28/31 - 90.3%

Feb 28/28 - 100%

Mar 27/31 - 87.1%

Apr 28/30 - 93.3%

May 29/31 - 93.5%

Jun 26/30 - 86.7%

Jul 28/31 - 90.3

Aug 27/31 - 87.1

Sep 27/30 - 90.0

Oct 28/31 - 90.3

Nov 27/30 - 90.0

Dec 26/31 - 83.9

Total 329/365 - 90.1%

Objective achieved (just)! The dogs also benefited from me extending their evening walk just to hit the daily target!

2 Lose 5kg (~11 lbs)

I was quite careful not to say how much I weighed in January but losing 5kg would take me below a symbolic round number of kilograms. I weigh myself when I’m at the gym which pretty much most weeks of the year. Looking at the data, I lost weight in January and February, and managed to achieve my target by the end of March (go me!). My weight then pretty well stayed the same for the rest of the year. I’d put a bit on during a holiday but would lose it again soon afterwards. By the end of the year I had lost 5.4kg so objective achieved!

In March I started a secondment at work that lasted the rest of the year (and into 2018). I am enjoying the new job but it has definitely coincided with me going to the gym much less often. For the last two years I would mostly go three times a week (and it showed in my weight and fitness). By the end of the year I was managing once a week. I do miss it so I think I will try to up my attendance again…

3 Run 5k in a race

I have run quite a few 5kms on a running machine but not in anything I could call a race – so objective not achieved. I have managed to get my personal best down to 27min 34s which I am quite proud of so it’s not all bad!

4 Go to at least two Lib Dem meetings

I wanted to be a bit more politically engaged but wanted to be realistic about my normal motivation to go to evening meetings after a long day at work. I did manage to make it to a local party meeting in February and the Social Liberal Forum (SLF) conference in July so it’s another objective achieved!

5 Deliver leaflets for someone standing for election

In January 2017, my plan was to do some deliveries for local candidates standing in the County Council elections in May. Theresa May then decided to hold an early General Election In June so the campaigning got a bit mixed up. I managed at least three sets of deliveries (I wasn’t good at recording when I did so it is a bit of a blur!). I do enjoy delivering leaflets – I get some exercise, get to know my local area better, and get to be nosey about other people’s front gardens. Objective achieved!

6 Get paid by 6 people to give them a massage

I didn’t plan how or when I would do this so it is not surprising that I didn’t massage anyone in 2017, let alone get paid for doing so - objective not achieved. I did enjoy massaging people and could definitely do with some extra cash so keep an eye out for this in 2018!

7 Write 6 blog posts (that are not just News You Might Have Missed)

My blogging had basically turned into posting monthly news round-ups so I wanted to express myself more. I did manage to post four posts in February about my LGBT heroes as part of LGBT history month:

LGBT heroes - John Maynard Keynes

LGBT heroes - Arthur C Clarke

LGBT heroes - Patrick Trevor-Roper

LGBT heroes - Marguerite Radclyffe Hall

And then one post in July about the SLF conference:

My thoughts on "The Retreat from Globalisation: Social Liberal Forum Conference 2017"

If you throw in my original post about my 2017 objectives then that is six blog posts so I will call that objective technically achieved!

8 Go to one genealogy-related event

I had wanted to kick-start my genealogy hobby by going to a real world event but I never really planned anything so the objective was not achieved. I did invest in the Roots Magic software and did do some more online genealogy but that wasn’t quite what I had hoped to do.

Summary

So I managed to achieve 5 of my 8 objectives. My main lesson learnt was that it isn’t enough to just set an objective for the year. I need to follow each objective up with a plan and then monitor my progress. That is hardly a revelation as I have had project management training but I find it easier to do in a work context rather than in my personal life. So now I just need to come up with my 2018 objectives…