Gourmet English: “Oh yes it is!” “Oh no it isn't!”

Gourmet English: “Oh yes it is!” “Oh no it isn't!”:

“Oh yes it is!” “Oh no it isn't!”

Contrasts. Painters do chiaroscuro - placing very dark colours against very bright ones. Or contrasting colours – yellow against purple, white against black, green against red. Sharp lines against curvy ones. It makes the painting more interesting and emphasises the difference.

Contrasts in writing work too.

Everyone knows how Agatha Christie always chose the most unlikely suspect as the murderer. And the Mousetrap is still selling – or giving – tickets away even in 2019. So I am afraid that I  cannot tell you who did it. 
She is careful to choose a group of contrasting people, too. Colonel Mustard sits with A lovely blonde bimbo. Mr Grumpy sits next to Lady Happiness. And so on. Even Hercule Poirot is a contrast – a Belgian with a silly moustache.
You can see that I am not a fan!

The Chinese knew about contrasts.

In the magnificent I Ching, male and female are contrasted in the form of broken and uninterrupted lines. Water, thunder, Beginning and end, Establishing the New; Falling away. Mystery leads to answer. The present foretells the future.
Initial six - Do not persist in the case - A little dispute - Ends in good fortune.
This all ties in with yesterday's post. In case you have forgotten, it goes something like this:

Pick a subject which everyone knows to be true and then point out the other side.

Spiked Online does this regularly and it makes very edgy copy.

Omar Khayyam – translated into exquisite verse by Edward Fitzgerald:

Awake! for Morning in the Bowl of Night

Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to Flight:

And Lo! the Hunter of the East has caught

The Sultan's Turret in a Noose of Light.

He goes on through the work to advise the drinking of wine as the solution to all problems! This from a devout Muslim.

And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before

The Tavern shouted - 'Open then the Door!

You know how little while we have to stay,

And, once departed, may return no more.'

And he never explains why he does this.

And when like her, oh Saki, you shall pass

Among the Guests star-scatter'd on the Grass,

And in your joyous errand reach the spot

Where I made one - turn down an empty Glass!

You, the puzzled reader, have to understand…

Contrasts: Sometimes they work; sometimes they don't.

Gourmet English: That is Strange...

Gourmet English: That is Strange...:

That is Strange...

Did you know that Josef Stalin's wife committed suicide?
Did you know that Egyptian Christians still sing songs that were once sung to the Pharaoh?
Did you know that only 44% of Londoners are now white British?

All true.

The strange is a good way to get attention.

“Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this Prince of York.” What's that all about then, William?
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” What can Dickens mean?
“Bugger,” said the Duchess, as she pricked her finger on a rose bush. (Blame me for that one.)

Fill the gap at the top of the page with something strange.

Sales people know that to make a sale, you have to gain attention at the very start. If someone is on their phone, don't start until they have finished. If you are addressing a meeting, people have to give you their attention too.
When you open a book or start to read a blog, first impressions count!

Think of a cliché:

Angela Merkel is unattractive. Nazis are all horrible people.  President Trump! Yuck!

Now then:

Pope Benedict: a nice Nazi.

I like Climate Change! Five unknown facts about Good Old President Trump.

Angela Merkel goes naturist.
Strange but true...

Gourmet English: There are two sides to every question.

Gourmet English: There are two sides to every question.:

There are two sides to every question.

If you are a salesman (or woman) and do a presentation, make sure that you only list the good bits! Do not describe the disadvantages. Leave them for later. That is how you arouse the buyer's interest. 
And it is also how you can win an argument. There are two sides - you only talk about your own.

From e bay:

NEW LISTINGHonda CB1000R Tri Colour Low Miles Excellent Condition CB 1000 R MotorbikeHonda CB1000R. Crash Bungs. A very sought after colour combination. 8405 Miles. 2 Previous Owners.

And

NEW LISTINGCBR600RR 2005 RR5 LOWmiles 13kFor sale here is my 2005 Honda cbr600rr with super low miles 13k! Just over 13k miles. Barely run in! currently sorn’ed. No mot- but there’s no reason it would fail. Needs a good clean really. Mirror has paint flaking (may paint before sale - see pic).

Notice how the first bike looks far more attractive. The defects are all honestly noted on the second one, giving a probably false impression of a very unsure sale. The first one, however, is obviously worth a look.

On the other hand…

Sincerity. Understanding. Kindness.
All these words are very attractive. And at the end of the day, the salesman sells himself. If you show these three shining virtues in your argument, it becomes a lot more powerful.
If you show quite clearly that you understand the other person's point of view, together with all its advantages, its emotional appeal and the reasons for it being put forward, people will start to listen carefully when you outline your own reasons for not believing it.


Spiked on Line often sees the other side quite clearly:

There once was a time when the only person who called everyone remotely right-wing a ‘fascist’ or a ‘Nazi’ was Rick from The Young Ones – the ludicrous proto-woke student from that 1980s comedy. Now, everybody is at it.

At the weekend, the London mayor, Sadiq Khan, compared Donald Trump and his supporters to ‘the fascists of the 20th century’. On Tuesday, at a London rally in protest against Trump’s visit, one supporter of the US president was milkshaked and branded ‘Nazi scum’. At the same rally, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn spoke of the ‘hatreds that are being fuelled by the far-right in Britain’. Elsewhere, the MP Anna Soubry has called Brexit supporters ‘fascists’.

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has for years been tarnished with these inaccurate, sensationalist and politically illiterate slurs: ‘fascist’, ‘far right’, ‘Nazi’, etc. This is a man (who) says he is pro-choice and wants some recreational drugs legalised. He has also been accused of wanting to privatise the NHS. In sum, he is an arch-libertarian – the very opposite of a fascist.

And if Trump is a fascist, then Obama was one too, being a president who started building a wall to keep out Mexicans and who bombed countless foreign countries. Indeed, ….

Ever played “Call of Duty?” A good soldier knows all about the enemy… Make sure you do too.

Gourmet English: Ad hominem

Gourmet English: Ad hominem:

Ad hominem.

President Trump wants to rape the English economy. He is just a big baby in a nappy. He sits on the toilet farting and texting rude messages (this from the statue during his state visit). When he says he doesn't see the protests, he is a proven liar. NHS workers scream at him because he is about to privatise the National Health Service...

All personal attack!
And it works!

Will Boris make a good PM? But Boris is immoral. He has just left his wife and gone off with a PR adviser. He also told lies when he was working in Fleet Street and he ordered the buses which cost too much. He made some really silly remarks when he was foreign secretary. So he is totally unsuitable for PM.

And so on. Politics is all about who: not about what.
Diane Abbott was always good for a laugh.
Jeremy Corbyn's antics are still good for scorn too. Then there is buggins and muggins and truggins standing for the leadership…

If you want to win an argument, go for the man not the ball!
Works every time!

There is just one problem.

While we are having fun on Twitter, the real issues are not faced up to. What will happen to the economy when we leave the EU without a settlement? 
Which economy do we want to join – USA or Europe? And what happens if we do? 
Why is a man like Donald Trump elected? What are the voters trying to tell us? 
What is really going on inside the EU which loves its secrecy?Who, for instance, is Frau von der Leyen and how was she chosen and on what grounds and by whom?


Adolf Hitler is always a good person to bring in. If you can't think of anything else, just shout that xxxxx is a Fascist.

 Ad hom - works every time!

Gourmet English: Post hoc, propter hoc.

Gourmet English: Post hoc, propter hoc.:

Post hoc, propter hoc.

It means, (thank you Google Translate) “After this, therefore this.” In other words, if one thing happens after another thing, then the first thing was caused by the second thing. If you, for example, catch a money spider, and then win the Euromillions jackpot, you connect the two and thank the money spider.

An example: The strange death of Dr David Kelly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RSPBsyAB20
Lots of post hoc, propter hoc here!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRsgTHIsovc

Why was the Police investigation called Operation Mason? Masons keep secrets. Therefore there must be some cover up.Dr Kelly's body was discovered inside a tree circle. Therefore it was the secret worshippers who must have killed him and dragged his body there.A man said, “They do things up there”. He meant the woods where Dr Kelly's body was found. After he said this, it was obvious that Dr Kelly had been murdered.Dr Kelly wrote a letter the day before his death: “Many dark actors playing games.” Therefore he must have been murdered by a plot.

If you think about it, none of the above proves anything much.

Further examples:

My friend Mick went to a Muslim country where he stayed in a hotel. Pork was on the menu. He ate it. After eating the pork, he got terrible diarrhoea. That proves the pork was only on the menu to trick non Muslims…
If you pull a silly face and the wind changes, you will stay like that...
Conspiracy theories...
But, let us be truthful here.

Just because something happens after something else, it doesn't mean there is a cause.

This trick can easily be exposed for what it is: post hoc, propter hoc. But if it is used carefully, it can be slipped in.
Like this:

Sir John Scarlett was Chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) from 2004 to 2009. Shortly after the death of Dr Kelly (17 July 2003), Scarlett was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in the Queen's New Years Honours List 2007. (My example: just because the two events followed on, that does not mean they are related: it just can be made to look that way.)

Gourmet English: Assume – and win a captive audience..

Gourmet English: Assume – and win a captive audience..:

Assume – and win a captive audience..

Why am I doing this blog?
Well it is because of this very post.
Today people assume things must be right when actually they aren't. Not right at all.
And if you questions these things, you are immediately dismissed, often with abuse, because they are now settled and Everybody Agrees they are Right. 
Disagree? You are despicable.

Here are some arguments you can win on assumptions:

Recycling? How much are you doing? Are you recycling your plastic?
American trade is dangerous. Did you see about that chlorinated chicken?
Obesity is something which the Conservatives in Glasgow have put at the very top of their to-do list.

Inappropriate touching is something which every child should be taught about from the earliest age. Respectful relationships matter!
The legacy of Cecil Rhodes is racism, slavery and mysogyny.
You can assume in all these cases that you are talking to people who will fall into line behind you.
So you dismiss the opposition with adjectives.

Nigel Farage is man whose Brexit party consists almost entirely of elderly incontinent men.
“On the eve of the president's meeting with the Queen today, the man-child Trump says that it is not too late for the UK to follow his advice and "sue" the EU to give Britain greater "ammunition" in the talks.”

But every single one of these assumptions needs looking into.

They all come with tremendous costs involved.
And when people get disregarded, then they get very angry indeed.

Muslims in Birmingham are furious with the assumption that their children are taught about equal family rights.
Many people on the internet are furious with the Muslims for being favoured above other religions – and none.
Climate change comes with a very noticeable hike in electricity prices which has already closed down the aluminium industry and which will hit poor people hardest. At the moment, wind and solar together provide just about a third of our electricity. The rest? Comes from gas – oh and that's another thing: fracking? Forbidden.
Child safeguarding drives men away. Stranger danger. In Primary Schools and, increasingly in Secondary ones too, men are getting very rare. This, in a time when families are often run entirely by women.

So which male role models do young men follow? Who will play football with them and understand the playground?

People trust other people who have the same unquestioned prejudices.

I am doing this blog to teach everyone to question – and how to question - assumptions.
But, believe me, assumptions do form a very powerful argumentative trick.
You know it makes sense.

Gourmet English: Fair's fair.

Gourmet English: Fair's fair.:

Fair's fair.

What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. Equality. Same all round. Fair go, mate!
If we can show that one section is getting something, why not give everyone a bit too?
This is a very powerful argument.

It underlies a lot of left wing thinking too.

Labour has rediscovered its radical vision. 

Recently, Momentum declared it would be supporting bold policies at this year’s Labour Party conference, including ...the introduction of a four-day working week. Meanwhile, Jeremy Corbyn has pledged to extend Labour’s plan for a higher living wage of £10/hr to workers under the age of 18, and committed to installing solar panels on 1.75 million homes, creating tens of thousands of jobs, cutting fuel costs in the communities that need it most, and fighting the climate emergency. Linking social and climate justice is exactly the right way to enthuse the millions of people Labour needs – young, working class, diverse – to win the next general election.

If rich people can afford to work just a few days a week, to install solar panels, to pay themselves huge salaries and to move seamlessly from job to job, why not everyone? That is justice. Fair go for everyone.

The Conservatives are at it just as much. Fair go for all:

But he (Michael Gove) also recognises that this Government isn’t working for everyone and that putting this right will require a re-thinking and re-energising of our domestic agenda too. Yesterday, he pledged to restore real terms per pupil school funding to 2015 levels.

But...

Underlying most politics in the UK at the moment is this adage: For the many not the few. Fair go for all!

Equality is a very powerful message and one which appeals to nearly everyone. Because we are all equal after all, are we not.

• Equality is, of course, the enemy of excellence. 
• Equality is, of course, the enemy of extraordinary. 
• Equality is, of course, the enemy of outstanding.

And often the people who peddle it are people in very prominent positions, through their own hard work and outstanding capabilities..

Nevertheless, the appeal to equality always seems to work.

Gourmet English: Be Moral

Gourmet English: Be Moral:

Be Moral!

Guilty people feel – well – guilty.
So – make them feel better by showing someone who is even worse!

Lots of examples here.

I could choose the obesity epidemic where people show off their gym toned bodies or their wrinkled faces or their fitness credentials by condemning fat people. It is getting a bit tired now when politicians run blithely up the stairs of Air Force One. Or go jogging, looking ridiculous in their floppy shorts.

Fat politicians – Cyril Smith, Boris Johnson (now slimline Johnson), Tom Watson (now slimline Watson), Eric Pickles – don't do so well on tele as fit young men and women with their necks craned forward looking sincerely into the camera.
We love to destroy people. Fiona Onasanya of Peterborough fame. Boris Johnson's history of very minor faults. Mr Trump's outspokenness…
And we relish showing up the wicked. Sir Philip Green. Bishop Bell. Cliff Richard. Leon Brittan…
Well at least we are better than the lot of them!

Jesus – dare I? - oh go on then! - had a word about this.

The Jews were delighted to find someone who would make a really convincing scapegoat – a woman actually taken in the act of adultery!
WOW!
Stone her! Then everyone could show that at least they weren't that bad!
When asked for his opinion by the clever Jewish religious lawyers, Jesus was (why?) writing in the sand. Eventually he looked up and challenged the people who were without sin to throw the first stone.
(Actually this was quite witty in the original: it went something like this: “If anyone of you never fails to hit the target, let him throw the first stone.”)
One by one they all walked away leaving the woman alone with Jesus. “Go and sin no more,” said the guiltless man.

Erm...

Be Moral

Gourmet English: Sparkle with Opposites!

Gourmet English: Sparkle with Opposites!:

Opposites fascinate the eyes! Yellow and purple. Big and small. Black and white. Shiny and matt. The swastika was a brilliant piece of publicity: the contrast of black and white drew everybody's eyes. It was so powerful, it had to be benned in Germany.

So let's use opposites in our writings!

Shakespeare: “To be or not to be.”
Mr David Cameron: “Vote Blue get Green.” (Remember?)
Oscar Wilde: “The only way to overcome temptation is to give in to it.”

The Zoroastrians, for heaven's sake, founded a whole religion on Light and Dark, Good and Bad.
On the doors of a Crematorium were the words: “Mors janua vitae” - Death is the gateway to Life.

See? Works every time!

Here are some words with their opposites for that witty little repost on your favourite site:

tall/short (eg let's be personal to Mr Bercow and his lovely wife!)

strong/weak (especially for artistic judgements. e.g. “This is a very strong painting.”)

sunny/cloudy (especially for character assassinations. e.g. “Once again a raincloud appears among the comments…”)

tame/wild (“Let's go wild and think!: What a nice safe tame comment is that one!”)

Theirs/yours/ours (They have to do something now to avert a crisis. You have to pay £50 for every time you visit a doctor when you visit one of Our hospitals. All contrasted)