Things Can Only Get 15

False memory syndrome is a thing. So many of us get convinced that two things are related when they are not. As an example, many people think that Neil Kinnock lost the 1992 General Election when he fell in the sea at Blackpool. But that incident happened some years earlier at a Labour Party Conference.

When voting you will call to mind incidents from the past that have fixed your view of individuals and parties. But you may be conflating unrelated things. You may not have noticed that the person or party has changed. Or you may have chosen not to notice and all political opinions have to kneel at the seat of your prejudices.

A man was convinced he was dead. He could not be persuaded that his current life was real. After hours of debate and argument a conclusion was reached that was satisfactory to him and his doubters. Dead men don't bleed. He agreed to endure a pinprick to the thumb to conclude the matters. He was pricked. He bled.

'Well blow me down' he said (it was a Victorian joke) 'Dead men do bleed after all.'

You may not have noticed that the person or party has changed. Or you may have chosen not to notice and all political opinions have to kneel at the seat of your prejudices.