In zero-sum games such as sport, for one to rise, another must fall. But if our love of the underdog is not to turn poisonous, we should try always to focus more on our delight for the victor rather than gloating over the one who has been toppled.
ReadPlato and Aristotle claimed that philosophy begins with wonder. Bryan Magee is proof that for some, the wonder never dies, it only deepens.
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Most of us can honestly say we have no desire to be on the cover of Hello! magazine, yet almost all of us crave recognition, believing that it validates our endeavours. A myth of our age is that talent, dedication and ambition bring such recognition – and its associated rewards – in gastronomy as in everything else. Tiziano Gérard is living proof that this just isn’t true
Read‘A problem shared is a problem halved’ is not a maxim that finds much favour in global politics. Governments earn their mandates, democratic or not, by acting in the interests of their citizens, not those of foreigners. Efforts to counter this parochialism with more universal, benevolent principles have had extremely limited effect…
ReadThere is a great deal of truth in the idea that we all tend to gain from co-operation, which perhaps helps explain why this belief has survived the widespread secularisation of society. Nor does the mere fact that goodness tends to pay prove our motivations are always fundamentally selfish: compassion and kindness can still be sincere, even if they are repaid with interest.
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