More answer to your questions...

I asked for and received more interview questions from Lord Bargain:

1. Should prison be for punishment or for rehabilitation?

In my opinion, punishment. I know it's not the trendy view, but (in Australia at least):-

(a) a large proportion of people who end up in prison have already been found guilty of a crime or misdemeanor before and punished by community service or a suspended sentence - so I really don't believe that they're going to stop because they've been put in prison;

(b) regardless of what is done in prison in terms of rehabilitation (unless you include putting sex offenders on that drug that takes away their sex drive), anyone who has done prison time is going to find it harder to stay on the straight and narrow when they get out than before they were put away. There is a lot of discrimination (quite possibly justified) against ex-prisoners;

(c) you don't get sent to prison because you need a better education. You get sent there to punish you for a crime you've committed.

That said, I still believe that prisons should be humane places, free from torture and deprivation of basic human dignity. Sure, there are some horrible aspects of prison life that are necessary to keep the prison population safe and to control the gangs, but prison guards and/or fellow prisoners shouldn't be able to satisfy any masochistic urges using the prison system.

And that's not to say that I don't think that the rehabilitation services should be removed. If a prisoner finds religion, or becomes educated, and stops committing crime as a result of that, I still think that's a good result for the community.

2. Is blood really thicker than water?

Sure! Have you ever seen the viscosity of blood? It's thick, gunky stuff. ;o)

Seriously though, no - I don't think it is. I think that I would do anything for my family because I know that they would do anything for me. It's a mutual trust and respect thing that probably has more to do with the fact that we all just know each other so well, than to do with the biological similarities. I think we would be the same if one of the kids was adopted at birth.

3. What is the thing you have done in your life that you are least proud of?

*ponders* That's a tough one. Partially because there are lots of things in my life that I'm not proud of, but also because I don't often think about them, so I had to dredge in my memory to think of the most despicable things I've done.

I did some pretty nasty stuff when I was a kid, but I had problems that were beyond my control and I never did anything intentionally cruel. I've told lies that have troubled my conscience, but not one that caused any adverse result that I was aware of. I hurt and manipulated my parents over and over when I was a kid, but I can't think of any one event that stands out.

And then there's a couple of things I've done that I'm not prepared to share on this blog. I may be anonymous to most people, but there are a couple of friends out there who read this who know who I am. I don't think they'd judge me, but the possibility of being "outed" and having something I've written held against me, or revealed to the wrong person, is always a possibility.

So, I think the thing I'm least proud of (that I'm prepared to reveal) is the way I broke off my friendship with The Ex when I found out about him and the one after me. Sure, I was badly hurt, and sure, it was self-preservation, but I still have a bit of guilt there because I think he's a little more damaged now than he was before. And maybe if I'd been able to be a bit stronger, we wouldn't have been estranged for so long.

4. What's the most important quality you look for in a partner?

Probably intelligence. It doesn't have to be book-learning intelligence, but I have to respect him, and I don't tend to respect unintelligent people. In fact, I can be downright cruel to someone I think is stupid or lacking in common sense, especially someone I'm emotionally involved with, because it's inevitable that you'll hurt each other, and my tongue is a vicious weapon when I'm hurt. But also because I don't mind playing the role of teacher, but I also like to learn.

I think I would put intelligence above a sense of humour. Mainly because I think everyone has a sense of humour - it's just that some are easier to understand or easier to unleash than others. And I laugh at anything except cruelty. ;o)

5. Would you marry for money, and if not, would it be a consideration anyway?

Finally! An easy one! The answer is no. Money would never be a consideration for me, because:-

(a) I earn very good money myself;
(b) I've never really been a fan of the big money lifestyle; and
(c) Anyone with intelligence and a bit of common sense can always earn money if they need to.

However, if someone of my age was in an extreme amount of debt, I guess that would be a consideration. It would depend on how they got there, but I've generally found that someone who is very bad with money doesn't get along well with me for long. I have certain thrifty tendancies which would grate against that sort of personality. So I guess it's still less of an issue of money, than an issue of personality, which the lack of money would be a symptom of.

I was actually having a conversation about this sort of thing with a colleague today. Part of my lack of ambition and lack of assets comes from the fact that I live for today, and leave the future to sort itself out. If, for some reason, I'm unable to earn good money in the future, I'm sure I'll get by. I don't really see the point in (for example) putting all of my money into buying a house, if it means that I can't have a life now and do the things I enjoy doing. *shrugs*

Listening to: Chris Pickering - Hard to find