Sensitivity to the laws of human nature.

Tiarnan is only six years old. Yet, in his few years, he has come to certain assessments of the nature of people which are interesting to hear, at times.

He was watching “Once upon a time”, recently. This is a TV series in which a fairy tale world and the real world collide, with fairy tale characters living in our world. Tiarnan quite likes this. The other day we got a peek into the kinds of things he is thinking as he watches it.

Having observed the characters for a few episodes, he suddenly piped up, whilst watching it:

“Good guys can become bad but bad guys cannot become good.”, he said to his mummy. He said this because he clearly did not believe that one of the bad characters was being genuinely good, as he appeared to be. Tiarnan was "seeing through" his behaviour. It was surprising, given his extreme youth, that he had not been fooled, by the character's actions and words - because, superficially, they did seem like "good" acts.

We were both quite taken by this, because it seemed he had used the evidence of the personalities at play in the TV show, to draw a general rule about human behaviour - and to come to his own view about a particular person's moral nature. This is a very rational thought process, akin to what scientists do: gather evidence, and spot patterns, to draw up laws. That is what Tiarnan is doing, about people. It is interesting to witness his developing understanding of people – and to see just how he thinks about them.

I see in Tiarnan’s human rule making, a cross between Syahidah’s thinking and my own. Syahidah is socially skilled and I have a tendency to invent laws, in the scientific manner: Tiarnan is crossing both thinking styles to deduce his own laws of human nature. Of course, this is just the beginning of his thinking about people. It will be interesting to see how far he takes this approach to understanding people, in future. Perhaps, not all TV watching is useless!

Posted by Valentine Cawley

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If you would like to see an online summary of my academic achievements to date, please go here: http://www.getcited.org/mbrz/11136175To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html



I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.



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Please have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.



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Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is athttp://www.genghiscan.com/This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

Of Casinos and confectionery.

“Mum,” began Fintan, eight, with a certain puzzled intensity, “Why is gambling a sin?”

Syahidah’s curious eyes appraised his puzzled eyes, a little surprised at the question.

“It is a sin because gambling is addictive and it ruins your life.”

“Oh my God!”, Fintan exclaimed, with shocked, widening eyes, “What is chocolate, then? I am addicted to chocolate!”

She had to smile, at the connection he drew – and reassured him that chocolate was fine.

This little conversation didn’t stop him eating chocolate, subsequently, though perhaps he indulged a little more appreciatively of his “addiction”.

I like Fintan’s question. It shows that he is trying to understand the moral codes of adults and come to an appreciation of why it is that certain behaviours are thought bad and others not. It also shows that he considers that this adult labelling is not intrinsically clear – that is, things which we deem wrong, do not necessarily appear wrong to him. He could not, himself, understand why gambling would be a “sin”. He must have considered the activity – the playing of games for money – and not been able to see what was wrong with that. This suggests that the innate morality of a child and the constructed morality of adults are not the same thing. He appraises the morality of things from a fresh, innocent and largely uninfluenced position, not yet having been indoctrinated into adult thinking. It is refreshing to see him come to his own viewpoints as to what is wrong and what is not. Of course, by asking his mother for her understandings, he is seeking to teach himself the adult world’s moral stance – or at least the moral stance of my wife’s adult world. However, I see that, in him, there is another morality, already extant, to which he is comparing his mother’s views.

This leads me to wonder what his moral views would be, were he not to be instructed at all in the constructed adult world’s ones. Would his views remain as they are now – the moral outlook of a child? The experiment cannot be done, and should not be, for moral reasons, ironically...but it is interesting to speculate how much of our moral views are indoctrinated as we grow up, and how many are intrinsic. It is clear that Fintan has intrinsic views, but that he is seeking an understanding of the extrinsic ones. This suggests that he is prepared to believe that those outside himself, have more moral understanding than he does. His outlook therefore, is that he is prepared to learn what people he trusts believe to be so.

It is revealing that he considers moral issues at all. I am not sure how many kids these days, actually think of moral matters...but Fintan does. He is concerned that he lives his life, in the right – but to do so, he must first come to an understanding of what is right, and what is not.

I mustn’t let him spoil his enjoyment of chocolate, though...for that would be an unnecessary loss. Now, I am just going to give him a piece of one of his favoured chocolate bars...

Posted by Valentine Cawley

(If you would like to support my continued writing of this blog and my ongoing campaign to raise awareness about giftedness and all issues pertaining to it, please donate, by clicking on the gold button to the left of the page.

To read about my fundraising campaign, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-in-support-of-my.html and here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-first-donation.html

If you would like to read any of our scientific research papers, there are links to some of them, here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/02/research-papers-by-valentine-cawley-and.html

If you would like to see an online summary of my academic achievements to date, please go here: http://www.getcited.org/mbrz/11136175

To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

There is a review of my blog, on the respected The Kindle Report here:http://thekindlereport.blogspot.com/2010/09/boy-who-knew-too-much-child-prodigy.html

Please have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.

You can get my blog on your Kindle, for easy reading, wherever you are, by going to: http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/B0042P5LEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284603792&sr=8-1

Please let all your fellow Kindlers know about my blog availability - and if you know my blog well enough, please be so kind as to write a thoughtful review of what you like about it. Thanks.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at:http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/

Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/

Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is athttp://www.genghiscan.com/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

Malaysia's serial killer lawyers.

Yes. I didn't believe it, either. However, as I write, Malaysia has erupted with news that two lawyer brothers are, it seems, responsible for murdering at least 17 people, some of them, at least, of whom are clients or business associates.

Now, what makes these crimes even more surprising, given Malaysia's social stratification is that one of the accused lawyer brothers is a Datuk. That is equivalent to the European aristocratic designation of "Lord". He is - or was - a highly respected and very well positioned member of society. He is, also, it is alleged, a rampant serial killer.

The people presently known to have been murdered include Sosilawati Lawiya, a millionaire Beauty queen tycoon, whose disappearance along with her driver and her lawyer, sparked the investigation. All three were murdered, their bodies burnt. Since then it turns out that an ever rising number of people who had contact with the lawyer brothers, have turned out to have been murdered. Only a few days ago, newspapers were saying that 9 had been murdered. This morning that tally has risen to "at least 17". They even include a housewife, T.Selvi who was related to the brothers, by marriage. Her husband had lent money to people designated by the lawyers (which included a woman close to them). Two tranches of the money (of sums up to 80,000 RM at a time) were not repaid. The lawyer brothers then threatened THEIR OWN RELATIVE that his family would be harmed if he didn't drop the matter. In due course they attacked him, then killed his wife. After her death, he received a phone call saying they would wipe out the rest of his family, if he didn't back off. Curiously, the police did not really investigate his complaint with any vigour at the time.

Now, police are examining the main suspect's poultry farm at Sungai Gadung, near Tanjung Sepat and the waterways close by for bodies, bones and personal possessions. It is a grim mission and one that moves me to ask: how on Earth could two brothers, capable of such gruesome crimes, ever have become lawyers and climbed to such respected positions in society in the first place?

A man does not just become a serial killer overnight: there must always have been, within these two brothers, a murderous darkness - how is it that no-one saw it, until now? How is it that they murdered at least 17 people who had encountered them, perhaps all of them through their business dealings...and no-one had noticed, until a very high profile victim disappeared?

There seems to me to be too little oversight in who is allowed to become a lawyer and who is conferred the title of Datuk. No-one who could commit crimes like this, should ever become the local equivalent of a Lord. It mocks the whole idea of a respected position in society, when that respected position is occupied by a monster closer to Hannibal Lecter than the ideal of an aristocrat.

It is my hope that, in the light of this, there might be implemented a system of assessment of the character of applicants to the legal profession. Every potential lawyer should be examined closely for evidence of evil in their disposition. Should there be ANY signs of dishonesty, undue anger, violence or vengefulness in their background, such a person should NEVER be allowed into the legal profession. To do so, is only to court the kind of gross criminality these two brothers indulged in. When a monster is placed in a position of trust, over his client's money, it should be little surprise if the client ends up buried in a country estate, somewhere, as it appears likely these brothers did with their clients.

Then again, there is the matter of the Datukship. How was such a worthy title ever conferred on the lawyer in question? It can only mean that he utterly gulled society with his personally constucted image of worthiness. To my mind, that means that people were only looking at the superficial aspects of his life - and not examining too closely the character behind it. Surely, even if he managed to put on a public persona, is it not certain that, in the privacy of his own family environment, that the monstrous side of him, would have been clear? Would they have not seen dishonesty? Would they have not been victims of rage or seen his immoral dealings, firsthand? Might they not have heard speak of "getting rid" of people...of plotting the demise of people who, mysteriously, were never heard from again? All of this is very likely...yet, the family said nothing. So, even if the brothers are convicted in this matter, I don't really think it is enough. It might be wise to look at the entire family of these villainous two, and discover to what extent they might have been complicit in the crimes.

If there is a lesson to be learnt from this, for Malaysia and the wider world, it is that we cannot assume that, just because a profession is respected, that its members are worthy of that respect. A lawyer may not be lawful in their dealings, though they are supposed to be custodians of the Law. So, too, with the police, accountancy, medicine, science and any other number of professions. The integrity of a person can never be assumed, it must be proven by their conduct. In the case of the Law, however, given the special position of trust, in which lawyers are placed, it would seem negligent of society, if special procedures were not put in place, to ascertain the integrity and decency of the members of the Law. A new requirement should, therefore, be put in place, for admission to the profession: a character check. So, too, should such a check apply to anyone who is to receive a title, such as Datuk. No one should be made a "Lord" who is not worthy of being one.

I hope that such a character check can be implemented, soon, on all members of the legal profession, present and future - for many are the crimes of lawyers, around the world, though they are usually less notable and of the financial variety. I have heard of untold numbers of lawyers disappearing with their client's money: there is one sure way to stop that - make sure they never become lawyers in the first place. It is, therefore, a preventable category of crime - it is only up to society to take action to snuff it out, before it happens.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 6 and Tiarnan, 4, this month, please go to:
http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html

I also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.

My Internet Movie Database listing is at: http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/
Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/
Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is at http://www.genghiscan.com/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)

Hollywood good guys and bad guys.

Hollywood is a world of good guys and bad guys, of lines between good and evil carefully drawn. It is world in which there can be no mistaking who is good and who is evil, unlike in the real world, in which spin, media control and other measures can obscure what is truly evil and make it seem to be better than it is.

Children, however, have a way of seeing through to the core of things. Fintan, five, likes his Hollywood films and cartoons as much as any other child, but he doesn't just watch them, he considers them, too.

The other day, he turned to his mother, suddenly, with a question on his lips, as is his way:

"Mummy: why do the bad guys always lose, when they are bigger?". His eyes puzzled up at hers, sure that something wasn't quite right in this picture.

Now, I don't, at this moment, know Syahidah's reply...but the question alone is revealing enough. He had spotted an inconsistency between film and reality. In the real world, the big guys tend to win. In film, this is not necessarily so: if they are big and EVIL, they will lose against the heroic good guy. Fintan wasn't happy with this picture since it conflicted with his understanding of likelihoods.

The funny thing about it is that many adults may have overlooked the truth that Fintan had spotted: the EVIL guy does tend to be more powerful, more dangerous, larger, more difficult to defeat - yet, he (it is usually a man) is always defeated by our daring Hollywood hero.

It is sweet to watch Fintan try to reconcile the world of the TV/Film/Cartoon to the real world, sketching out where they meet and where they do not. I find that he sees things that often we tend to overlook - perhaps because he is actually thinking about what he sees, instead of just receiving it passively.

I hope this habit of thought endures and that he is always someone to question what he sees and what he learns.

Regarding the winning of the good guy...if only it were always so in the real world, too.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

Fintan's sense of morality.

Fintan, five, was having a conversation today with his mother about the Romans.

"Why did they build forts, mummy?"

"Well, because when they won battles, they had to have somewhere to put everything they took. Then they could become more powerful.", she said, a little loosely.

He was unhappy with this answer. "Become more evil, you mean."

Syahidah was surprised at this moral view, coming from her five year old son. He had judged the ways of the Romans and instead, as many boys might have been, of being impressed with their military prowess and stratagems, he had just seen them as evil.

There are many ways a child can impress - doing so by showing a strong sense of what is right and what is wrong, is one of the better ones.

I am pleased to see that Fintan is able to make moral judgements like this - and that they seem so well judged, given the true nature of what the Romans were up to.

Well done, Fintan.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.)

Taking credit for the goodwill of the world.

There is something odious about the regime in Myanmar that is quite beyond belief. The world has watched as Myanmar's ruling military junta have opposed the efforts of the world to help their desperate people (estimated to be up to 2 million people in dire need of assistance, in the most recent information on the matter). The junta is requesting that aid be delivered without any foreign workers being allowed to accompany it. They say that they will then distribute it.

When I first heard this, I was very suspicious of their motives. My interpretation was that they wanted to take the credit for providing aid to their people. Just think about it: if the man who gives you the box of free food and medicine is in a military uniform, from whom would you think the aid was from? To whom would you be grateful? By the simple expedient of preventing foreigners from distributing it the Burmese government could achieve two aims at once: they would prevent the oppressed Burmese people from learning that the outside world cares about them and is assisting them - and they would create the false impression that the Burmese government does, actually, care for its people and is doing something about it. To allow the Burmese government to distribute the aid is to allow two very big lies to be told, therefore.

Now, that is what I thought when I heard of their conditions. I did not imagine, however, how far the Burmese government would take their deceptive ways. According to a recent Associated Press report, the military government in Burma is handing out aid packages that HAVE BEEN RELABELLED. Stuck on them, in large letters, are the names of Myanmar junta generals. The cynicism of this deception is quite appalling.

I would like to give you the names of the generals who are relabelling food aid - but I can't. You see, one name was mentioned in the AP report, but when I checked back later, the name had been edited out of the online report. I find this odd. It seems to imply that AP have been contacted by the Myanmar government and told where to get off.

So, instead of being concerned about the 2 million endangered citizens of Myanmar, the generals are concerned about turning it into a propaganda opportunity.

All of this makes me wonder why the international community has tolerated this particular regime for the last 46 years. It seems to me that something decisive should have been done a long, long time ago, on behalf of the Burmese people. Yet, nothing is done - and I don't suppose anything concrete ever will be done. The people will just suffer on. The ones who don't die that is.

So, we now have a curious situation in which the world is in a double bind. If the world stands by and does nothing, the people of Myanmar will suffer and die (for their "masters" will do nothing to help them). However, if the world sends aid for the people of Myanmar, their masters will take the credit for it, reinforcing their stranglehold over this choking people - and so they will suffer on. Either way, the people of Myanmar will suffer.

Not to send aid, is to watch the Burmese die. To send aid, is to reinforce the Burmese regime. What a situation.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and five months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and ten months, and Tiarnan, twenty-seven months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind, niño, gênio criança, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)