Hi all & Paddy,

I think the responses to Paddy have confirmed to some degree that there is a bias expressed here, against the idea of premies being happy. My guess is that the generalistation about premies being unhappy is usually used as part of a generalisation to do with another argument and is not the main point. It is most often an impliied point.

I've been doing some reading in the area of Hedonic Psychology which is the psychology of choices that are made around happiness. Kahneman is the main proponent of this stuff. And it is exceedingly good and exceedingly well researched. The last thing I read said that 'most people are happy most if the time and large life effecting events have far less long term effect on that happiness than is commonly thought'. I found that good for me to read. It helps me becasue I work with other people in adult education and I can become quite grandiose about how much I assist them.

I also reckon that the bias Paddy has tapped into is also to do with "who else would still be around after all this time but those who were having an OK time of it all?" And by an OK time I mean 'as good a time as most people'.

Personally I have a stronger bias against catholics and ex-catholics in terms of the struggles they usually have in their lives with trying to be happy. But this is better said on a ex-catholic site of which I am sure there are numerous. I am not and never have been catholic but I work with people who have dilemmas with guilt and self forgiveness.

I also spend time in the Byron Shire which is physically heaven on earth (assuming the rain patterns don't change too much as the world warms up) and there is chronic depression and existential listlessness in the area. There is also a woppingly large batch of ex-everythings there. Teenagers have a particularly difficult time. Parents move there to be free and live the good life. However the good life doesn't come from doing nothing but from doing something. There is not much work in Byron Shire. There is thus not much disposable income thus there is not much of the good life for many. I bring this up here because I just had Easter there. I often think of that population during discussions here.

Cheers all

Peter Howie

Brisbane, Australia