The thoughts that shape my writing

Fragments of history, reflections on memory, and glimpses of the human thread that runs through it all.

Plato’s Cave, Now Streaming in 4K
John Rees John Rees

Plato’s Cave, Now Streaming in 4K

After Socrates drank the hemlock, someone had to tidy up the conversation. Enter Plato: philosopher, organiser, and the man who turned confusion into curriculum.

If Socrates was philosophy’s street busker, Plato was the one who built the concert hall.

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A Death Without Compassion
John Rees John Rees

A Death Without Compassion

When power rushes to certainty before evidence — and compassion is treated as expendable — belief replaces thought, and a human life disappears from view.

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The Dangerous Art of Asking Questions
John Rees John Rees

The Dangerous Art of Asking Questions

Growing up in south Wales, I never accepted what anyone told me at face value. I always wanted to know why. If it rained for days on end — which it frequently seemed to do — I wanted to know what caused it. I wasn’t especially bright. Just incurably curious. Rather like a 20th Century young Socrates!

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The Age of Collective Stupidity
John Rees John Rees

The Age of Collective Stupidity

I lived through the first dotcom bubble — a time when hype, “expert” predictions, and collective belief drove stock prices into the stratosphere. I sold some shares early and was told I was crazy… until the bubble burst and fortunes vanished overnight.

Looking back, I realised this wasn’t just market failure — it was collective stupidity on a global scale.

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