Having a background in psychology, I should be entirely comfortable with the outcome of a new criminological study into street crime that demonstrates that the underlying motives for such crime can be rather more complex than mere acquisition.
And yet, instead, I find myself unable to shake the mental picture of Tony Blair striding purposefully into the Cabinet Room, research paper in hand, to announce:
“Thanks for the report, John. Very useful… Now about this Ludovico Technique. Any thoughts?”
Good call, droogie – I was wondering whether there’d be a spate of ‘A Clockwork Orange’-style headlines in response to the report…and yes, Blair is that stupid/desperate/illiberal.
Meanwhile: http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/zimbardo05/zimbardo05_index.html
Espcially the bit about abandoning a car in urban New York versus abandoning a car in Palo Alto.