Background

Machines: much of my life has been dedicated to machines that do neat things (like radios, airplanes, cars, motorcycles, web servers, computers, and electronic gadgets). I enjoy using the power we have to make machines do what we want. There is something very spiritual in flying an airplane and knowing that the wing will not break, because clever engineers designed it no to. It won't break, period (And if it does, it's not due to God but to bad calculations). I feel strongly this liberates you from superstition and dogmatic religious thought.

Reading. I like to read. A lot. Everything from The Economist to biographies to novels. Even occasional poetry: here are some of my favourite poems.

Style: I love style and luxury. We only live here for three score years and ten, and during that time, one way to love life is by enjoying style and quality. That is why I unapologetically like Italian clothes, Mercedes-Benz, Cartier leather, Mont Blanc fountain pens, hardwood, antiques, gold, and Rolex watches - you get the picture.

Civil liberties - Not much separates our liberal society from dictatorship. I consider imposing one's values or lifestyle on others wrong. To me, censorship is the thin end of the wedge. Restrictions of civil liberties are always imposed "for the nation's good", "against terrorism", and "against immoral behaviour". How can you argue with those aims? - Except we don't all agree what is moral. Is all this theory? Yes, until you are in a country where you are not allowed to read The Economist, where reading Playboy can send you to jail, or where criticising the government can lead to your disappearance. And that's most countries in the world. I watch documentaries about Nazi Germany, The Khmer Rouge, and the Spanish Inquisition, and realise how easily it could happen again, if we allow it to, by not speaking up for our beliefs.

Religion: I do not wish in any way to offend anyone (and indeed my wife is a churchgoer), but I see no truth in religion and I see no reason to consider God anything but fiction, like Santa Claus, made up by people striving to explain the things they did not understand, and a force for orthodoxy and against free thought. I think the spiritual is inside us, not an outside force. It's frightening that in the early 21st century, 'admitting' that you are an atheist can upset people and lead to social repercussions; when I grew up in liberal Europe, I thought that sort of thing went out after the 17th century. In November 1999, the papers reported that 40% of Americans believe in literal biblical creation (and not in evolution). That scares me.

Time: Like everyone else, I have changed over time: see here how.