Watch out for Hallucinations and Magic Thinking in Public Debate!

First of all, I want to share a secret. After reading Elfrid's and Milas' Real Christmas by the Swedish writer Pernilla Oljelund, I understood how it is possible for Santa Claus to visit and fulfil the wishes of children all over the world during the same evening. It is nothing strange, since Santa Claus has got a secret magic time and space powder, which makes transitions in time and space possible. Ordinary people who get hold of it can-although Santa Claus forbids it-also use this powder. So better watch out when you hear someone saying “Internet” or “European Union” in public debate. At the moment they are uttering these phrases, it often is almost impossible to detect whether they are using the secret magic powder in order to transfer the discussion to an area in which it is difficult to tell what is true and what is false, what is reality and what is fantasy. Often, you have a feeling that something is wrong and rotten. However, not used to the new timeless global world, it still is difficult to fully trust one's own imagination and intuition. I discussed these questions with my friends on New Year's Eve. We also associated to the magic of theatre and talked about different theatre plays we had seen during 2007. The Dance of Death, written by August Strindberg, had played at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm. In this play, Strindberg creates a couple, Edgar and Alice, living in a granite fortress and tormenting each other with intrigues and well-worn accusations. Their friend Kurt is drawn into their vicious marital games, as are their children. My impressions after the performance were complex. Although I admired the actors and the quality of the performance, the remaining feeling was that time had passed by.

I had quite a different experience after seeing the play The Homecoming by Harold Pinter, at the Stockholm Stadsteater (City Theatre). During this play, I gradually was drawn into the story, experiencing the tensions and potential violence arising w