After I made and posted my entry earlier I decided to go out again, this time to Woolwich. I think I’ve described here before how Woolwich is quite an up and coming area: it has a reputation for being a bit rough, but it has a lot going for it, such as an Elizabeth Line station and a large public square with a big screen, where people can gather and watch sports and state events. When I was going through the square today though, I was rather bemused to encounter not one but three street preachers, all standing separately and reading different parts of the bible. I couldn’t help reflecting on how stupid it seemed: they were talking over one another, so all that was audible was a garbled nonsense. Needless to say nobody was listening to any of them. Part of me really wanted to stay and tell all three of them to shut up, but I knew it was pointless. It just struck me as a brilliant illustration of the idiocy of such behaviour: perhaps if they worked together and coordinated what they were trying to tell people, some might listen. But because all three wanted to do his own thing and be the centre of attention, the one to deliver the message which they apparently thought was oh-so-important, the only thing anyone passing by could hear was three voices of garbled, competing nonsense.