Patrick Comerford
This blog is about to reach the monumental landmark of 7.5 million hits. The 7.5 million mark is about to passed later today (29 November 2023), and it has come as a delight.
After I began blogging, it took until July 2012 to reach 0.5 million hits. This figure rose to 1 million by September 2013; 1.5 million in June 2014; 2 million in June 2015; 2.5 million in November 2016; 3 million by October 2016; 3.5 million by September 2018; 4 million on 19 November 2019; 4.5 million on 18 June 2020; 5 million on 27 March 2021; 5.5 million on 28 October 2021; 6 million over a year on 1 July 2022; and 6.5 million early this year (6 February 2023), and 7 million about four month ago (13 August 2023).
This means that this blog continues to reach half a million readers in a four-to-seven month period, somewhere above 71,000 a month, up to 2,400 a day, and an average of almost 800 hits for each post. In recent months these figures have been exceeded on occasions, with a record 23,234 hits on one single day (3 September), followed by 21,999 (4 September), 15,211 (7 September), 15,193 (6 September) 11,333 (5 September), 10,785 (28 November), and 10,091 (26 September). At times, there have been 8,000 to 10,000 hits a day in recent months, including yesterday.
With this latest landmark figure of 7.5 million hits, I find myself asking: What do 7.5 million people look like? What would £7.5 million or €7.5 million buy? How vast is 7.5 million sq km? What does 7.5 million of anything mean to the environment?
Figures published in the Observer last month (13 November 2023) show that 7.5 million Palestinians and Arabs are living in the West Bank, Gaza and within the borders of Israel itself. About 7 million Jews are living in Israel itself, and other figures show at least 0.5 million Jews living on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. This gives us two competing totals of 7.5 million, and a total of 15 million people.
Hong Kong has a population of 7.5 million people. The population rose 2.1% from the middle of last year to June this year, marking the first significant rise since a downward trend began in 2020 due to COVID-19 measures.
The number of people living in Hong Kong increased by 152,000 in the period, bringing the Chinese special administrative region’s population to 7,498,100 by the middle of this year. It was the highest figure since 2019 when the city’s mid-year population hit 7,507,900.
Laos in south-east Asia also has a population of 7.5 million, and cities with populations of about 7.5 million include Ahmedabad in India, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and Xi’an in China.
Charlotte and I were blessed earlier this year to visit Ukrainian refugees in both Hungary and Finland. About 7.5 million Ukrainian refugees have fled their homes since the start of the war early last year.
Over 33 million refugees have been granted protection in another country in the last 10 years. A small number of countries are bearing almost all the responsibility, while most countries in the world have scarcely received any refugees at all. But many European countries have little to be proud of. In total, EU countries have provided protection to only 7.5 million refugees over the last 10 years, which corresponds to 1.63 per cent of the population.
Although the EU as a whole has received a large number of refugees in the last 10 years, this is because a few countries, such as Germany and Sweden, have taken responsibility.
The waiting list for hospital treatment in England topped 7.5 million people for the first time at the end of June – up by 100,000 on the month before. The latest figures show a record high waiting list of 7.77 million, and this could peak at more than 8 million by summer 2024. It means nearly one in seven of the population is on an NHS waiting list for routine treatment, including hip and knee operations.
The waiting list is now more than three million higher than it was before the pandemic. Of those on a waiting list, more than 383,000 have been waiting for longer than a year. And the figures continued to rise during the year, reaching 7.8 million in September.
Worldwide, raised blood pressure is estimated to cause 7.5 million deaths, about 12.8% of the total of all deaths, according to figures from the World Health Organisation. This accounts for 57 million disability adjusted life years (DALYS) or 3.7% of total DALYS.
Raised blood pressure is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease and ischemic as well as haemorrhagic stroke.
The world’s vineyards cover an estimated 7.5 million hectares. To go up in scale, the Atlantic Ocean is an expanse of more than 75 million sq km – more accurately 76.76 million sq km, compared to the Pacific, which is almost twice the size at 155.56 million sq km.
The Antarctic is in the midst of a once in a 7.5-million-year winter, as sea ice surrounding the continent declines at a concerning rate which could have a major impact on the Earth’s weather systems.
Dr Caroline Holmes of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) says such a steep deterioration could create a ‘feedback loop’ – causing ocean temperatures to get hotter and hotter. Researchers have described the current situation in the Antarctic Ocean as a ‘five-sigma’ event – a significant deviation from normal conditions.
The ocean is said to be Earth’s life support, with 97% of the world’s water held by the ocean. We rely on it to regulate our climate, absorb CO2 and it is the number one source for protein for over a billion people. However, at the rate we are polluting the ocean with around 12.7 million tonnes of plastic a year, the damage we are doing to marine life and our ecosystem is becoming irreparable. Our actions over the 10 years will determine the state of the ocean for the next 10,000 years to come.
Forest fires and firefighting efforts this summer on the Greek island of Rhodes alone have cost around €7.5 million.
Plastic straws make up about 1% of the plastic waste in the sea. Among the statistics in a recent report, scientists estimate 7.5 million straws pollute US coastlines and there are between 437 million and 8.3 billion plastic straws on coastlines around the world.
Another study suggests switching just 30% of meat for plant-based alternatives would save enough water to fill 7.5 million swimming pools per year. If the biggest meat-eating countries swapped 30 percent of animal products for vegan proteins, they could also free up a carbon sink the size of India by 2030.
These findings come from new research carried out by the consultancy Profundo and commissioned by the environmental group Madre Brava.
A country estate with a connection to Emmerdale, the long-running soap opera, was put on the market a few months ago by Savills with an asking price of £7.5 million. Arthington Hall, in the picturesque West Yorkshire village of the same name, was built in the mid-15th century, and was used as a filming location for Emmerdale in the mid-1990s, and for the period police drama Heartbeat.
After a fire in the late 1700s, the house was substantially remodelled by John Carr, one of the great architects of the day in northern England. One of the most significant stamps Carr left on the home was its ‘flying staircase’: set in an oval stairwell, the staircase starts with two flights that meet to form a central unsupported flight.
Kilmurry House, an 18th-century manor in Thomastown, Co Kilkenny, is on the market for €7.5 million through the estate agents Sherry Fitzgerald. The house stands on over 90 acres of land and has an impressive landscape that includes its own lake.
The house dates from 1690 and is a 20-minute drive from Kilkenny city and 1.5 hours from Dublin city, It was the birthplace and home of the Irish watercolourist Mildred Anne Butler (1858-1941). Seven of her watercolours were bought by the National Gallery of Ireland for its permanent collection.
The Belle Isle Estate on the banks of Upper Lough Erne and on the outskirts of Lisbellaw in Co Fermanagh, has also gone on the market through Savills, once again with an asking price of £7.5 million.
The estate, owned in recent decades by the Duke of Abercorn, is where the Annals of Ulster were written. It includes a 17th century castle, and a total of 181 ha (448 acres), with about 239 acres of pasture land and 178 acres of woodland, including ancient woods of mixed species, 6.5 miles of water frontage, four private islands and a jetty for a boat.
I would never wish for such extravagance ever to be within my reach. I can only respond by suggesting £7.5 million would buy a large number of tents for homeless people in Britain, no matter what Suella Braverman thinks.
During conservation and restoration works that have cost €7.5 million, a secret room was discovered in Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford. The room was discovered in August by a carpenter was working on a window. When the contractors broke through a section of wall they uncovered a hidden room that had remained untouched for many years.
Brenda Comerford, the manager of Johnstown Castle, said the room appeared to have been covered up for a long time. ‘It is part of one of the towers and looking around it, on initial inspection we think it was most likely a small turret bedroom.’ The room is being assessed by the Irish Heritage Trust to find out more about what it was used for, when and who by.
I have said so often before that this is not a ‘bells-and-whistles’ blog, and I still hope it is never going to be a commercial success. It was never designed to be so.
I decline advertising and commercial sponsorships, I accept no ‘freebies,’ and I endorse no products. Even when I am political, mainly about war and peace, racism, human rights and refugees, I refuse to declare my personal party preferences when it comes to voting.
I continue to resist commercial pressures, I have refused to receive books from publishers and I only review books I have bought myself. Without making too much a point of it, I value my independence so much that I refuse the offer of coffee when I return to a restaurant I mention … as journalists like to be reminded, there is no such thing as a free meal.
The half dozen most popular postings on this blog so far have been:
1, About me (1 May 2007), over 36,000 hits.
2, The Transfiguration: finding meaning in icons and Orthodox spirituality (7 April 2010), over 30,000 hits.
3, ‘When all that’s left of me is love, give me away’ … a poem before Kaddish has gone viral (15 January 2020), over 29,000 hits.
4, Readings in Spirituality: the novelist as a writer in spirituality and theology (26 November 2009), over 16,600 hits.
5, A visit to Howth Castle and Environs (19 March 2012), over 16,000 hits.
6, Raising money at the book stall and walking the beaches of Portrane (1 August 2011), over 12,000 hits.
When I think of 7.5 million hits, I think of 7.5 million people, and today, once more, I am humble of heart rather than having a swollen head.
But this blog should never be about success measured in the number of hits. I shall repeat again a recent posting by my friend and colleague, the Revd David Messer, that has helped me to draw a comparison between blogging like this and some of my experiences in ministry:
‘I wish I had something worthwhile of my own to say, but at the moment, I haven’t the wherewithal ... because rural ministry means living in a permanent state of failure – which is exhausting. So instead, here’s a wonderful quote from Giles Fraser, which gives me heart:
‘In a world where we semaphore our successes to each other at every possible opportunity, churches cannot be blamed for failing to live up to this austere and wonderful message. The worst of them judge their success in entirely worldly terms, by counting their followers.
‘Their websites show images of happy, uncomplicated people doing good improving stuff in the big community. But if I am right about the meaning of Christ’s passion, then a church is at its best when it fails, when it gives up on all the ecclesiastical glitter, when the weeds start to break through the floor, and when it shows others that failure is absolutely nothing of the sort.
‘This is the site of real triumph, the moment of success.
‘Failure is redeemed.
Hallelujah.’
Now that I am in my 70s, I find myself agreeing with the Swedish actor Ingrid Bergman who she once said: ‘Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!’
Moving from ideas such as these into prayer on this afternoon, I might pray in these words, although I do not know who wrote them:
‘May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, superficial relationships, so that you will live deep within your heart.
‘May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people, so that you will work for justice, equality and peace.
‘May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you will reach out your hand to comfort them and change their pain into joy.
‘And may God bless you with the foolishness to think that you can make a difference in the world, so that you will do the things which others tell you cannot be done.’
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