“You report on more of the usual puritanical preaching about increased middle-aged boozing. Might I suggest a cause? I am middle-aged. I notice that almost all of my salaried contemporaries are sick of their jobs. Modern management styles, inculcated by that pernicious and useless institution the business school, are based on the target culture, efficiency savings and head-count reduction. Employees are under constant stress. Bosses with no relevant experience, and with no appreciation of its value, sweep in, wreak havoc and jump ship with their CVs carefully burnished. This happens across society, from schools to major corporations. Is it any wonder that more and more of us take to the bottle?”

Epicurus never had to deal with that. Life back then was simple and rural. We have made it complex and have handed over too much power to the bosses. But there is still something to escape to: the real or the philosophical garden, where you can gain mental and spiritual comfort from your like-minded friends and by all means curse the un-human design of modern capitalism. Content yourself with reflecting that society was originally organised for human beings, who need encouragement, a belief in what they are doing, and reasonable income and job security. They will not for long be treated as expendable machines. The current anti-human, un-humane setup cannot go on indefinitely.